Urbandale Council OKs tighter limits on Flock data sharing, requires notice before compelled disclosures

Urbandale’s City Council voted April 7 to approve amendments to its professional services agreement with Flock Group, Inc., tightening limits on the company’s ability to disclose automated license-plate reader (ALPR) data and establishing a notice window before compelled disclosures.

The changes, presented by Police Chief Rob Johansson, explicitly state that Flock may not disclose customer data — including footage and plate reads — to any third party, including law enforcement or government agencies, without prior written consent from Urbandale. The amendment also adds a requirement that Flock provide the city with written notice at least 10 business days before disclosing footage when legally compelled, allowing the city time to review or contest the request. If prior notice is legally prohibited, the contract requires notice “as soon as legitimately or legally permitted.” Council approved the amended language after public questions and staff responses.

Why it matters: The ALPR system identifies vehicles by rear license plate and returns real-time alerts when plates match entries in the National Crime Information Center database. Advocates of the technology say it produces investigative leads and helps recover stolen property and missing persons; privacy advocates warn about potential misuse and improper third-party access. The contract amendments aim to preserve the public-safety benefits while adding procedural safeguards around compelled disclosures and third-party access.

Details from the meeting: Chief Johansson told the council the city owns the ALPR data and that Flock’s access is limited to the services the city requires. He said license-plate reads are stored for 30 days and retained longer only when placed into evidence for an investigation or prosecution. The department has expanded from initial pilot cameras to 26 ALPR locations citywide and pays roughly $68,000 per year for system access and software. Johansson described the technology’s uses, including alerts for stolen vehicles, warrants and missing persons, and he provided examples of cases investigators solved using ALPR leads.

Johansson summarized the contract changes in the meeting: “The amendment clarifies that the agreement does not authorize Flock to disclose customer data to any third party … without prior written consent from Urbandale,” and added the 10-business-day notice requirement for compelled disclosures. He also pointed council members to a city landing page and Flock’s transparency portal showing searches and partner agencies.

Council concerns and answers: Members asked whether Flock could be compelled to share data by non-judicial government orders, whether federal agencies such as ICE could obtain data, and how interagency sharing and audit logs work. Staff and the chief said Flock would generally push legal requests back to the city (because the city is the data owner), would provide notice when permitted, and that the city approves other agencies’ access on an agency-by-agency basis. The chief also said the city can revoke outside agencies’ access and will audit search logs to detect inappropriate use.

Next steps and policy: Councilmembers requested that staff add policy language about auditing and periodic review of external access (for example, expiring access for agencies that do not use it). The council approved council letter 8527 moving the amended agreement forward.

What remains unresolved: Questions raised in the meeting about whether a court or other non-judicial orders might prevent advance notice, and about hypothetical downstream sharing by other agencies, were discussed but not fully closed; staff said notice and audit controls are the primary protections and legal counsel will advise if specific legal processes arise.

The council approved the amended Flock agreement in the same meeting where it also advanced other routine business and capital projects.