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Tompkins County public, legislators press pause on Flock camera renewal amid privacy and immigration concerns
Summary
Dozens of residents urged Tompkins County legislators on Sept. 16 to halt renewal of the county's contract with Flock Safety cameras, citing privacy, potential misuse by federal agencies and lack of transparency; lawmakers withdrew a related resolution from the agenda to allow more public meetings and a company presentation Oct. 7.
Dozens of residents and several county legislators on Sept. 16 urged the Tompkins County Legislature to suspend action on the county's contractual relationship with Flock Safety, a private provider of license-plate and video surveillance.
Public commenters said the system risks privacy violations and could expose community members — including immigrants — to federal enforcement. Several speakers requested adoption of stronger local guardrails or a pause while the county examines how Flock stores and shares data.
Why it matters: Speakers argued the cameras create centralized searchable data and that outside agencies and companies can access or exploit that data. Several speakers tied the issue to the county’s stated sanctuary policies and to recent national reports of misuse of similar systems.
During public comment, multiple residents described concrete…
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