The Department of Justice (DOJ) filed lawsuits on Wednesday against Maine, Washington, Oregon, and Massachusetts, challenging unconstitutional policies denying confidential license plates to federal agents.
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Just the News reports that DOJ Civil Division Assistant Attorney General Brett Shumate wrote letters to the four sanctuary states earlier this month, urging them to repeal policies blocking federal officers from obtaining undercover license plates in the states by no later than May 22.
The DOJ alleges that the state policies threaten the operational effectiveness and safety of federal agents who have faced a wave of targeted harassment under the Trump administration.
Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche said in a statement, “By denying undercover license plates to DHS components, including ICE, while issuing them to their own state agencies, these governors are pursuing discriminatory and obstructionist policies against federal law enforcement.”
🚨Justice Department Sues States for Denying Undercover License Plates to Federal Law Enforcement
This comes after each state refused to rescind their unconstitutional policies in response to a prompt letter from the department explaining the policies’ illegality.
“By denying… pic.twitter.com/LRBGB0kfRu
— U.S. Department of Justice (@TheJusticeDept) May 28, 2026
Blanche added, “Law enforcement officers risk their lives every day to keep Americans safe and must be able to carry out their duties effectively.”
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According to the Associated Press, the state policies in question generally prohibit the undercover license plates for civil enforcement operations that include immigration.
This means the affected vehicles instead would have license plates that clearly identify them as part of the federal government’s vehicle fleet.
The four state governments named in the lawsuits are accused of trying “to obstruct the Federal Government’s immigration enforcement efforts, even though control over immigration and the nation’s borders is an exclusive federal power.”
The DOJ has claimed those state policies violate the Supremacy Clause of the Constitution, which dictates that the Constitution and federal laws pursuant to it supersede state laws.
In the DOJ press release, Assistant Attorney General Brett A. Shumate of the Justice Department’s Civil Division affirmed, “The Department of Justice will steadfastly protect the operational effectiveness and safety of law enforcement from these unconstitutional state policies.”