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16h ago

Cities and Police Move to Roll Back Flock License‑Plate Network

Revelations of officer misuse, cross‑jurisdictional data access and disputed retention have driven a patchwork of local contract cancellations and formal reviews.

A Flock Safety camera in Burbank, Calif., on Sept. 14, 2026.
Traffic flows past an Axon-brand automatic license plate reader in the median of 16th Street near the border of Maryland and the District of Columbia in Silver Spring, Md., on Aug. 19, 2026. 
A Flock Safety camera is seen at the corner of Harbor Boulevard and Gisler Avenue in Costa Mesa, Calif., on Aug. 17, 2026.
A Flock Safety camera in Burbank, Calif., on Sept. 14, 2026. 

Overview

  • Several local councils voted this week to end or pause Flock contracts, with Racine, Oconomowoc and Waukesha in Wisconsin voting to discontinue programs and Eastpointe and other Michigan communities canceling or studying terminations.
  • Boston confirmed a Flock data‑sharing feature was briefly enabled during a five‑month 2025 pilot, directed the vendor to disable it and has ended all use of the system.
  • Texas actions are reshaping deployment after Gov. Greg Abbott paused state funding and Dallas notified Flock it will deactivate 321 state‑funded cameras while seeking alternate funding.
  • Other jurisdictions are split: some cities such as Carrollton renewed or consolidated Flock contracts, citing the system’s role in solving crimes and locating missing people.
  • Investigations and audits have documented repeated officer misuse and arrests, Flock has rolled out audit tools and shorter default retention, and lawmakers and plaintiffs are pursuing hearings, legislation and lawsuits over retained historical data, third‑party analytics and device security.