Nearly 20 Democratic states inadvertently share driver data with ICE, lawmakers say

"On Wednesday, 19 letters led by Sen. Ron Wyden of Oregon and New York Rep. Adriano Espaillat were sent to state governors, warning that state resident information managed by the International Justice and Public Safety Network - or Nlets - can be used by ICE to query driver license and registration information. Those states include California, Colorado, Maryland, Michigan and New Jersey, although the letter also noted that "41 states share drivers' license photos through Nlets.""

"Citing metrics from Nlets, the lawmakers wrote that in the year preceding Oct. 1, 2025, Nlets processed more than 290 million queries for Department of Motor Vehicles data. Of those queries, some 290,000 came from ICE and around 600,000 came from Homeland Security Investigations, a law enforcement agency within the Department of Homeland Security. "These statistics represent federal and out-of-state requests for data because law enforcement agencies do not generally access DMV data about residents of their own states through Nlets,'"

"Nlets, a nonprofit, describes itself as a national information-sharing network that connects state, local, and federal law enforcement and public-safety agencies through a secure, computer-based messaging system. ICE and a handful of other agencies have become a major flashpoint in the second Trump administration's immigration and deportation policies, which have faced scrutiny over aggressive enforcement tactics, expanded data collection programs and the growing use of surveillance technology to track migrants."

A coalition of 40 Democratic House and Senate lawmakers warned state governors that Immigration and Customs Enforcement can query driver license and registration information managed via the International Justice and Public Safety Network (Nlets). Nlets connects state, local and federal law enforcement through a secure messaging system and shares drivers' license photos across 41 states. Nlets processed more than 290 million DMV queries in the year before Oct. 1, 2025; about 290,000 queries came from ICE and roughly 600,000 from Homeland Security Investigations. Only a small number of states have blocked ICE access to resident information exchanged through Nlets.

Read at Nextgov.com