Resident Rebecca Bush urges Christiansburg to remove Flock ALPRs or tighten town policy

Rebecca Bush, a PhD candidate at Virginia Tech and resident of 460 Newcomb Street, urged the Christiansburg Town Council to remove Flock-brand automated license-plate readers (ALPRs) or strengthen the town's 2026 ALPR policy. She told the council the devices and their software "collect and process massive amounts of data" and are "actively building a huge database of highly personal and highly detailed information."

Bush read eight specific requests for policy language changes, including: requiring a council vote for any new feature; a written ban on audio sensors; prohibiting Bluetooth, Wi‑Fi, RFID and signal-trace sensors; independent, scheduled security assessments with publicly available audit reports; written authorization for vendor setting changes with a public update; banning private individuals' use of ALPR data gathered on public roads; and removing all Flock devices if the company becomes publicly traded. "I think that that technology violates the Fourth Amendment rights," she said, adding she wanted explicit, written prohibitions because verbal assurances "don't show up in the 2026 automated license plate reader policy."

Chair acknowledged the request and asked Bush to provide her suggested wording to Major Steven Swecker for staff review. The council did not take action on policy changes at this meeting; staff received the suggested language for follow-up. The request and the list of specific policy items provide a clear set of items the council can refer to when the town manager or police department returns with proposed ordinance or policy language.