Gov. Ferguson Defends Data Barriers as Federal Agencies Bypass State Blocks

Federal agencies conducted more than 1 million searches of Washington driver and vehicle records between January and May 2026, according to data from the University of Washington Center for Human Rights. The queries occurred despite state measures designed to limit how immigration authorities access the Department of Licensing database.

The Washington State Patrol reported blocking 174,000 search attempts from federal agencies between November 2025 and October 12, 2026. Of those blocked attempts, 89,000 came from Customs and Border Protection, 45,000 from Homeland Security Investigations, and nearly 40,000 from U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement. Researchers noted that millions of additional searches from the Department of Homeland Security still went through during that period.

Gov. Bob Ferguson stated in a statement on Tuesday that his administration has worked to limit unfettered access to state data while maintaining necessary channels for public safety. He cited human trafficking investigations as an example of cases that require real-time data access to protect residents. Ferguson described the next two years as an ongoing process of adapting to federal government actions.

Advocates in Seattle on Tuesday urged state leaders to tighten restrictions further. Lucía Vázquez Martínez, field director for Service Employees International Union 775, told officials to continue cutting off access to licensing data used for immigration enforcement. She described the current federal efforts as a mass deportation and detention machine that requires state intervention to slow down.

University of Washington researchers linked 356 arrests to federal queries of license data between August 2025 and October 13, 2026. The findings suggest that while the state has blocked specific accounts, the broader system still allows federal agents to identify drivers. The researchers argued that this continued access violates the Keep Washington Working Act, a 2019 law that prevents state data from being shared with federal authorities for civil immigration purposes.

Brionna Aho, a spokesperson for the governor, said the state is reviewing what other states have done to require judicial warrants for civil immigration-related requests. She noted that completely shutting off federal access is not an option due to legitimate public safety reasons. The state has taken steps, some of which are unprecedented nationwide, to restrict how agencies use the data.

State officials blocked ICE searches on the Nlets platform, which allows police agencies to share driver’s license data across states. The state also stopped Customs and Border Protection from viewing photos of people searched in Washington through Nlets. A new terms-of-use notice in the system informs data seekers that the information cannot be used for immigration enforcement.

The state suspended nine search accounts associated with Customs and Border Protection and three accounts with U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services. These accounts were suspected of being connected to immigration enforcement operations. The suspension follows findings that federal agents repeatedly found workarounds to bypass initial state restrictions.

Washington is one of 19 states that issue driver’s licenses regardless of immigration status. Unlike other states that require warrants or court orders for federal agencies to access license and vehicle data for immigration purposes, Washington does not currently require such legal steps. The Trump administration is currently suing Washington and other states over policies that suspend the ability of ICE and Customs and Border Protection to renew tabs for license plates on undercover vehicles.