The U.S. Department of Homeland Security will allow state officials access to the SAVE — Systematic Alien Verification for Entitlements — database in an agreement that was announced Saturday by Florida Secretary of State Ken Detzner and the Florida Department of State.

The announcement follows weeks of legal wrangling between the federal and state officials, a fight being closely watched in Colorado, Nevada, Michigan and North Carolina — states that could ultimately swing November’s presidential election — where officials are advocating for similar access. …

The SAVE database, which contains alien registration numbers, is a web-based service that was created to help “federal, state and local benefit-issuing agencies, institutions, and licensing bureaus determine the immigration status of benefit applicants so only those entitled to benefits receive them,” according to U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services.