Rep. Pat Harrigan, a North Carolina Republican, introduced legislation Thursday to tighten restrictions on automated license plate readers (ALPRs), including Flock cameras used by law enforcement.
The bill would prohibit ALPR searches targeting political or religious messages on vehicles, mandate warrants for most searches, require deletion of collected records within 24 hours, and ban vendors from selling or sharing location data.
"When you consider that these systems track everything that you do, where you work, where your kids go to school, where you even go to church, I think it's pretty easy to understand why people are concerned," Harrigan told Fox News Digital. He said the data represents "an extraordinary amount of information about somebody that the government has that has never committed a crime."
ALPRs photograph vehicles and track their locations, creating searchable databases of license plate numbers and movement patterns. Law enforcement uses the systems to identify vehicles matching suspect descriptions and search by location during criminal investigations.
Critics argue ALPRs raise constitutional concerns by tracking drivers without their consent. Law enforcement advocates say the systems are essential for crime prevention and solving cases.
President Donald Trump voiced support for Flock cameras on Sept. 13, telling reporters he "sort of" likes them for their utility to police, despite some civil liberties advocates calling the technology an infringement on privacy rights.
Harrigan's bill applies to all ALPR systems and specifically prohibits government agencies from categorizing vehicles based on "expressive attributes"—political or religious bumper stickers, flags, or decals. Searches targeting messages like "Back the Blue," "Jesus Saves," or "Black Lives Matter" would be prohibited.
"At the end of the day, they have nothing to do with whether you committed a crime or not," Harrigan said. He cited advances in artificial intelligence that make collected data more easily searchable, amplifying the potential for misuse.
