McKee calls for statewide pause on installing automated license plate readers
The short version: Rhode Island Gov. Dan McKee is urging cities to hit pause on new Flock Safety camera installs as public unease over ALPR surveillance grows, WPRI reports.
Our Take
When a sitting governor starts telling municipalities to slow down on license plate readers, that's a sign the Flock Safety sales pitch is losing its grip on the public narrative. Credit to WPRI for capturing this moment in Rhode Island, where McKee's call for a statewide pause suggests even elected officials who normally stay quiet on surveillance tech are feeling the heat from constituents who didn't sign up to have every drive logged and stored in a corporate database.
A "pause" is not a ban, and it's worth remembering that cities often use these cooling-off periods to quietly rework contracts rather than kill them outright. Flock's business model depends on moving fast, locking in municipalities before anyone asks hard questions about data retention, audit access, or who else gets to query the system — including federal agencies with their own agendas. Any delay that forces a real public conversation about those details is a win, but it only matters if residents actually show up and press their councils while the cameras are still unplugged.
Rhode Islanders who want to know what's already watching their streets can check our camera map, and anyone hoping to turn this pause into something permanent should look at our take-action page for ways to push back before the next contract gets signed.
This is DeFlock The USA’s original commentary. The video above is the work of WPRI, published on YouTube — full credit to the creator.