Auburn, CA City Council Hears Public Comments Regarding Flock and ALPR Surveillance Systems 8-10-26
The short version: Auburn, CA residents pushed back on Flock ALPR surveillance at a city council meeting, prompting officials to schedule a town hall for broader public input.
Our Take
Credit to Central Sierra Foothills DSA for getting cameras (of the non-surveillance kind) into that Auburn council chamber. What's happening there is the same story we've watched play out in dozens of towns: a city quietly signs up for a network of license plate readers, and it's only when residents show up and start asking hard questions that officials admit maybe they should hold a real public conversation. The fact that Auburn is now planning a town hall instead of just rubber-stamping a renewal is a small win, and it only happened because people showed up and spoke.
That's the pattern worth noting: Flock doesn't sell to city councils in the dark on its own — it counts on nobody paying attention. Every jurisdiction that manages to slow down and force a public hearing is proof that organized residents can still make elected officials sweat before they hand a private company a permanent record of who drives where. Auburn's town hall next month is a chance for the public to demand real answers about data retention, audit logs, who gets access to search history, and whether any of this actually reduces crime or just reduces privacy.
If you're in Auburn or anywhere else weighing a Flock contract, don't wait for the vote. Check our camera map to see what's already been deployed near you, and use our take-action guide to show up prepared — public comment works, but only when people bring specifics, not just outrage.
This is DeFlock The USA’s original commentary. The video above is the work of Central Sierra Foothills DSA, published on YouTube — full credit to the creator.