A new report from the University of Washington's Center for Human Rights has found that federal agencies are still reaching Washington residents' driver information through a national law enforcement network, even though state laws were meant to limit that kind of cooperation. The findings have pushed the issue to the front of a debate over how the state handles the data it holds, and they have prompted officials to take a fresh look at exactly how that information is being shared with federal authorities.
At the center of the report is a specific figure. Researchers said they confirmed 58 arrests in which federal agents searched Washington driver information through a national law enforcement data-sharing network known as Nlets before carrying out an immigration arrest. The number is meant to show that access to the state's records has continued in practice, rather than in theory, and that the searches were tied directly to enforcement actions that followed.
Angelina Godoy, who leads the center, has been keeping a running archive of immigration arrests across Washington. According to the account she shared, the records arrive almost daily from rapid response volunteers, families and attorneys who document the arrests, and some of the cases involved children who were in the car at the time. The archive, she said, has become a growing collection of photos, documents and messages tracking how and where these arrests are taking place.
The dispute turns on the Keep Washington Working Act, a state law that restricts how Washington cooperates with federal immigration enforcement. Godoy argues that the part of the law being tested is not the conduct of federal agents themselves, but the actions of state agents who hand over the data when federal authorities ask for it. She said that after earlier concerns were raised, Washington restricted certain accounts tied to immigration and border agencies, yet in her view the searches never actually stopped.
The state Department of Licensing did not directly answer the report's specific allegations. Instead, it emphasized that the network is critical for public safety, helping officers with criminal histories, warrants and sex offender information. In a statement, the department said it is reviewing how Customs and Border Protection uses the system, examining what actions other states have taken, and looking at all options to protect Washingtonians while also protecting public safety, signaling that changes could be on the table.
Governor Bob Ferguson responded along similar lines, framing the matter as a balance the state is trying to strike. In a statement, he said his team is working on options to limit Customs and Border Protection access for immigration enforcement, while maintaining the access that is necessary to protect public safety. The governor's comments suggest the state is looking for a way to narrow federal use of the data for immigration purposes without cutting off law enforcement uses more broadly.
Customs and Border Protection, for its part, defended its use of the network. The agency told FOX 13 that losing access would significantly decrease its ability to identify criminals, and it stressed that it continues to operate under federal law. The competing statements leave a core tension unresolved for now: how Washington will reconcile a state law meant to limit cooperation with a federal data-sharing system that agencies say they rely on. The review underway is likely to shape what happens next.