Maine Secretary of State and Democratic Gubernatorial Candidate Shenna Bellows assured a Maine-based news outlet aimed at African immigrants that the Bureau of Motor Vehicles (BMV) will not share information with immigration authorities except when required by law.
“We take our responsibility to keep your personal information safe and secure very seriously. The information you provide to the BMV is confidential and cannot be shared with others except as provided by state or federal laws,” said Bellows.
“BMV employees who handle driver’s license and identification card applications may not contact or share information with federal or state law enforcement of their own initiative,” she added.
According to Amjambo Africa, an outlet that boasts “Maine’s most inclusive newsroom” and aims at helping “New Mainers,” Bellows’ statement came in response to an inquiry about alleged anecdotal reports of BMV employees sharing information with Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents.
Notably, Bellows’ letter is addressed generically to “Dear Reader” rather than to Amjambo Maine or any of its reporters, despite the outlet claiming that it came in response to their query.
In the letter, Bellows emphasized that, while the BMV does retain personal records, including records on immigration status, employees are forbidden by law from sharing that information with law enforcement of their own initiative.
She assured the outlet that the ICE has not yet made any requests for records from the Maine BMV.
“BMV does not share your information even with federal and state law enforcement officials, including ICE, unless they are doing their jobs properly and legally. As of this writing, ICE has not requested information from the Maine BMV about any driver’s license or state ID holders,” said Bellows.
“We will continue to serve all the people of Maine and remain committed to protecting the security of your information to the fullest extent of the law. I will always defend the constitutional rights of all people living here in our beloved State of Maine,” she added.
Amjambo Africa is a subsidiary organization of the Ladder to the Moon Network non-profit, which received $164,525 in taxpayer funding last year, according to their most recent form 990 tax filings.
