(WASHINGTON, D.C.) Democratic lawmakers warned on November 12, 2025 that several Democratic-led states are inadvertently giving U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) direct, around-the-clock access to residents’ drivers’ licenses and other motor vehicle records through the Nlets system, a police-managed data network that spans the United States 🇺🇸 and Canada 🇨🇦. The letters, sent to governors in Arizona, California, Colorado, and Wisconsin, assert that state-run connections to Nlets are enabling federal officers to pull DMV files “with frictionless, self-service access” and without any state worker seeing or vetting the requests in real time.
What is Nlets and why it matters
The concern centers on the National Law Enforcement Telecommunications System (Nlets), a non-profit run by state police agencies. For about two decades, most states have fed data from drivers’ licenses and other DMV records into the Nlets system, which routes queries from roughly 18,000 federal, state, local, and cross-border partners.
Because Nlets acts as a routing hub, agencies can reach into state databases at the speed of a standard name check. Lawmakers say that structure has turned routine DMV data into a national trove available to officers far beyond state boundaries, while quietly cutting state employees out of the loop.
“Blocking agencies’ unfettered access” would not stop federal officers from getting data for a serious case, lawmakers wrote, but it would let state staff “increase accountability and reduce abuse” by reviewing requests first.
Scale of the access
In their letters, the lawmakers said Nlets handled more than 290 million DMV queries in the year before October 1, 2025. Within that volume, they cited:
- ~290,000 queries from ICE
- ~600,000 queries by Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), the ICE directorate focused on cross-border crime
These figures suggest frequent taps on state-held data by federal agents who may not be working with a state liaison or a case-specific request. ICE did not immediately respond to a request for comment, and governors’ offices did not confirm whether any access limits would be put in place in the near term.
The “information gap” and state visibility
Officials behind the warning describe an information gap: few state leaders understand how the technical plumbing of Nlets moves data across agencies and borders. That lack of visibility, they say, explains why few states have acted even as the network’s reach has expanded and ICE access to DMV repositories has become routine.
They urged governors to:
– Halt the “frictionless” setup
– Require federal officers to route requests through state employees so requests can be reviewed
States that have restricted access
Some states have taken action. According to advocates, these steps preserve urgent public safety options while ending broad, automatic taps on drivers’ licenses and related files.
States that have moved to restrict what ICE can pull through Nlets:
– Illinois
– New York
– Massachusetts
– Minnesota
– Washington
Lawmakers told governors they have the clear authority to make similar changes at any time and pressed for immediate reviews of Nlets configurations that grant direct ICE access to state motor vehicle data.
Political context and rhetoric
The letters used pointed language likely to draw pushback, urging governors to block the practice and cut off access to ICE and “other federal agencies that are now acting as President Trump’s shock troops.” That rhetoric underscores heightened anxiety among blue-state officials about immigration enforcement ahead of 2026, and about how state infrastructure may be leveraged in federal operations.
Supporters of tighter data rules argue states can still cooperate on serious crimes without open-ended access to whole DMV repositories.
Law enforcement perspective
Law enforcement groups defend Nlets as essential for routine policing. Quick checks of motor vehicle records can:
– Uncover stolen cars
– Identify fugitives
– Provide clues in urgent cases
ICE and HSI describe their work as focused on cross-border smuggling, child exploitation, and fraud, alongside immigration arrests. HSI’s role and structure are detailed on the official ICE page: ICE HSI.
Critics counter that the same pipes used for criminal probes can facilitate bulk lookups that touch people with no link to a crime—and that states should set guardrails.
Core dispute: who reviews federal queries?
Lawmakers claim many federal checks happen “without the knowledge or involvement of any state employee.” That means governors who think they operate a permission-based system may actually be relying on an automatic one.
Privacy advocates worry this risk is larger in states that issue drivers’ licenses to all residents, including undocumented immigrants, because that broadens the pool of personal data reachable through the same Nlets connections.
Technical and legal remedies proposed
Experts and advocates note several technical steps states could take to narrow ICE access:
- Set filters in Nlets so certain agency identifiers are blocked from DMV records.
- Require request tickets that route to state reviewers before data is released.
- Encrypt specific fields (photos, addresses) unless a case meets defined thresholds.
- Revisit interagency agreements and clarify “acceptable use” for drivers’ licenses and related files.
State attorneys general may also review agreements signed years ago, before the current scale of data sharing, to update permissible uses.
Transparency and accountability
For now, residents in Arizona, California, Colorado, and Wisconsin have little way to tell whether their data is being queried by a federal officer in another state. Advocates are pushing for annual public reports that show query totals by agency and data type, arguing that sunlight will pressure agencies to trim broad searches.
Lawmakers behind the letters believe even modest disclosure would help close the “information gap” and spur new rules that put state workers back in the review chair.
The choices ahead for governors
Governors face a decision with complex consequences:
- Keep Nlets taps wide open for federal agencies (status quo)
- Limit federal access to case-by-case reviews
- Cut off access for certain federal purposes
Potential consequences:
– State police leaders may warn that narrowing access could slow cross-border crime work.
– Civil rights groups argue a state-level review adds only minutes while protecting residents’ privacy.
The lawmakers insist guardrails can coexist with public safety by pushing federal agents to submit targeted requests instead of running bulk or convenience checks.
What could happen next
If more states follow the example of Illinois, New York, Massachusetts, Minnesota, and Washington, federal officers would still be able to obtain data—but only after a state employee reviews the request. If governors do nothing, the Nlets system will likely continue to function as it does today: quietly, constantly, and largely out of public view, while ICE access to DMV records remains just a few keystrokes away.
This Article in a Nutshell
On November 12, 2025, Democratic lawmakers warned governors that state-run links to Nlets allow federal agencies, including ICE and HSI, direct, unvetted access to DMV records. Nlets processed over 290 million DMV queries before October 1, 2025, with roughly 290,000 from ICE and 600,000 from HSI. Lawmakers urged governors in Arizona, California, Colorado and Wisconsin to require state review of federal queries, set filters, and increase transparency. Some states already restricted access to protect privacy while maintaining public-safety cooperation.
