Michigan House Speaker Matt Hall (R-Richland Twp.) during a April 15, 2025 press conference where he outlined House Republicans plans for the coming session days. | Kyle Davidson
To no surprise, Republican leadership in the Michigan House of Representatives has refused to take up legislation that would ban the use of face masks and require all law enforcement officers to wear clear identification.
House Bill 4760, also known as the “Justice Needs No Mask” bill, was unveiled last week by state Rep. Betsy Coffia (D-Traverse City) in response to growing public concern over masked, unidentified federal agents conducting immigration raids and detentions across the country.
Coffia told the Michigan Advance that while some of her GOP colleagues in the House had privately said they were disturbed by the increasing use of masked federal agents to carry out President Donald Trump’s mass deportation policy, she was less confident any of them would publicly support the legislation.
On Saturday, Michigan House Speaker Matt Hall (R-Richland Township) made it clear his caucus would not pass what he called “an attack” on law enforcement efforts in Michigan.
“The people want these dangerous criminal aliens off our street, and we are doing everything we can to partner with the Trump administration and put an end to illegal immigration. Democrats will do everything they can to get in the way of local police and ICE, because they’ve always cared more about criminals than victims. But that ends here – this ridiculous bill is dead on arrival,” Hall said in a press release.
Reiterating that stance, the bill was referred to the House Government Operations Committee, a traditional dumping ground for dead-end legislation.
Coffia fired back at Hall, telling the Advance that Hall’s statement was “full of the same tired right wing lies,” and that House Republicans’ inability to put forward a state budget plan was a far greater threat to law enforcement.
“Speaking of backing the blue, if Matt Hall continues to fail to pass a budget out of the Republican controlled House chamber, our state police and local school resource officers won’t have the funds they need,” Coffia said.
While the Democratic-led Michigan Senate has passed a full budget, lawmakers blew past the state’s July 1 deadline for a completed and signed deal, as the House has only passed an education spending plan but not a full budget funding all of state government.
Coffia said the $20 billion stopgap spending plan passed by House Republicans in March, which would maintain government services in the event of a government shutdown, would cut the Michigan State Police budget by 37.4%.
As to the mask bill, Coffia said it is not an isolated effort.
“My bill is one of several from state legislatures across the country challenging the Trump administration’s use of masked unmarked secret police tactics and demands that they function the way our local and state police do every single day – faces and badges visible,” Coffia said.
The bill also echoes federal legislation introduced by U.S. Sen. Elissa Slotkin (D-Holly), as well as an effort including Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel, who has joined other attorneys general in pushing for a similar federal standard.
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