Bill seeks to restrict federal access to AI-powered license plate readers, including Flock cameras

A Texas Congressman recently introduced a bill to provide drivers with more privacy protection from automated license plate readers (ALPRs) and other surveillance technologies.

On July 15, Rep. Keith Self (TX-03) introduced the Protecting Rights in Video and Equipment Acquired Discovery (PRIVACY) Act.

If passed, the bill would restrict federal access to surveillance data collected by state and local systems, including that gathered by Flock cameras and similar driver-monitoring technologies.

“Americans’ Fourth Amendment right to be secure in their privacy does not disappear just because of new technology or artificial intelligence,” said Self. “Americans have a constitutional right to be secure in their persons, houses, papers, and effects, and our government is supposed to get a warrant before invading that privacy. This bill simply restores that protection. Get a warrant.”

Specifically, the PRIVACY Act would:

• Create a list of intrusive technologies and requiring federal law enforcement to obtain a warrant before accessing or querying data from those systems
• Limit retention of data obtained under a warrant to 30 days, unless the data constitutes evidence in a prosecution or a court grants a limited extension
• Prohibit the use of federal funds to purchase or install of such intrusive technologies, with narrow exceptions

You can view Self discussing the bill in the video below.

Co-sponsors of the bill include Congressman Eli Crane (AZ-02) and Congressman Andrew Clyde (GA-09).

“For decades, Americans’ Fourth Amendment rights have been desecrated as government entities adopt increasingly intrusive surveillance technologies. State and local systems now collect vast amounts of data, and federal agencies use that information to bypass warrant requirements and core privacy protections,” said Crane. “To counter these Orwellian tendencies, I’m proud to join Representative Self as an original cosponsor of the PRIVACY Act. This legislation closes these loopholes, limits retention of unrelated data, and restores the constitutional protections owed to every American.”

“As the mass surveillance state has drastically expanded and evolved, so too have threats and violations of Americans’ constitutional liberties — often in the name of improving public safety. Yet the American people’s Fourth Amendment rights have not changed and are not a suggestion; they are law,” said Clyde. “The PRIVACY Act provides critical protections to combat the federal government’s dangerous web of warrantless surveillance and data collection, including by devices like Flock cameras. I’m proud to support Rep. Self’s legislation, and I remain committed to restoring Americans’ Fourth Amendment freedoms amidst the rise of intrusive technologies.”