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Residents and advocates urge Tompkins County to pause Flock ALPR use and adopt surveillance safeguards
Summary
Public commenters at the July 15 legislative meeting urged the county to pause deployment of Flock automated license plate readers (ALPRs), citing national reports of data sharing with federal immigration authorities and requesting a formal surveillance data policy based on ACLU model language.
Several residents and civil‑rights advocates urged Tompkins County legislators on July 15 to pause current and future use of Flock automated license plate readers (ALPRs) and to adopt a comprehensive surveillance-data policy.
Dirk Trache and Katie Church were among speakers who described national reporting and Freedom of Information Act records that they said show Flock data has been used by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and other federal agencies in other jurisdictions. Trache summarized reporting from media outlets including 404 Media, The Orlando Sentinel and CalMatters, and said the pattern raised concern about local data flows and access controls. “Flock camera data is being shared with ICE in ways that communities are often unaware of and don't have control over,” he said.
Church noted that Flock is shared with other New York law enforcement agencies and asked what safeguards prevent a department affiliated with ICE through 287(g) or other programs from querying Ithaca-area data on the department’s behalf. She also cited reporting that Flock customers will be able to request associated video footage beginning in the fall, and urged the county to “pause this use and further installation of the Flock cameras until we have completed a thorough and in‑depth review of the risks and dangers.”
Speakers asked the legislature to adopt a surveillance-data policy modeled on ACLU guidance and requested an in‑depth review of access controls, data retention, query justification standards and third‑party sharing protocols. Public comments cited cases elsewhere where local agencies shared ALPR data with federal immigration or other law-enforcement units and urged Tompkins County to ensure the county’s commitments as a sanctuary jurisdiction are reflected in day‑to‑day practices.
Legislators acknowledged the concerns and said the issue is under review in committee; several members said the county’s sheriff had stated an intent not to share data with ICE. Public Safety Committee members plan further discussion at an upcoming committee meeting. No formal vote or contract decision occurred at the July 15 meeting.
