SB 1111 | FEBRUARY 10, 2026 | Assistant Chief James Edelstein | Prescott Valley Police Department

Our Take

In this episode of the Jen & Friends Podcast, host Jen sits down with Prescott Valley Assistant Chief James Edelstein to make the case for Arizona's SB 1111, the bill that would set the first statewide rules for license plate readers. Credit to Jen for getting a senior law enforcement voice on record — these conversations matter, because most ALPR policy in this country gets written behind closed doors between vendors like Flock Safety and the agencies that buy their cameras, not in public hearings where residents can push back.

Edelstein's pitch is the one we hear in statehouse after statehouse: departments are short-staffed, ALPRs are a "force multiplier," and the tech helps find missing people and build investigative timelines faster. All of that can be true and still dodge the harder questions. Who audits the audit logs? How long is data retained, and does it get shared with ICE, other states, or private databases without a warrant? "Guardrails" sound reassuring in a committee room, but the devil is in whether the statute has real enforcement teeth or just a list of best practices that departments can waive when it's convenient. Bills drafted with heavy input from the agencies they're meant to regulate have a way of protecting the program more than the public.

If you live in Arizona or anywhere SB 1111-style legislation is moving, the time to ask questions is before it passes, not after the cameras are already bolted to the light poles. Check our camera map to see what's already watching your streets, and use our take-action guide to find out how to weigh in while lawmakers are still listening.