Ithaca council directs staff to pursue termination of Flock surveillance contract; vote unanimous after amendment to protect grant-funded programs

After extended public comment and council questioning, the Ithaca Common Council voted unanimously to direct the acting city manager to work with the city attorney to "take all legally available steps to terminate the contract at the earliest possible opportunity" with the security vendor Flock, provided termination is carried out in a manner that preserves obligations tied to gun-involved-violence (GIV) funding and intermunicipal agreements.

A councilmember who brought the measure said the change would allow the city to end its relationship with Flock while protecting other grant-funded services tied to GIV and encouraging staff to coordinate with Tompkins County. The amended motion — added in debate to ensure compliance with existing grant conditions — passed with unanimous support.

Public comment preceding the vote was heavily in favor of ending the city’s relationship with Flock. Speakers cited national reports about Flock’s data practices, concerns about nationwide camera access shown in earlier public audit records, and fears that ALPR and related data could be subpoenaed or shared with federal authorities without city consent. "We demand that you immediately remove the Flock surveillance cameras," one public commenter said; another recounted an incident allegedly involving police use of force at a camera location.

Police and legal staff answered council questions about how the system is used and what access other agencies had. The Ithaca Police chief said the system had been used in 125 unique instances in the previous six months and described steps taken to limit access. Acting City Attorney Catherine Muskin read the contract clause on disclosure to the record: that Flock may disclose footage to law enforcement, government officials or third parties if legally required or if Flock has a good-faith belief disclosure is necessary to comply with legal process or for security or emergency situations.

The final resolution directs staff to pursue termination while coordinating with county partners and grant administrators to avoid jeopardizing funding for existing violence-prevention programs.

Vote: The amended resolution directing legal steps to terminate the contract and to coordinate with GIV partners passed unanimously; the transcript records the council entering and exiting an advice-of-counsel session during debate and recording a unanimous final vote.