A federal judge on Monday blocked a New York law prohibiting federal immigration agents from wearing masks and requiring them to display identification. 

The Department of Justice had argued in a lawsuit filed in June that New York's efforts to limit ICE operations represented an illegal effort to regulate the federal government, the New York Times reported. 

Judge Mae D’Agostino of the Northern District of New York partially granted the DOJ's request for a preliminary injunction, ruling that the federal government is likely to succeed at trial. 

D’Agostino wrote that New York officials may be correct in arguing the masks and lack of identification create safety risks that can be remedied by removing the masks and displaying identification, but the law is clear that the federal government, and not the states, set the policies that apply to the enforcement of federal immigration laws.