Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis recently blocked the use of license plate readers on state roads, joining a host of other elected officials and political candidates speaking out against the law enforcement surveillance technology.
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Joe Raedle/Getty Images North America
There are plenty of issues Republicans and Democrats disagree on, but increasingly, they’re aligned on this: they want Flock surveillance cameras gone.
The widespread backlash against AI-powered license plate readers, which allow police to track people over time, is becoming more of a political issue as the midterm elections approach in races from Florida to Ohio and Wisconsin.
At a press conference late last month, Pennsylvania Democratic Gov. Josh Shapiro said he believes law enforcement needs public safety tools, but Flock cameras are not among them.
“I would welcome bipartisan legislation to ban these across the state,” Shapiro said. “This is not something in the public interest.”
Earlier this week, Florida Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis announced plans to revoke permits for license plate readers on state highways.
“I’m all about having law enforcement have tools,” DeSantis said. “But I don’t want to have this become a surveillance state.”
Every month, Flock cameras capture billions of license plates, along with other vehicle data. Police say this tool helps them find stolen vehicles and missing people. But the technology has been abused. Officers have used it to stalk ex-partners, for instance.
Flock recently changed some of its features to prevent abuse.
But the concerns are proving sticky, and largely bipartisan. Last week, Texas Republican Gov. Greg Abbott froze state spending for the cameras. And Senate Republicans are investigating concerns over police misuse.
Jay Stanley, a senior policy analyst at the ACLU, says a wide swath of people across the political spectrum opposes Flock cameras. Americans have a strong distaste for government surveillance, Stanley said.
“Now you have to live your life with what sociologists call the third eye that is watching you,” he said, “and I think a lot of Americans don’t want to live that way.”
The reasons people on the left and right oppose Flock are different.
Progressives have pointed out that the technology has been used to track immigrants and people seeking abortions.
Conservatives have warned that the cameras could be used to create a national gun registry.
Others, such as conservative commentator Glenn Beck, say it’s a form of government overreach.
“You cannot allow this to happen. We are creating a panopticon,” he said, referring to a circular prison design that allows a single guard to see all the inmates at once.
Many people find that unsettling, regardless of political party. Recent polling shows that more Americans now disapprove of Flock Cameras than approve of them.
