Sponsors (29)
The bill increases privacy protections and reduces enforcement risk for DACA applicants while clarifying covered records, but it leaves carve-outs and narrow references that could expose some data, create legal uncertainty, and complicate certain law-enforcement information-sharing.
DACA applicants and recipients have stronger limits on routine data sharing: their application information cannot be shared with ICE, CBP, or local law enforcement except as needed to run the DACA program, reducing risk that routine enforcement actions use their data.
People with deferred DACA cases are protected from referral to immigration or criminal enforcement by the Secretary, lowering the immediate risk of removal or enforcement action for beneficiaries.
The bill clarifies what counts as covered DACA application data (explicitly including personally identifiable information), giving applicants and DHS clearer rules about what records are protected and how they should be handled.
Applicants' personal data could still be exposed: tying a defined set of records to DHS custody plus carve-outs for fraud, national-security, or felony investigations means the government may retain and share sensitive information in ways that risk disclosure.
Narrow references to specific 2012 guidance and limited, vaguely worded exceptions create legal ambiguity that could prompt litigation and administrative disputes over who is covered and when data may be shared, increasing uncertainty and bureaucratic burden.
Restrictions on sharing with local law enforcement for immigration purposes may complicate cooperation in criminal investigations, potentially making it harder for local and state authorities to access information for certain public-safety cases.
Based on analysis of 3 sections of legislative text.
Bars routine disclosure of DACA application information to ICE/CBP and state/local/tribal law enforcement, limits referrals, and permits narrow exceptions for fraud, particularized national security, or non-immigration felony cases.
Official title: Provide for the confidentiality of information submitted in requests for deferred action under the deferred action for childhood arrivals program, and for other purposes.
Introduced July 17, 2025 by Martin Heinrich · Last progress July 17, 2025
Prohibits the Department of Homeland Security from sharing DACA application materials and personally identifiable information with ICE, CBP, or state, local, and tribal law enforcement except to administer the DACA program, while allowing limited disclosures for fraud detection, particularized national security needs, or investigation/prosecution of non-immigration-related felonies. The bill defines key terms including what counts as DACA program materials and who the Secretary is, and it forbids referrals of individuals whose cases are deferred under DACA to immigration or other law enforcement agencies.