During a recent government meeting, officials discussed the sharing of Automated License Plate Reader (ALPR) information by the Oak Park Police Department, particularly in relation to new statutory provisions that restrict its use for investigating or enforcing laws concerning abortion access and immigration. The law mandates that Oak Park must obtain written declarations from out-of-state law enforcement agencies affirming that the ALPR data will not be misused before sharing any information.

Currently, Oak Park is sharing ALPR data with law enforcement agencies in several states, including Ohio, Tennessee, and North Carolina, as well as two federal agencies. However, it was noted that the Oak Park Police Department does not maintain written declarations for these agencies; instead, the company Flock Safety, which manages the ALPR system, collects these affirmations.

Flock Safety has proactively complied with the new law by disabling access to their system for out-of-state agencies that do not affirm compliance with the restrictions. Agencies that have not responded or declined to comply are effectively barred from accessing ALPR data in Illinois.

The discussion also touched on concerns regarding racial bias in policing. Officials clarified that while there may be a perception of racial bias in traffic stops linked to ALPR data, this is not necessarily indicative of the Oak Park Police Department's practices. Instead, they emphasized that the underlying data, which is sourced from outside Oak Park, may contain biases that affect the outcomes of stops. The meeting underscored the importance of addressing these data integrity issues to mitigate concerns about racial bias in law enforcement practices.