Bipartisan legislation for Flock Safety regulations introduced in Massachusetts
The short version: A Massachusetts lawmaker's bipartisan bill to regulate Flock Safety ALPRs shows even state houses are waking up to the surveillance sprawl in their own backyards.
Our Take
WPRI's report on Rep. Adam Scanlon's bipartisan push to rein in Flock Safety cameras is a reminder that this fight isn't confined to coastal privacy hawks or tech policy wonks — it's showing up in North Attleboro town halls and the Massachusetts State House. When lawmakers from different parties agree that unregulated license plate readers are a problem worth legislating, that's a signal the public conversation has shifted from "is this useful for police" to "who's watching the watchers."
That question matters because Flock's network has expanded largely through local police department contracts, with little statewide oversight of data retention, sharing agreements, or audit trails. A bill establishing actual guardrails — even a modest one — forces transparency that town-by-town rollouts have avoided. It also gives residents and reporters something concrete to hold departments accountable to, instead of vague reassurances about "public safety."
Massachusetts joining the list of states debating ALPR rules is worth watching closely, especially as Flock continues installing cameras faster than most legislatures can regulate them. If you want to see how dense that coverage already is near you, check our camera map, and if you want to push your own representatives toward accountability, our take-action page has resources to get started. Credit to WPRI for surfacing this story before the cameras multiply any further.
This is DeFlock The USA’s original commentary. The video above is the work of WPRI, published on YouTube — full credit to the creator.