Lansing council member asks city to terminate Flock camera contracts

Our Take

Credit where it's due: WLNS 6 News is covering a story that too many local outlets ignore until the cameras are already bolted to the light poles. First Ward Council Member Ryan Kost is reportedly asking Lansing's city administration to terminate its Flock Safety contracts outright — not just "pause" or "audit" them, but walk away. That's a rare move, and it matters because most city councils never revisit these deals once they're signed. Vendors like Flock bank on contract inertia and a public that assumes the cameras are already permanent fixtures.

We don't have the full text of Kost's proposal, so we won't speculate on his exact reasoning or what pushback he's getting from police leadership or the company. But the fact that a sitting council member is willing to put "terminate" on the table tells you something: the political cost of defending blanket ALPR surveillance is starting to rise in cities that installed these systems with little debate. Lansing residents deserve a real accounting of who's accessed their travel data, how long it's stored, and whether any of it has ever been shared outside city lines — questions that rarely get answered until someone on the inside forces the issue.

If you're in Lansing or anywhere else wondering whether Flock cameras are already watching your commute, check our camera map to see what's been documented near you. And if your own city council hasn't had this conversation yet, our take-action page has the tools to start pushing for one.