WA bill seeks new rules on use of license plate reading cameras | FOX 13 Seattle

Our Take

Credit to FOX 13 Seattle for putting a spotlight on something we've been saying for a while: the technology raced ahead of the law, and lawmakers are only now scrambling to catch up. Flock's camera network has spread across Washington the same way it has nationwide — department by department, often with little public debate, and even less clarity about who can access the data, how long it's kept, or what happens when it's shared across jurisdictional lines.

A bill aimed at setting rules is a start, but the real test is in the details. Retention limits, audit trails, restrictions on out-of-state and federal data sharing, and actual consequences for misuse are what separate a meaningful reform from a press release. Washington residents should be asking their own police departments right now whether they're running Flock cameras, and under what policy — because in most places, nobody asked permission before the cameras went up.

If you want to see how far this network has already spread near you, check our camera map, and if you'd rather not wait for Olympia to sort it out, our take-action page has steps for pushing back locally.