Pflugerville is shutting down 28 automated license plate reader cameras after the City Council unanimously rejected a new agreement with Flock Safety, ending the city's use of a system police have relied on since 2020.
City employees began physically covering the cameras Tuesday and will turn off all 28 readers included in the city's contract, according to a city news release. Pflugerville will also disable access to the Flock automated license plate reader system.
The decision came as council members considered a two-year extension of the city's agreement with Flock that would have updated privacy, security and data policies. Rather than approve the extension, the council voted to end the relationship with the company entirely.
City officials said concerns about whether Flock could adequately protect data and comply with Pflugerville's privacy standards drove the decision.
"We've lost confidence in the current system and the vendor's ability to meet our data and privacy standards," Pflugerville Police Chief Willie Richards said.
Richards noted the technology had proven useful to police, including during critical incidents, but that the department needed confidence that safeguards were working as intended.
Mayor Doug Weiss similarly pointed to concerns about the technology and said the city could not work with vendors it did not trust.
"Public safety and public trust have to go hand in hand, and recent revelations about the Flock system have fueled concerns throughout the community," Weiss said.
The vote does not mean Pflugerville is abandoning license plate reader technology altogether. Weiss said the council would continue exploring tools that could assist law enforcement, provided the vendors can meet the city's standards and "keep the community's confidence."
The decision also comes as Pflugerville officials consider broader rules governing the city's use of technology and data.
Council members discussed the city's first data governance standards during a work session Tuesday. The proposed Pflugerville Secure, Accountable, Fair and Explainable policy - or SAFE - would establish standards for protecting city and confidential data and set requirements for transparency and council oversight.
Under the proposed policy, high-risk technology such as automated license plate readers would require council approval. Council members are expected to vote on the policy at a future meeting.
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This article originally published at Pflugerville rejects agreement with Flock, shutting down 28 license plate readers.