California Attorney General Rob Bonta co-led a coalition of 18 attorneys general in submitting a comment letter opposing the Department of Homeland Security's expansion of the Systematic Alien Verification for Entitlements (SAVE) program to include U.S.-born citizens. The coalition argues the expansion violates the Privacy Act of 1974, creates a massive surveillance database, increases data breach risks, and will lead to inaccurate verifications and denial of benefits.
The coalition urges DHS to rescind the SAVE program expansion, arguing it violates the Privacy Act by adding records of natural-born citizens without consent and creates unacceptable privacy and security risks.
In-house legal teams should review agreements between state/local government agencies (or other entities) and the Department of Homeland Security (DHS)/USCIS that involve the Systematic Alien Verification for Entitlements (SAVE) program. Focus on clauses governing data sharing scope, consent requirements, data breach notification, data retention schedules, and accuracy guarantees. Specific changes may be needed to limit data use to verified immigration status purposes only, incorporate explicit consent mechanisms for U.S.-born citizens, enhance breach notification protocols, ensure data minimization and retention limits, and add provisions to prevent repurposing data for surveillance or unrelated federal investigations.
Entity
U.S. Department of Homeland Security
Also known as: Department of Homeland Security
Industry
OtherOfficial Press Release
https://oag.ca.gov/news/press-releases/attorney-general-bonta-slams-trump%E2%80%99s-latest-effort-feed-americans%E2%80%99-personal
SAVE SORN multistate comment letter final (12.1.25)
https://oag.ca.gov/system/files/attachments/press-docs/SAVE%20SORN%20multistate%20comment%20letter%20-%20final%20%2812.1.25%29.pdf
California Attorney General Enforcement Page
https://oag.ca.gov/privacy/privacy-enforcement-actions
"U.S. Department of Homeland Security’s (DHS)"
"violates the Privacy Act of 1974"
"massive invasion of privacy that exposes millions of individuals to possible data breaches, pools vast swaths of sensitive data, and furthers the Administration’s efforts to create a national surveillance database"
Other enforcement action: Oregon Attorney General Dan Rayfield, joined by 18 other states, sued the Trump Administration over its unlawful $100,000 fee for H-1B visa petitions. The lawsuit alleges that the policy violates the Administrative Procedure Act by exceeding congressional authority and bypassing required rulemaking procedures, harming educational institutions and employers.
A coalition of 12 state attorneys general, led by Colorado AG Phil Weiser, obtained a temporary restraining order from a federal court in California to halt the proposed $110 billion merger of Warner Bros. Discovery, Inc. by Paramount Skydance Corporation. The lawsuit alleges the merger violates Section 7 of the Clayton Act by substantially lessening competition in film distribution, anticipated blockbuster film distribution, and licensing cable TV channels.
The California Privacy Protection Agency (CalPrivacy) joined a coalition of 18 Attorneys General and state agencies in opposing the proposed SECURE Data Act, a federal privacy bill that would preempt stronger state privacy laws like the CCPA. The coalition argues the bill would weaken consumer privacy protections, limit enforcement remedies, and undermine California's Delete Request and Opt-out Platform (DROP).
$12.8M
California Attorney General Rob Bonta, along with multiple district attorneys and the California Privacy Protection Agency, announced a $12.75 million settlement with General Motors for illegally selling hundreds of thousands of Californians' location and driving data to data brokers Verisk and LexisNexis without notice or consent. The settlement includes the largest CCPA penalty to date, a five-year ban on selling driving data to consumer reporting agencies, and requirements to delete retained data and implement a robust privacy program.
The California Privacy Protection Agency Board voted to support two bills (AB 1542 and SB 1106) and took a 'support if amended' position on a third bill (AB 883). These bills aim to strengthen privacy protections by expanding sensitive data protections, improving deletion rights under the Delete Act, and providing expedited deletion for elected officials and judges.
The California Privacy Protection Agency sent a letter to Congress opposing the SECURE Data Act, a federal bill that would preempt state privacy laws like the CCPA and Delete Act. The letter argues the bill would eliminate rights for 40 million Californians, including the DROP platform and opt-out preference signal requirements, and urges Congress to set a floor rather than a ceiling on privacy protections.