New bill could derail standards on how Flock cameras are used across California

A new proposal in the California Legislature could make it more difficult for public agencies to use automated license plate readers, the cameras employed by controversial surveillance company Flock.Privacy advocates argue the systems allow for mass surveillance, while law enforcement agencies say they are among the most important tools available for investigations.Senate Bill 1013, authored by Sen.

Sabrina Cervantes, would require public agencies using license plate readers to provide officer training, maintain logs of database searches, undergo annual audits by the California Department of Justice and delete license plate reader data after 30 days unless it is tied to an active criminal investigation.SB 1013 has already passed the state Senate and is now under consideration in the Assembly.The bill would need to pass both chambers before reaching Gov.

Gavin Newsom’s desk to become law.Its prospects remain uncertain.Last year, Newsom vetoed a similar bill that would have required license plate reader data to be deleted after 60 days, arguing the restriction could be detrimental to law enforcement investigations.Currently, Flock Safety has more than 120,000 automated license plate readers installed across the US, according to the company’s online map.

California has more than 16,000 of those cameras, giving the state the highest concentration of the devices in the nation.If approved, Cervantes’ bill would establish uniform statewide standards governing license plate reader systems operated by public agencies throughout California.Privacy advocates say the bill would provide greater oversight of how license plate readers are being used.“People are bothered by mass surveillance,” Seth Hall of the Trust SD Coalition, a network advocating for greater oversight of surveillance technologies, told CBS News 8.Hall said the cameras are constantly collecting information on vehicles, raising concerns about the extent of government surveillance.Cervantes said the ...