On the agenda: Bismarck ALPR Committee Meeting — Automated License Plate (Sep 22)

Regular Committee Meeting
Tuesday, September 22, 2026, at 4:00 PM
City Council Chambers, City Hall (10 3rd Ave SW)
Any person needing special accommodation for the meeting is requested to notify the
City Clerk’s office at 857-4752.
1. CALL TO ORDER/ROLL CALL
2.

PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE

3.

POLICE DEPARTMENT UPDATE

4.

DATA SUMMARY & SEARCHES PERFORMED

5.

POLICY REVIEW
5.1. MINOT POLICE DEPARTMENT POLICY

6.

COMMITTEE DISCUSSION

7.

PUBLIC COMMENT

8.

ADJOURNMENT

Page 1 of 4

Policy

Minot PD Policy Manual

433

Law Enforcement

Automated License Plate Readers (ALPR)
433.1 PURPOSE AND SCOPE
Automated License Plate Reader (ALPR) technology, also known as License Plate Recognition, provides automated
detection of license plates. The ALPR is used by the Minot Police Department to convert data associated with
vehicle license plates and use it for official law enforcement purposes. The ALPR may also be used to gather
information related to active warrants, homeland security, suspect interdiction and stolen property recovery. ALPR
technology shall not be used for general surveillance, or intelligence gathering unrelated to specific, documented
criminal investigations.

433.2 ADMINISTRATION OF ALPR DATA
All installation and maintenance of ALPR equipment, as well as ALPR data retention and access, shall be managed
by the Administration Division Commander. The Administration Division Commander will assign personnel under
his/her command to administer the day-to-day operation of the ALPR equipment and data. All ALPR system actions,
access and data handling must be logged and included in quarterly privacy audits conducted by the Office of
Professional Standards.

433.3 ALPR OPERATION
Use of ALPR is restricted to the purposes outlined below. Department personnel shall not use, or allow others to use,
the equipment or database records for any unauthorized purpose.
a. An ALPR shall only be used for official and legitimate law enforcement business. An ALPR shall not be used
for personal or political purposes. The ALPR system shall not be used for the purpose of interfering with
individuals engaged in lawful First Amendment activities.
b. An ALPR may be used in conjunction with any law enforcement operation or official department
investigation related to felony level stolen property offenses, narcotics distribution or manufacturing, stolen
motor vehicles, missing persons or violent crimes. ALPR data may also be used in any circumstance where
there is a justifiable concern for the immediate safety of a person or persons. A minimum of an articulable
reasonable suspicion or probable cause is necessary before accessing ALPR data. ALPR data may not be used
for pretextual or speculative searches. Each access request must include a case or incident number and
justification.
c. While an ALPR may be used to canvass license plates around any crime scene, particular consideration
should be given to using ALPR-equipped cars to canvass areas surrounding homicides, shootings and other
major incidents. Partial license plates reported during major crimes should be entered into the ALPR system
in an attempt to identify suspect vehicles.
d. No member of this department shall operate ALPR equipment or access ALPR data without first completing
department-approved training.
e. No ALPR operator may access Criminal Justice Information Sharing (CJIS) data unless otherwise authorized
to do so.

Copyright Lexipol, LLC 2026/05/04, All Rights Reserved.
Published with permission by Minot PD

Automated License Plate Readers (ALPR) - 1

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Minot PD Policy Manual
Law Enforcement

Automated License Plate Readers (ALPR)
f. Upon receipt of an alert and prior to performing a traffic stop, the officer must visually confirm that the
scanned plate matches the alert with regard to plate letters, numbes and issuing state. If practicable, the officer
should verify an ALPR response through NCIC, CJIS, or local records before taking enforcement action that
is based solely upon an ALPR alert.

433.4 ALPR DATA COLLECTION AND RETENTION
All data and images gathered by ALPR are for the official use of the Minot Police Department. Because such data
may contain confidential information, it is not open to public review. The ALPR information gathered and retained
by this department may be used and shared with prosecutors or others only as permitted by law.
The Administration Division Commander is responsible to ensure proper collection and retention of ALPR data. All
ALPR data not linked to an active criminal investigation shall automatically deleted after 10 days. No extension of
this is permitted unless authorized in writing by the Administration Division Commander with documentation of the
associated case number.
All ALPR data downloaded to the server should be stored for the period identified in the department records
retention schedule. Thereafter, ALPR data should be purged unless it has become, or it is reasonable to believe it will
become, evidence in a criminal or civil action or is subject to a lawful action to produce records. In those
circumstances the applicable data should be downloaded from the server onto portable media and booked into
evidence.

433.5 ACCOUNTABILITY AND SAFEGUARDS
All saved data will be closely safeguarded and protected by both procedural and technological means. The Minot
Police Department will observe the following safeguards regarding access to and use of stored data:
a. All non-law enforcement requests for access to stored ALPR data shall be referred to the Records Sergeant
and processed in accordance with applicable law.
b. All ALPR data downloaded to the mobile work station and server shall be accessible only through a login
/password-protected system capable of documenting all access of information by name, date and time. All
searches must be tied to a specific, documented case number, and personnel must enter a reason for access
before querying the system. Unauthorized searches are strictly prohibited.
c. Persons approved to access ALPR data under these guidelines are permitted to access the data for legitimate
law enforcement purposes only and must enter a case number and written justification for each access request.
Speculative searches are prohibited.
d. ALPR data may be released to other authorized and verified law enforcement officials and agencies for
legitimate law enforcement purposes, consistent with applicable law.
e. ALPR system audits shall be conducted every 30 days by the departments Office of Professional Standards.
The purpose of the audit will be to determine the number of searches and to determine if the searches were
conducted within the policy of the department. A total review of usage will be conducted quarterly by the
finance department.
f. Any persons accessing ALPR data outside the scope indicated above shall be subject to disciplinary action.

Copyright Lexipol, LLC 2026/05/04, All Rights Reserved.
Published with permission by Minot PD

Automated License Plate Readers (ALPR) - 2

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Minot PD Policy Manual
Law Enforcement

Automated License Plate Readers (ALPR)
g. A search of ALPR data will be conducted by Police Captains and above, along with the Investigations
Lieutenant. Prior approval from the Chief of Police or Deputy Chief of Police must be obtained prior to any
search being initiated. Hot sheet entries shall be made by a supervisor or require supervisor approval at a
minimum.

433.6 COMMUNITY OVERSIGHT
An appointed oversight board or privacy advisory committee shall review ALPR policy and audit reports annually to
ensure alignment with community values and legal standards.

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Published with permission by Minot PD

Automated License Plate Readers (ALPR) - 3

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