Maryland Attorney General Joins Effort to Shield State Voter Databases from Federal Data Demands

Maryland Attorney General Anthony G. Brown has joined a coalition of 16 state attorneys general in filing a legal brief to defend state control over voter registration databases against what they describe as federal overreach. The filing supports California’s request to dismiss a federal lawsuit that seeks complete, unredacted voter registration information from states nationwide. This action highlights concerns over individual privacy and the potential misuse of sensitive personal data collected by states.

The legal brief, submitted to the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California in the case of United States v. Shirley Weber, et al., contends that the federal government lacks the legal authority to compel states to surrender detailed voter data. The coalition argues that such demands represent an attempt to amass personal information collected by states and infringe upon constitutional protections for state authority in election matters, as well as federal privacy statutes. This move comes amid federal efforts to obtain voter database information from 42 states, with lawsuits filed against seven states, including California. The data sought reportedly includes personally identifiable information, such as partial Social Security and driver’s license numbers, and may also encompass details on party affiliation, disability status, and voting history. The unredacted nature of this information could potentially compromise individuals enrolled in address confidentiality programs, including victims of domestic violence, sexual assault survivors, law enforcement officers, and judicial officials.

This push for voter data is framed by the attorneys general as part of a broader pattern of federal attempts to collect and consolidate Americans’ personal information. The brief references similar federal requests for state SNAP and Medicaid data, some of which have already been blocked by preliminary court injunctions. The coalition asserts that the Department of Justice’s demands exceed the authority granted by key federal statutes, including the Help America Vote Act, the National Voter Registration Act, and the Civil Rights Act of 1960. They argue that these laws do not authorize the broad collection of sensitive voter information, and the Civil Rights Act’s record inspection provision was intended specifically to address racial discrimination in voting, not for general compliance reviews. Furthermore, the brief contends that the federal government has not adhered to the procedures outlined in the Privacy Act of 1974, which governs the collection and sharing of personal information and restricts the retention of records detailing individuals’ First Amendment activities unless explicitly permitted by law. Attorneys General from Arizona, Colorado, Delaware, Hawaiʻi, Illinois, Maine, Michigan, Minnesota, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, Oregon, Rhode Island, Vermont, and Washington joined Maryland’s Attorney General in filing the amicus brief.

Article by Mel Anara, based upon information from the Maryland Attorney General.

---