Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Surveillance Plate Readers topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Linden council adopts bond ordinance to expand license-plate readers after public questions
Summary
The Linden City Council adopted Ordinance 70-44, authorizing $1,394,580 to buy automatic license-plate readers after residents asked about scale, data retention and privacy; police said plate data are retained 30 days and are queried for investigations under state audit rules.
The Linden City Council voted to adopt Ordinance 70-44, a bond appropriation of $1,394,580 to buy automatic license-plate recognition cameras for the police department, after a public hearing and questions from residents about privacy and how the technology is used. The ordinance authorizes issuing $1,324,851 in bonds to finance part of the appropriation.
At the public hearing, resident John Kaeser asked how many cameras are in the city and whether the new purchase expands surveillance. "There's been a lot of talk on social media," Kaeser said, asking whether the ordinance related to a previously discussed plate-reader resolution. The police chief responded that the city already has a network of cameras and that the ordinance consolidates multiple contracts into a single five-year contract and adds additional devices.
The police representative explained how the system works: "The plate readers are just that, plate readers," the chief said. "They're collecting plates that pass these cameras strategically put throughout the city. They're not collecting personal information... There's a 30-day retention on the information, and so it's available if it's part of an investigation." He added the department follows attorney-general guidelines and that the data are not used by federal immigration authorities.
Council members closed the hearing and moved to adopt the ordinance by roll call after no further public speakers. The ordinance passed by the recorded votes shown at the meeting. Proponents said the technology has aided investigations into shootings, missing persons and hit-and-runs; critics at the hearing urged clearer public communication about camera locations and use policies.
Next steps include executing the consolidated contract and deploying the additional cameras under the five-year arrangement described by police. The ordinance text recorded the appropriation and bond authorization; details about exact deployment locations and an accompanying written privacy policy were not specified in the public record at the meeting.
