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S2163 • 2026

Creates disorderly persons offense for persons who conceal or attempt to conceal their identity while committing another crime or offense.

Creates disorderly persons offense for persons who conceal or attempt to conceal their identity while committing another crime or offense.

Budget Crime
Passed Legislature

This bill passed both chambers and reached final enrollment, even if later executive action is not shown here.

Sponsor
Moriarty, Paul D.
Last action
2026-06-11
Official status
Referred to Senate Budget and Appropriations Committee
Effective date
Not listed

Plain English Breakdown

Using official source text because the generated explanation was unavailable or could not be confirmed against the official bill text.

Creates disorderly persons offense for persons who conceal or attempt to conceal their identity while committing another crime or offense.

Creates disorderly persons offense for persons who conceal or attempt to conceal their identity while committing another crime or offense.

What This Bill Does

  • Creates disorderly persons offense for persons who conceal or attempt to conceal their identity while committing another crime or offense.
  • Topic: Budget and Appropriations Fiscal note: This bill has been certified by OLS for a fiscal note.

Limits and Unknowns

  • This entry is temporarily using official source text because the generated explanation could not be confirmed against the official bill text during the last sync.

Bill History

  1. 2026-06-11 New Jersey Legislature

    Reported from Senate Committee with Amendments, 2nd Reading

  2. 2026-06-11 New Jersey Legislature

    Referred to Senate Budget and Appropriations Committee

  3. 2026-01-13 New Jersey Legislature

    Introduced in the Senate, Referred to Senate Law and Public Safety Committee

Official Summary Text

Creates disorderly persons offense for persons who conceal or attempt to conceal their identity while committing another crime or offense.
Topic:
Budget and Appropriations
Fiscal note:
This bill has been certified by OLS for a fiscal note.

Current Bill Text

Read the full stored bill text 
S2163 SLP Statement 6/11/26

SENATE LAW AND PUBLIC SAFETY COMMITTEE

STATEMENT TO

SENATE, No.
2163

with
committee amendments

STATE
OF NEW JERSEY

DATED:
�JUNE
11, 2026

����� The Senate Law and Public Safety Committee reports
favorably and with committee amendments Senate Bill No. 2163.

����� As amended and reported by the committee, this bill
creates a disorderly persons offense for persons who conceal or attempt to
conceal their identity while committing another crime or offense.�

����� Under the provisions of the bill, it is a disorderly
persons offense for a person to conceal or attempt to conceal the person�s
identity by wearing a mask or disguise with the purpose of instilling fear,
hindering prosecution, or avoiding apprehension while committing another crime
or offense.

����� The bill provides that a person who wears a mask or
disguise for medical, religious, or expressive purposes is not to be deemed to
have acted with the purpose to instill fear, hinder prosecution, or avoid
apprehension.

����� As amended, a person would not be charged with a
disorderly persons offense pursuant to the bill�s provisions unless the person
was charged with an underlying crime or offense under Title 2C of the New
Jersey Statutes, or any other law of this State, and was wearing a mask or
disguise at the time the person committed the underlying crime or offense.

����� Finally, the bill also prohibits the merger of this
offense with any other criminal offense for the purpose of reducing a
defendant�s sentence.� It is a disorderly persons offense to violate the
provisions of the bill.� A disorderly persons offense is punishable by up to
six months imprisonment, a fine of up to $1,000, or both.

����� This bill was prefiled for introduction in the
2026-2027 session pending technical review.� As reported, the bill includes the
changes required by technical review, which has been performed.

COMMITTEE AMENDMENTS
:

����� The committee amended the bill to clarify that a
person would not be charged with a disorderly persons offense unless the person:
is charged with an underlying crime or offense under Title 2C of the New Jersey
Statutes or any other law of this State; and was wearing a mask or disguise at
the time the person committed the underlying crime or offense.� As introduced,
the provisions of the bill applied only to crimes or offenses under Title 2C of
the New Jersey Statutes.