The Trump-Vance administration has created massive centralized databases, known as “Interagency Databases” or “National Data Banks,” that merge sensitive personal information from multiple federal agencies without notice or consent.
Federal agencies — including the so-called “Department of Government Efficiency” (DOGE), U.S. Department of Homeland Security, Social Security Administration, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services, Internal Revenue Service, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, and U.S. Department of Labor — combined social security numbers, tax data, medical records, biometrics, children’s case files, and voter registration data into centralized systems in violation of the Privacy Act and the Constitution, known as the Systematic Alien Verification for Entitlements (SAVE) program.
These databases are already being used by some states to:
- Open criminal investigations
- Purge voters from voter rolls
- Target naturalized citizens
Congress has repeatedly outlawed the creation of national data banks for over 50 years.
On September 30, 2025, the League of Women Voters, League of Women Voters of Virginia, League of Women Voters of Louisiana, Electronic Privacy Information Center, and five individuals filed a class action lawsuit in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia. They are represented by Democracy Forward, Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington, and the Fair Elections Center.
Plaintiffs argue the administration is abusing data to erode privacy, voting rights, and civil liberties, especially for immigrants and historically marginalized communities.
The lawsuit asks the court to:
- Block the operation of these centralized databases;
- Order the deletion of unlawfully collected data;
- Enjoin further data merging across agencies;
- Protect voters from unlawful purges and investigations; and
- Uphold the Privacy Act and constitutional safeguards.
On October 7, 2025, we filed a motion for preliminary injunction arguing that without notice or statutory authority, DHS linked SAVE to Social Security records and allowed states to use the unreliable data to investigate and purge voters. The plaintiffs seek emergency relief to stop the use of the overhauled SAVE system before it disenfranchises voters, invades privacy, and causes irreparable harm ahead of upcoming elections.
On October 10, 2025, U.S. Senators Alex Padilla and Gary Peters filed an amicus brief in support of our motion for a preliminary injunction, arguing that DHS’s reworking of the SAVE database is unlawful, in part because DHS has not provided statutorily-required notice to the Senate about its changes, and arguing that a preliminary injunction is appropriate because the changes “create an intolerable risk that eligible American voters will be disenfranchised and perhaps even wrongly prosecuted for their alleged ineligibility.“
On October 24, 2025, Campaign Legal Center filed an amicus brief in support of our motion for a preliminary injunction. The brief argues that DHS’s expansion of the SAVE system unlawfully intrudes on state and congressional authority over elections. The Constitution gives only states and Congress—not the Executive Branch—the power to regulate elections, and Congress has never authorized DHS to create a national voter citizenship database.
On November 17, 2025 the court denied our request for an administrative stay. The case continues on the merits.
Timeline
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Class action was filed to block the operation of these centralized databases.
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We filed a motion for preliminary injunction.
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Senators Alex Padilla and Gary Peters filed an amicus brief in support of our motion for a preliminary injunction.
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Campaign Legal Center filed an amicus brief in support of our motion for a preliminary injunction.
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The court denied our request to pause the DHS policy.
