Councilor raises civil‑rights concerns about Flock license‑plate readers before council adopts item 91
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Summary
Councilor Monto warned that Flock's network of license‑plate readers 'normalizes mass tracking of ordinary drivers' during debate; after the discussion the Syracuse City Council adopted item 91 by unanimous roll call.
Councilor Monto raised civil‑rights and privacy concerns about Flock, a private company that operates license‑plate reader cameras, during discussion of agenda item 91 and then urged the council to consider the implications as it moved to adopt the item.
"Flock is not a public safety partner. It is a private for‑profit surveillance company that built a nationwide vehicle tracking network," Councilor Monto said, arguing that the cameras "track people's movements, store the data, and then make it available far beyond the local community that supposedly controls it." He added that "Flock's business model depends on normalizing mass tracking of ordinary drivers," and warned that the system does not distinguish between a suspected criminal and an ordinary resident traveling to work, school or a clinic.
No vendor representative or staff response to these assertions appears in the transcript of this session. After Councilor Monto's remarks the chair called the roll; the council voted to adopt item 91 and the chair announced the vote as unanimous.
The transcript shows the concern was framed as a civil‑rights and privacy issue rather than a formal rejection of the item; the council proceeded to adopt the item during the same session. The record does not include further detail about what the item specifically authorizes (contract terms, data‑handling requirements, or limitations), nor does it record a staff presentation or vendor testimony responding to the concerns raised. Those documents, if they exist, would provide needed detail about data retention, access controls and whether the city imposes conditions on vendor use of collected data.
Next steps: the council's adoption does not appear in the transcript to include mitigation steps or reporting requirements. For officials and members of the public seeking clarity, the meeting record indicates follow up with the city clerk or relevant departments (e.g., procurement or police) will be necessary to obtain the agenda packet, contract language and any privacy or data‑sharing agreements tied to the item.
