State Department Notifies Congress of Passport Records Routine Use for Voter-Eligibility Verification

DOJ told the Washington court in the DSCC, LULAC and NAACP cases that the State Department gave Congress advance notice of a proposed change to its passport-records system of records. The filing says the proposed routine use (w) “permits information sharing with various entities utilizing federal government verification platforms, for the purpose of verifying the identity or citizenship for users accessing government websites and applications, voter eligibility, and other governmental services.” DHS told the same court that USCIS, in coordination with the Social Security Administration and the Department of State, would deliver a mechanism for states to receive citizenship-related information from each agency.

The filing states that “the earliest possible date the SORN will be published in the Federal Register is 30 days from today’s transmission.” The notice does not mention the State Citizenship Lists by name; its link to them is the voter-eligibility purpose and the agency’s named role in DHS’s plan.