Proposed Md. Data Privacy Act would block ICE from accessing state-held personal data
MARYLAND – The Maryland Data Privacy Act is making its way through the legislative process.
Maryland Data Privacy Act
The proposed bill would block federal Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents from accessing Marylanders’ personal data without a warrant issued by a state or federal judge.
ICE agents would also be required to specify which identity-related records they are seeking. Additionally, the bill would require state agencies to report all data requests from ICE agents to be tracked and reported to the Maryland General Assembly and Maryland Attorney General.
“This is seeking to extend protections already provided to drivers license data to all other data contained in state databases,” said bill sponsor Senator Clarence Lam (D – Md. District 12).
Expanding on Previous Protections
In 2021, state lawmakers passed the Drivers Privacy Act. The law restricts access to state Motor Vehicle Administration records.
Comptroller Brooke Lierman (D – Md.) testified in support of the legislation in Wednesday’s Senate Judicial Proceedings Committee. She explained Senate Bill 977 would build on those protections.
“We did that because we wanted to make sure that immigrants were availing themselves of (drivers’) licenses, because not only does it make them better drivers … it makes the roads safer for all of us … We want to continue to have our immigrants feel safe involving themselves in … state resources,” Lierman said in her testimony.
Battling Bad Practice, Lawmakers Say
Lam testified that ICE agents had previously accessed the state drivers’ license database, which includes photographs of individuals in the system.
“As a result of that, they were running facial recognition across all of these photos. And, we know from data and evidence … that when it comes to those types of facial recognition efforts, there is a high error rate, particularly for people of color,” Lam said.
The lawmaker added the legislation would help strengthen trust between immigrants and state agencies tasked with safely keeping their information.
“All of this is sensitive information that must be protected by our state. Marylanders provide a variety of agencies with this sensitive information and they entrust these agencies safeguard it,” Lam said.
Money Matters
Lierman also testified that the legislation would ensure that immigrants are continuing to contribute to the state’s tax rolls.
“We aim to optimize our processes so that when Marylanders complete employer withholding forms or submit their tax returns, they feel secure that their sensitive information will not be used for non-tax purposes without consent … This, in turn, is true for Maryland’s immigrant community, who may carry additional fear that any sensitive information they share with the state could be in turn shared with the federal government for the purposes of immigration enforcement,” Lierman said.
Maryland’s immigrant community makes up 17 percent of the state’s population, but 21 percent of its workforce, Lierman said. She added the group paid more than $5.3 billion in state and local taxes in 2022.
“We want to encourage compliance with our tax laws and one way that we can keep doing that is to make sure that we can let our immigrant community members know that their data is safe with us—that unless somebody comes with a warrant issued by the court, we will hold their data safe,” Lierman said.
Aiming for Uniformity
The Comptroller’s Office employs about 1,200 people.
Lierman said the legislation would also be helpful in guiding her team, and for other state agencies to navigate, through data requests from ICE agents.
“This is a helpful guideline for us as an agency, to know how to react when we get these kind of fishing requests … We wouldn’t want the secretary of one agency reacting to these requests in a different way than another state agency does. And so, to have that uniformity makes it important to pass a bill like this,” Lierman said.
Police Warn of Unintended Consequences
Law enforcement officials, however, warned against the legislation.
Chief Dan Franklin of Morningside Police Department testified against the bill on behalf of the Maryland Chiefs and Sheriffs Association. He expressed concerns about the “unintended consequences” that could come with the bill, such as impacts to federal law enforcement assistance and funding.
“The problematic thing with this legislation is that it would establish a practice of hindering the enforcement of federal immigration laws. These laws have not changed. They have been in place for decades through numerous administrations,” Franklin said.
The chief closed his testimony by urging the committee to consider all sate agencies that would be affected by the legislation.
Looking Ahead
Lam urged a favorable report from the committee, saying Maryland’s immigrant population is living in “unprecedented times.”
“Many thousands of Marylanders are fearful and anxious and scared. They hear stories of raids planned for schools, or folks going to the grocery store and being pulled up by (ICE) officials, being scared to go to basic places like libraries and courts … We need all the jobs and workers that we can get to help sustain our state’s revenue. The loss of these immigrants—the loss of these workers—would be crippling to Maryland’s economy,” said Lam.
