STATE PROFILE: Colorado

# Colorado — LexisNexis / PSDEX State Profile

*Last updated: May 2026*

## The Short Version

Colorado was the subject of the 'Sabotaging Sanctuary' report (2022), which documented two specific pathways through which Colorado law enforcement data reaches ICE despite state sanctuary laws: the CISC/PSDEX system and the Colorado VINE/Appriss pipeline. Colorado has the most documented state-level LexisNexis infrastructure outside California.

## The Sanctuary Law

Colorado's VALE Act (2019) prohibits state and local law enforcement from detaining people solely for civil immigration enforcement. The state also bans compliance with ICE detainer requests without a judicial warrant. Denver, Boulder, and several other jurisdictions have additional local protections.

## The CISC / PSDEX Infrastructure

CISC — the Colorado Information Sharing Consortium — is a Colorado-based organization that operates the LexisNexis PSDEX data warehouse for Colorado law enforcement. CISC's Executive Director Robert Nanney confirmed this directly in a FOIA response: 'All data connections, data translation processes, interface specifications, and technical documentation associated with the PSDEX, the Accurint Virtual Crime Center, or the CISC Data Warehouse environment are developed, maintained, and administered solely by our contracted vendor, LexisNexis.'

CISC connects 124 Colorado law enforcement agencies. 87 actively mirror booking and release data.

**CISC Board of Directors (confirmed Jan 2021):** Brighton PD, Broomfield PD, Jefferson County SO, Douglas County SO, Aurora PD, Mesa County SO, Colorado Springs PD, Arapahoe County SO, Denver PD. These agencies govern the PSDEX data warehouse that handles Colorado law enforcement data.

**Mesa County SO** is particularly significant: former Mesa County Sheriff Matt Lewis sits on LexisNexis's own PSDEX Advisory Committee — confirming direct participation.

**'Sabotaging Sanctuary' findings:** The 2022 report by the Colorado Immigrant Rights Coalition and Mijente named El Paso County Sheriff's Office and Denver County (Denver Sheriff Department) as PSDEX contributors specifically.

## The Colorado VINE Pipeline

Colorado VINE is managed by the County Sheriffs of Colorado through Appriss Insights (Equifax). Whether the Colorado contract with Appriss contains the Risk Solutions clause — allowing jail booking data to flow to LexisNexis — is not yet confirmed. A FOIA is pending.

## Other LexisNexis Products

- **BuyCrash**: No confirmed statewide Colorado BuyCrash contract. Individual agencies may use it. - **Clear Creek County SO**: Confirmed AVCC sub-agency under San Bernardino County SO's consortium — an unusual arrangement involving a Colorado county joining a California consortium.

## The Sanctuary Bypass Mechanism

The VALE Act prevents Colorado law enforcement from directly cooperating with ICE. The CISC/PSDEX system routes Colorado law enforcement data through LexisNexis, where ICE can access it through its federal subscription. The data flows through a private intermediary, putting it outside the reach of the state sanctuary law.

## Open Questions

1. Does Colorado VINE/Appriss contract contain the Risk Solutions clause? 2. Which of CISC's 124 member agencies have individually signed AVCC addenda? 3. Is the El Paso County SO / Colorado Springs PD PSDEX relationship confirmed at the contract level?

## FOIA Targets

- Colorado CORA (CRS § 24-72-201), 3 business days - CISC (cisc.colorado.gov) — Colorado VINE/Appriss contract - Denver Sheriff Department — AVCC/PSDEX addendum or Schedule A - El Paso County SO — AVCC addendum