PORTLAND, Ore. (KOIN) – Senator Jeff Merkley (D-OR) is denouncing Senate Republicans for rejecting an amendment that would require some federal law enforcement officers to display their identifying information.

In an October 9 vote, Merkley’s amendment to the National Defense Authorization Act — a bill which appropriates funding to the Department of Defense and the Department of Energy — was struck down in a 47-50 vote, with three senators not voting: Sens. Catherine Cortez Masto (D-NV), Thom Tillis (R-NC) and Ted Cruz (R-TX).

Merkley introduced the amendment alongside Oregon’s Senior Senator, Ron Wyden, in an effort to prevent unidentified federal law enforcement from being deployed against Americans, Merkley explained.

The amendment would have required federal law enforcement officers or members of an armed force who are tasked with crowd control or civil disobedience arrests to clearly display their identifying information, including their name or the agency they belong to.

Additionally, the bill would have banned these federal law enforcement officers from covering up their identifying information, for example, by taping over or otherwise concealing identifying information.

“I led an amendment with Senator Wyden to require federal military and law enforcement agents to display their agency and name or badge number at protests. There is a name for unidentified security forces throwing protesters into unmarked vans at the direction of an authoritarian government: fascism. This happened under Trump in 2020 and is happening now,” Sen. Merkley said in an Oct. 10 press release. “While 47 Senate Democrats supported my amendment, 50 Senate Republicans blocked this common-sense amendment to help hold federal forces accountable for their tactics. I’ll continue to explore all avenues to stand up for our civil rights and oppose Trump’s illegal attempts to use federal law enforcement and armed forces against Americans.”

In a statement, Sen. Wyden added, “Imagine the terror any adult or child suffers when somebody who’s masked and unidentified swoops in to snatch them away in Oregon or anywhere else in America.”

“Senate Republicans showed their true colors this week when they rejected this amendment that would have restored common sense and common decency to Donald Trump’s un-American scheme to squelch transparency, accountability and legality. I’ll keep pressing for legislation that would require federal agents to go unmasked, along with battling back just as hard against Trump’s plot to plunk troops needlessly into Portland,” Sen. Wyden continued.

Merkley’s amendment is based on his previous bill, the Preventing Authoritarian Policing Tactics on America’s Streets Act, which he introduced alongside Wyden and Congresswoman Suzanne Bonamici (OR-01) in 2020 “after unmarked federal forces grabbed protestors off the street in Portland,” Merkley explained.

The Oregon lawmakers renewed this effort by reintroducing the bill in July.

KOIN 6 News has reached out to the office of Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-SD). This story will be updated if we receive a response.

The amendment comes after President Donald Trump issued an order in late September to deploy National Guard troops to Portland amid protests outside of an Immigration and Customs Enforcement facility — kicking off a legal battle to decide whether the federalization of these troops was warranted or constitutional.