this post was submitted on 20 Feb 2026
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New Jersey lawmakers introduced a bill this week that could bar some U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement personnel from ever holding public jobs in the state.

The legislative package includes:

A bill, A4302, that would disqualify ICE agents and officers who served between Sept. 1, 2025, and Jan. 20, 2029, from getting a public job in New Jersey in the future. They would be banned from becoming state or local government employees, including law enforcement officers and public school teachers.

A bill, A4300, that would impose a 50% tax on the gross receipts of private detention facilities operating under government contracts. The money would be directed to a new Immigrant Protection Fund.

A bill, A4301, that would make it a criminal offense for anyone — including federal ICE officers — to block state, county or municipal law enforcement from accessing crime scenes or evidence.___

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[–] jballs@sh.itjust.works 8 points 3 hours ago

Damn those 2nd and 3rd points are equally amazing.

A bill, A4300, that would impose a 50% tax on the gross receipts of private detention facilities operating under government contracts. The money would be directed to a new Immigrant Protection Fund.

A bill, A4301, that would make it a criminal offense for anyone — including federal ICE officers — to block state, county or municipal law enforcement from accessing crime scenes or evidence.

New Jersey ain't fucking around.

[–] exaybachae@startrek.website 3 points 4 hours ago (1 children)

It'll be challenged and decided to be unconstitutional as ICE agents are a special protected class, which makes this descriminatory and illegal.

Not saying it's right, but that's what will happen.

[–] Formfiller@lemmy.world 4 points 4 hours ago

Traitor isn’t a protected class

[–] Formfiller@lemmy.world 2 points 4 hours ago

Ban IDF too

[–] jan@lemmy.blahaj.zone 4 points 5 hours ago

They been operating concentration camps far before 2025 but this is still good progress ngl.

[–] ChicoSuave@lemmy.world 21 points 9 hours ago (1 children)

ICE agents are given a bonus of $50k over 5 years, roughly 10k a year. There is a clause in their contract that if they leave they have to pay back that bonus. There is zero likelihood ICE lasts with this budget for 5 years so there will be a downsizing to fit the available money.

ICE agents in New Jersey will be unable to find a job to pay back the federal government the (at least) $20k and be debt trapped in the system they are trying to protect. It's some justice.

It's more like Ouroboros, the system won't die, it just eats itself.

[–] FerretyFever0@fedia.io 59 points 11 hours ago (2 children)
[–] LifeInMultipleChoice@lemmy.dbzer0.com 22 points 11 hours ago (1 children)

I'll be interested to see if it passes

[–] FerretyFever0@fedia.io 12 points 10 hours ago

I don't know much about their state legislatures. But if Cory Booker and Chris Christie are even half decent examples of what they're like, I'd be ASTOUNDED. But, I'd certainly like to be surprised. It's still a step in the right direction, hopefully similar bills are proposed in other states, especially those that are a bit more likely to pass them.

[–] Sanguine@lemmy.dbzer0.com 7 points 8 hours ago

Common NJ W

[–] HessiaNerd@lemmy.world 24 points 10 hours ago (3 children)

California next please.

Personally, I would have it start 30 days after the law passes and be effective forever in order to maximize people quitting, but I see the argument that they are already participating in this shitshow so....

[–] AmbitiousProcess@piefed.social 13 points 6 hours ago

Good news, someone's already trying to get a bill like that passed in California!

It's the "GTFO ICE" bill. I'm not joking, that is the actual name.

https://www.mercurynews.com/2026/02/09/this-bill-would-ban-ice-agents-from-future-hiring-as-a-public-employee-in-california/?noamp=mobile

A Southern California lawmaker is behind new legislation that would disqualify U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents or other law enforcement personnel who engage in immigration enforcement activities from being hired as a local, county or state public agency employee in California.

[–] v_krishna@lemmy.ml 7 points 7 hours ago

Already under way. Assembly Bill 1627 will ban ICE agents from being teachers, cops, fire fighters, etc.

[–] SabinStargem@lemmy.today 6 points 7 hours ago (1 children)

Speaking for myself, I say that there should be no grace window. Anyone good who was with ICE, would have bailed by the half-year mark of 2025. And it was dubious at best whether there was anyone decent in the first place.

[–] AmbitiousProcess@piefed.social 11 points 6 hours ago (1 children)

The main point of a grace window is to give ICE agents a choice where quitting is the best option, as opposed to incentivizing doubling down.

If it works immediately, they'll just go "welp, nothing I can do about it now, might as well stay with ICE and keep collecting a paycheck since even if I quit it won't matter!" vs. "damn, maybe I shouldn't take the risk and I should get a different job now instead before that 30 day window closes in on me"

Personally, I'd like to see a mix to have some immediate punishment and some optional (if they quit) punishment too. (e.g. an extra tax on all your income for the next x number of years if you were an ICE agent at any time during the stated period, whether you quit later or not, plus being banned only if you continue your employment there)

[–] SabinStargem@lemmy.today 5 points 5 hours ago* (last edited 5 hours ago) (1 children)

That's fair. Now for my own viewpoint...


For me, I don't want members of ICE nor the Trump Regime to have any road of reintegration into American society. They are terrorists, rapists, and thieves: why would I ever want them to be my neighbors?

Sure, fighting them to the death would suck, because they will fight harder, and harming people is evil. But I also don't want them corrupting society with their malice and greed.

IMO, the only place they belong is in a noose. Many of the Confederates and Nazis got away, and raised families of a like mind. The fascists of today, are the fruit of an unwarranted mercy.

[–] orgrinrt@lemmy.world 5 points 4 hours ago

They are terrorists, rapists, and thieves: why would I ever want them to be my neighbors?

For the same reason rehabilitation is the only sensible reason to even maintain a prison system in the first place: People can change.

This response is just for the “ever” part though. And that framing. I think there are things other than the mentioned thieving, raping and terrorism, perfectly valid as a reason to reject a neighbor, that has no real path toward rehabilitation. I like to think anyone deserves a second chance, no matter the crime, but that only really works with crime as defined today. If someone’s a deplorable asshole, and as such, never actually goes through rehabilitation because it’s not a crime, I think that’s a valid reason to never want them as a neighbor.

So there’s a distinction. Those going through rehabilitation are redeemable in my eyes, always, until proven otherwise by wasting the chances they get.

Those never rehabilitating, i.e doing shit that’s not illegal by today’s standards (or at least never put into the rehabilitation pipeline for it), aren’t.

And I think that is the reason you don’t want them as neighbors. Not that they’ve done crimes, that is redeemable, if you believe in the system. If not, why waste resources with prisons? What’s the point if the thinking is they’ll always just be bad and do hurtful things?

No, you don’t want them because they are fucking shitty people and never suffer the consequences for it, i.e never rehabilitate.

[–] Blackfeathr@lemmy.world 28 points 11 hours ago* (last edited 11 hours ago)

This needs to happen nationwide.

New Jersey is a good start though

[–] jjjalljs@ttrpg.network 9 points 11 hours ago

Sounds like a good start

[–] HorikBrun@kbin.earth 7 points 11 hours ago

Right the f*!k ON, NJ.

[–] FlashMobOfOne@lemmy.world 7 points 11 hours ago

As they fucking should.

[–] corsicanguppy@lemmy.ca 5 points 11 hours ago (1 children)

This reads as if Jersey got a bit pissed.