GOP bill makes it harder to see how cops use AI license plate cameras

A Republican bill that claims it will help prevent “government overreach” related to police use of controversial license plate reader technology would actually do the opposite, according to privacy advocates. 

“This is among one of the weakest bills I’ve seen when it comes to regulating license plate readers,” Dave Maass, director of investigations at EFF, told the Arizona Mirror.

The proposal by Sen. Kevin Payne, R-Peoria, would codify certain standards into state law on how automated license plate readers, commonly referred to as ALPRs, are used. Senate Bill 1111 is backed by the Arizona Association of Chiefs of Police and the Arizona Police Association. 

ALPRs, specifically those made by the company Flock Safety, have been a source of controversy, both for the wide-ranging network of cameras — the company claims to have more than 80,000 AI-powered cameras in over 5,000 communities across 49 U.S. states — and how law enforcement uses them. In one instance, police in Texas used the system to search for a woman who had received an abortion in a state where it was legal. 

The Glendale Police Department used an anti-Romani slur last year when conducting a search of the same data, and Arizona police have used the tech to spy on protesters exercising their First Amendment rights, according to reporting by the Electronic Frontier Foundation. 

There are also concerns with how Flock manages the vast amounts of data it collects each day, including cybersecurity researchers discovering that its AI-powered cameras were exposed to the internet without a login, allowing anyone to track their own or anyone else’s movements. Recent reports have also revealed that errors in Flock redactions in public records releases that revealed millions of potential surveillance targets. 

Payne’s bill defines what ALPRs can be used for, something he said in a press release that “draws a clear line” and allows law enforcement to use the technology while “protecting innocent Arizonans from government overreach.” 

But one thing Payne didn’t mention in his announcement was that his legislation snuffs out public scrutiny of how license plate readers are used in Arizona by exempting all ALPR data from public records. 

“This bill is not going to do what the author says it is going to do,” Maass said. While EFF is currently not taking a stance on the bill, Maass said that the bill would give a green light to government surveillance with few restrictions. 

Other states, like South Carolina, have proposed more comprehensive legislation that would have required a warrant, had criminal penalties for misuse of the technology and required annual reports. However, that bill, along with similar legislation in at least 10 other states, failed to gain any traction last year. 

‘Not subject to public review’

Payne’s bill outlines specific instances in which an ALPR system may be used, including in any criminal investigation or search for a person who is missing or in danger — with a prohibition on using the cameras for enforcing traffic laws. They also couldn’t be used for non-law enforcement purposes, including public records requests or political activity.

“This one is basically you can’t use it for traffic violations but you can basically use it for anything else,” Maass said. 

The bill also states that any “captured plate data is not subject to public review” or a public records request. Instead, any data captured by ALPR cameras could only be viewed by law enforcement or a subpoena. 

Public record requests on ALPR data have been instrumental in understanding how police have used Flock and similar ALPR devices. Information released to EFF and later confirmed by the Mirror showed that the Glendale Police Department used an anti-Romani slur last year when conducting a search of their Flock system. 

Maass also noted that the bill is vaguely worded, making it unclear about what data could or could not be released on ALPRs if the bill were to pass as is. 

“It would restrict public records work, however, the language is really vague on what it would cover,” Maass said. “Is any kind of data that is entered into the system captured data? The question is, what does any other data mean?”

Payne did not respond to the Mirror’s requests for an interview. 

In his press release, Payne contended it will prohibit the use of ALPRs for “general surveillance” and would require “strict access controls” along with mandatory training and detailed audit logs. But the bill doesn’t actually set those controls, and instead leaves those decisions up to the law enforcement agencies to create. 

“Lawmakers have a real opportunity to protect people, and they should be doing that aggressively,” Maass said, noting that Flock systems have been found to be used to wrongfully accuse people, adding that reporting coming out about ALPRs and Flock is “not going to be getting better.”

This story was first published by Arizona Mirror, which is part of States Newsroom, a network of news bureaus supported by grants and a coalition of donors as a 501c(3) public charity.