Fitchburg council votes to end Flock Safety contract, orders nationwide-search access turned off during 120-day wind-down

The Fitchburg Common Council on May 26 approved Resolution R-12-26 to discontinue the city's contract with Flock Safety and to seek contract termination as soon as possible. Council adopted an amendment making the end of contractual use effective 120 days from the resolution date or upon activation of a replacement automatic license-plate-reader (ALPR) solution, whichever comes sooner; the council also approved an amendment requesting Flock turn off the platform's nationwide-search feature during the wind-down.

The Nut Graf: Councilmembers framed the action as a response to concerns about Flock as a company'including data governance and cross-jurisdictional searchability'rather than a critique of local police. City staff said the Fitchburg Police Department supports ending the contract; members described the council resolve as aligning with neighboring municipalities that have rescinded Flock agreements.

Public comment was a central element of the debate. More than a dozen speakers described privacy, immigration enforcement and misuse risks if Flock maintains a national searchable database of vehicle movement data; several witnesses cited reported incidents where Flock data was accessed by outside agencies and one local example of alleged officer misuse in another jurisdiction. Technical and security concerns were also raised: at least one cybersecurity professional told the council he could access camera feeds using modest equipment, and others urged stronger controls or elimination of vendor-held searchable networks.

Council discussion focused on two practical questions: how to minimize data access during the transition and how to maintain essential investigative capability for local police. Multiple members emphasized they were not punishing the Fitchburg Police Department, which the council praised for service; rather, the stated concern was with Flock's business model and national data practices. Several members noted that as neighboring jurisdictions decertify Flock or disable networked access, the value of a single isolated installation declines.

The council approved the amended resolution by voice vote. Key features of the approved action: - Direct staff to cancel the Flock contract or negotiate termination as soon as permitted by contract terms. - If the contract cannot be terminated immediately, discontinue operational use of the cameras and, as approved by amendment, disable nationwide-search capability within 120 days. - Staff to pursue or evaluate replacement solutions that keep data locally stored and under municipal governance.

What happens next: City staff will attempt to negotiate contract termination and explore replacement ALPR or locally stored solutions. The police department signaled operational support for the transition; the council requested further updates on timing and the technical steps to ensure data access is limited while essential investigative functions are preserved.

Representative quote: "Turning off nationwide search would effectively localize any data Fitchburg captures, which addresses our primary governance concern," an alder supporting the amendment said during debate.

Speakers named in this item include Alder Logan (mover), Alder Leper (amendment sponsor), Micah (sponsor/developer of referral), and many public commenters who opposed continued use of Flock due to privacy and misuse concerns.