CLARKE LEADS PUBLIC COMMENT LETTER TO DHS URGING AGAINST PROPOSAL THAT EXPANDS USE OF BIOMETRIC DATA COLLECTION IN IMMIGRATION AND NATURALIZATION PROCESSES

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:

December 19, 2025

MEDIA CONTACT:

e: [email protected]

c: 202.913.0126

WASHINGTON, D.C. - Congresswoman Yvette D. Clarke (NY-09) led a public comment letter signed by 48 of her colleagues to Secretary of Homeland Security Kristi Noem and U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services Director Joseph Edlow urged them to reconsider the Department of Homeland Security's (DHS) rule proposal to expand biometric data collection and reuse across immigration and naturalization processes.

"Recent public reporting, including an NPR investigation, has highlighted DHS's increasing reliance on facial recognition and third-party data systems with limited transparency or oversight. These findings underscore broader concerns about algorithmic bias, disproportionate impacts on communities of color and immigrants, and the dangers of expanding surveillance infrastructure without clear guardrails. Recent high-profile breaches of biometrics systems, including the breach of a biometrics database for a company used by the U.K. Metropolitan Police and the unauthorized access of U.S. Customs and Border Protection data used for a facial recognition pilot program highlight the threat posed by broad biometrics collection without strong civil rights, privacy, and cybersecurity protections. The proposed rule provides no meaningful detail on how DHS will secure, limit, or oversee the new and expansive datasets it would create. It lacks information on cybersecurity protections, retention limits, access controls, independent auditing, or transparency mechanisms. Without such safeguards, the rule risks eroding public trust in immigration systems and undermining civil-rights protections that are essential to fair and humane governance." The Members continued, "Biometric technologies hold significant implications for privacy, equality, and public trust. DHS must adopt a framework that protects individuals - not one that exposes millions of U.S. citizens, lawful permanent residents, and immigrant families to unnecessary and unmitigated risk."

The letter was signed by 49 Members of Congress: Yassamin Ansari, Becca Balint, Suzanne Bonamici, Shontel Brown, Greg Casar, Sean Casten, Kathy Castor, Judy Chu, Yvette D. Clarke, Emanuel Cleaver, Jasmine Crockett, Danny Davis, Madeleine Dean, Mark DeSaulnier, Maxine Dexter, Veronica Escobar, Adriano Espaillat, John Garamendi, Jesús García, Robert Garcia, Sylvia Garcia, Daniel Goldman, Adelita Grijalva, Val Hoyle, Pramila Jayapal, Henry Johnson, Timothy Kennedy, Raja Krishnamoorthi, Summer Lee, Ted Lieu, Zoe Lofgren, Sarah McBride, James McGovern, LaMonica McIver, Eleanor Norton, Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, Mike Quigley, Delia Ramirez, Andrea Salinas, Janice Schakowsky, Lateefah Simon, Adam Smith, Darren Soto, Bennie Thompson, Jill Tokuda, Paul Tonko, Juan Vargas, Nydia Velázquez, and Bonnie Watson Coleman

Full text of the letter can be found HERE.

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