ACLU of PR v. DTOP

The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) of Puerto Rico filed a petition for mandamus in the Court of First Instance in San Juan against the Secretary of the Department of Transportation and Public Works (DTOP), Edwin González Montalvo, and the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, seeking the immediate release of all documents related to the transfer of confidential information concerning nearly 6,000 migrants who obtained driver’s licenses under Act No. 97 of 2013, including a subpoena allegedly issued by a federal agency.

The ACLU-PR’s action comes after DTOP refused to provide copies of information requests issued by the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and agencies such as U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), as well as the legal assessments and the information that was turned over in response to those requests. The agency’s response relied on generalities, without legally substantiating its claim of confidentiality, which constitutes a failure to perform a ministerial duty and a flagrant violation of the right of access to public information, a constitutional right in Puerto Rico.

The lawsuit is based on the public disclosure that, between February and March 2025, DTOP turned over personal data on nearly 6,000 drivers with unregularized immigration status to federal immigration agencies. The federal government later confirmed that these data are being actively used to identify immigrants, locate them, arrest them without a warrant, and deport them.

The ACLU-PR underscored that this action by the government of Puerto Rico was carried out in direct contravention of Act 97-2013 itself, which requires the Secretary of DTOP to establish the necessary mechanisms to ensure that this registry cannot be used to discriminate and that the information is not disclosed.