Bipartisan push to ban Flock license-plate cameras gains momentum

Governors in several states are moving to restrict or eliminate the use of Flock AI-driven license-plate cameras, a technology that records billions of plates each month. Pennsylvania Democratic Governor Josh Shapiro said he would support bipartisan legislation to ban the devices, calling them “not something in the public interest.”

"I would welcome bipartisan legislation to ban these across the state," Shapiro said.

Florida Republican Governor Ron DeSantis announced plans to revoke permits for the cameras on state highways, arguing that law-enforcement tools should not turn the state into a “surveillance state.”

"I'm all about having law enforcement have tools. But I don't want to have this become a surveillance state," DeSantis said.

Texas Republican Governor Greg Abbott recently froze state spending for the cameras, and Senate Republicans have opened investigations into alleged police misuse. Law-enforcement agencies contend the system helps locate stolen vehicles and missing persons, but critics point to documented abuses, including stalking incidents and tracking of immigrants and individuals seeking abortions.

Senior policy analyst Jay Stanley of the ACLU noted that opposition spans the political spectrum, reflecting a broad American discomfort with pervasive government monitoring.

"Now you have to live your life with what sociologists call the third eye that is watching you, and I think a lot of Americans don't want to live that way," Stanley said.

Conservative commentator Glenn Beck warned that the technology could create a “panopticon,” likening it to a prison design that enables total observation.

"You cannot allow this to happen. We are creating a panopticon," Beck said.

Efforts to modify the system’s features have been made by Flock, but bipartisan calls for outright bans continue as the midterm election cycle intensifies.