Two top Connecticut Democratic lawmakers are asking cities and towns to voluntarily pause installing new Flock automated license plate reader cameras while they prepare legislation to strengthen privacy protections.
Senate Majority Leader Bob Duff, D-Norwalk, and Sen. James Maroney, D-Milford, announced Wednesday they will introduce legislation during the 2027 session to further regulate the technology, citing growing concerns about surveillance and data collection.
Flock cameras are automated license plate readers that capture images of passing vehicles and record license plate numbers, vehicle characteristics, the time and location of each sighting. Police departments say the technology helps recover stolen vehicles, locate missing people and investigate crimes by alerting officers when vehicles connected to criminal investigations are detected.
Privacy advocates and residents in several Connecticut communities argue the cameras collect information on people who are not suspected of crimes and have questioned how that data is stored, shared and searched.
The lawmakers said they will ask the Connecticut Department of Emergency Services and Public Protection to survey every municipality to determine how many Flock cameras are installed and where they are located.
"Communities across Connecticut are taking a hard look at these cameras and deciding they don't want them, and they're right to ask the question," Duff said in a statement. "Residents deserve real answers about who is watching them and why before a single new camera goes up."
Maroney called the cameras "invasive technology" and said public concern has outpaced current law.
"When we see towns rejecting these cameras and questioning whether they need this kind of surveillance at all, that tells us the public is ahead of the law," Maroney said. "We intend to keep it that way by strengthening these protections in 2027."
The announcement comes as several Connecticut communities debate the use of automated license plate readers.
Last month, the Windsor Town Council voted 5-4 against reactivating the town's Flock license plate reader system and renewing its contract with the company after months of debate over privacy, surveillance and data sharing concerns. The vote kept the town's 16 cameras turned off.
On Monday, the Milford Board of Aldermen voted to table until September a proposal that would temporarily halt the use and expansion of the city's Flock camera system following hours of public testimony from residents who raised concerns about privacy, government surveillance and data collection.
Supporters of the cameras, including law enforcement officials, argue the technology helps recover stolen vehicles, locate missing people and investigate serious crimes.
Police say searches require a documented case number, are subject to audits and that Connecticut law prohibits the data from being used for immigration enforcement or to monitor constitutionally protected activities.
Earlier this year, Gov. Ned Lamont signed legislation reducing the default data-retention period from 30 days to 21 days while placing new limits on how license plate reader data can be accessed and shared.
Duff and Maroney said the statewide survey will help guide legislation they plan to introduce during the 2027 session.
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