Eric Adams’ mask ban hits a snag after Jewish groups call it ‘overly broad’ in bungled rollout of new proposed NYC law

The fate of Mayor Eric Adams’ fledgling mask ban is up in the air after a bungled rollout that had even potentially supportive Jewish groups calling it “overly broad,” The Post has learned.

Adams and City Hall officials tried to schedule a pair of events to unveil the anti-masking measure — even switching up the location Wednesday — only to cancel them amid failed talks with advocates and City Council lawmakers, sources said.

But despite the snag, the Adams administration insists the ban is still very much in play as they work to make certain modifications.

Many insiders lambasted Adams’ apparent ham-fisted election-year move to push a mask ban that goes farther than a watered-down restriction passed by Albany lawmakers in the recent state budget.

“It”s frustrating that they did it this way because the Jewish community wants a mask ban,” one City Council source said.

The push to side-step Albany — spearheaded by First Deputy Mayor Randy Mastro, a controversial veteran of former Mayor Rudy Giuliani’s administration — first ran into trouble when he brushed aside concerns raised by a pair of influential Jewish groups that the ban went too far, sources said.

The Anti-Defamation League and United Jewish Appeal — which have been supportive of banning masks favored by often-antisemitic protesters — sounded the alarm over the drafted bill’s vagueness and lack of exemptions for religious garb, such as burqas, or medical reasons.

“If there are just a couple people standing on the street wearing a mask, this applies to them, unlike the Albany bill, which is specific to protest,” one source said.

Sources said the Jewish groups also raised concerns that the bill included one year of potential jail time for repeat offenders.

After The Post first reported on the potential jail time Tuesday, Adams administration officials reversed course on the penalty, sources said.

They first dropped it from a year to three months, then scuttled jail time altogether, the sources said.

The troubles were compounded by Mastro, who had tried to get lawmakers to sign on by falsely touting the backing of the pair of influential Jewish groups, infuriating members of a council where the Adams administration has few friends.

“The groups were not on board. It wasn’t like they were giving themselves some plausible deniability in talking to these groups; they just said ‘Yes, they are in,’” one of the sources recalled.

“I think they were so eager to get something out, this is how Randy Mastro was under Giuliani, he would rush things out to box people in.”

Another railed, “They are their own worst enemies.” 

Mastro insisted the back-and-forth was all part of “continuing dialogue” around the ban.

“The concept being considered here is to reinstate the mask ban that existed in this state for 100 years,” Mastro said, noting deviating from the prior state legislation would leave it open to legal and operational challenges.

Mastro also added that there would now be an exemption for medical reasons, highlighting the need for masks in a post-COVID city.

Press Secretary Kayla Mamelak downplayed the canned events as merely placeholders on the schedule, which were scratched when realized the legislation hadn’t gotten across the finish line.

Both claimed to have support from numerous council members, but wouldn’t not name them, saying they wouldn’t discuss private conversations.

Even if the admin manages to cajole a councilmember to launder the mayor’s legislation — which insiders say is highly unlikely — the ban faces a potential technical legislation problem with a bill banning masks already active in the legislative body.

Minority leader Joann Ariola (R-Queens), who sponsored the current mask ban bill in the council, accused Adams of putting on a “whole dog and pony show” to “chase headlines.”

“Rather than collaborate and work with me on my properly vetted and already introduced bill, however, the Mayor rushed out this knockoff in a poor attempt to make noise,” she said. “It’s pretty clear to me that this isn’t about actually solving problems and making New York safer.”

Mastro shot back that “her ski mask ban with a number of exemptions isn’t even comparable” to the drafts being pushed by City Hall.

A spokesperson for the ADL said it supports the ban in its current form, but said they could not get into details on negotiations.

“We are grateful to Mayor Adams for exploring all possible avenues to help keep New Yorkers safe against masked intimidation and harassment,” they added.