Source: United States House of Representatives – Congresswoman Chellie Pingree (1st District of Maine)
Congresswoman Chellie Pingree (D-Maine) today unveiled new legislation to combat the Department of Homeland Security’s (DHS) aggressive and invasive surveillance and intimidation of peaceful observers. The Stop ICE Intimidation Act blocks funding for expanded U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) surveillance tools and staffing until the agency fully discloses how it uses databases and facial recognition, who it targets, how long it keeps data, and whether it complies with constitutional protections and local laws. It also freezes ICE’s Clearview AI contract until Congress receives clear assurances that bystanders, observers, and protestors are not swept into the enforcement dragnet.
“Donald Trump and Kristi Noem’s dangerous Department of Homeland Security has quietly built a vast surveillance apparatus that threatens the constitutional rights of U.S. citizens everywhere. From iris-scanning technology that can identify people in seconds to facial recognition databases with millions of records, these tools are being deployed not to enhance public safety, but to intimidate and silence lawful dissent. When a federal agent can photograph someone’s license plate, add them to a database, and label them a ‘domestic terrorist’ simply for filming ICE officers, we’ve crossed a dangerous line,” Pingree said. “Mainers have seen firsthand how these surveillance tools are weaponized—people followed home, called on their personal phones, threatened for simply documenting what’s happening in their own communities. In a truly free society, citizens don’t live in fear of their government. My bill demands transparency and accountability and ensures that not one more taxpayer dollar is spent on this surveillance state.”
The Stop ICE Intimidation Act:
-
Establishes that ICE surveillance and intimidation of observers—including the use of databases and facial recognition—raises serious constitutional concerns under the First and Fourth Amendments.
-
Prohibits the obligation or expenditure of funds for certain surveillance purposes and hiring additional ICE officers until the required congressional reports are submitted.
-
Prohibits funding for the continuation of ICE’s contract with Clearview AI until ICE submits the required reports.
-
Requires ICE to report to Congress within 30 days about exactly how it conducts surveillance; confirm it does not target bystanders or observers; explain how it uses, stores, shares, and deletes personal data from tools like Clearview AI; and demonstrate that its practices comply with constitutional protections and state and local laws governing facial recognition and surveillance.
Pingree’s effort comes amid disturbing reports of ICE rapidly expanding its surveillance arsenal—including new contracts for iris-scanning technology that allow agents to identify people in seconds during field operations, facial-recognition software from Clearview AI, and massive data-sharing arrangements that pull in IRS, Medicaid, and other personal records. Recent reporting has revealed that ICE can now access databases containing millions of biometric records, use mapping tools to locate individuals on digital maps, and tap into systems like SAVE that may sweep in information about U.S. citizens who have never consented to being part of an immigration database.
These tools are increasingly being used in the field, including against people who are simply documenting ICE activity. In one widely circulated incident in South Portland, a federal agent photographed a woman’s license plate after she filmed officers and told her, “We have a nice little database, and now you’re considered a domestic terrorist.” During ICE’s expanded enforcement operation “Catch of the Day”, Mainers reported being followed home, called on their personal cell phones, and threatened by agents. Civil liberties experts warn this kind of surveillance expansion, paired with aggressive enforcement tactics, raises profound constitutional and privacy concerns.
Pingree also supports sweeping and urgently-needed reforms to rein in ICE, including requiring body cameras, requiring judicial warrants for enforcement operations, prohibiting agents from hiding behind masks, allowing independent investigations into extrajudicial killings, preventing the detention and deportation of U.S. citizens, prohibiting racial profiling, and legally binding use of force policies are how we keep our communities safe. Pingree is among more than 160 members of Congress who have signed onto articles of impeachment for DHS Secretary Noem.
###