Residents tell Longmont council Flock Safety license-plate cameras erode trust; council took no immediate regulatory action
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Summary
During first-call public comment, multiple residents raised privacy concerns about Flock Safety license-plate cameras and called for scrutiny of private surveillance vendors and public-records access. Council did not take immediate regulatory action at the Jan. 13 meeting.
Several Longmont residents used the public-comment period on Jan. 13 to raise concerns about private license-plate-camera vendors and city contracts.
Pavel Ivanov read an email attributed to the CEO of Flock (a vendor of license-plate-reading cameras) that defended the company’s cybersecurity record and described activist opposition to the vendor’s work with police as a “coordinated attack.” Ivanov then argued that automated, indiscriminate tracking tools pose privacy risks and said that, because Flock contracted with public agencies, the company should be subject to public records requests.
Jacob McCallum, a first-time city-council attendee, told council he worries the cameras “are eroding trust with the government,” especially among younger residents, and asked for stronger privacy protections and limits on private actors’ access to location and timestamped vehicle data. Neither council staff nor council members announced regulatory changes at the meeting; the concerns were entered into the public record.
Next step: council did not direct immediate regulatory action during this meeting; residents and council members may pursue the issue in future study sessions or agenda items.
