SAVE pings a number of data sources, as opposed to being a database in and of itself. But under USCIS policy, all queries are saved for 10 years for audit purposes, so if a state runs its whole voter list through the tool, that data will remain with DHS for a decade.

Maine Secretary of State Shenna Bellows, a Democrat, told NPR that such a system sounded like the beginnings of a national voter registration list that would raise privacy and security concerns.

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At a White House meeting about SAVE in late July, USCIS officials tried to reassure state voting officials about sharing sensitive voter data, according to Connecticut Secretary of State Stephanie Thomas, who attended the meeting. "They said many times like, 'Look, we know the states are in charge of elections. We don't want your data. We don't want your lists,' " Thomas recalled.

But in recent weeks, the Department of Justice has been making controversial demands to numerous states to turn over such data, including in several instances voter rolls that include personal data like driver's license numbers and partial Social Security numbers.