Six Providence City Council members have proposed an ordinance that would bar the city from using automated license plate readers, the cameras and software that record plate numbers and where vehicles were seen. The council's Special Committee on Health, Opportunity, Prosperity and Education takes it up Nov. 12 at 5:30 p.m. in the council chamber, and the agenda sets aside time for public comment.
The ordinance (item 54939) was referred to committee on Oct. 15. Its sponsors are Council President Rachel M. Miller, Deputy Majority Whip Sue R. AnderBois, Majority Whip Miguel A. Sanchez, and Councilors Jill S. Davidson, John Goncalves and Justin M. Roias. The committee agenda lists it as the only ordinance before the panel.
What the ordinance would do
No city department, officer, employee or contractor could acquire, run, search or receive data from a plate reader, whether the system is owned by the city or by "another public or private entity." That wording would reach data collected by other agencies and companies, not only cameras the city pays for.
The ordinance takes effect on passage. At that point the city must immediately deactivate its readers, stop accepting services under any agreement, notify the vendor in writing and take "all lawful steps" to end the contract and have vendor-owned equipment removed. It exempts tolling, parking-facility access, traffic enforcement expressly authorized by state law, and conduct required by federal or state law or a court order. It also says nothing in it extinguishes a contractual claim, remedy or accrued payment obligation.
The contract behind it
The ordinance's opening clauses say Providence signed a contract with Flock Group Inc. in October 2023 for an initial 36-month term with two one-year extension options. They give the signing dates as Oct. 23, 2023 for Flock and Oct. 31, 2023 for the police chief, and say each year of the initial term cost the city between $155,000 and $170,000. The ordinance does not say when the 36-month initial term began or whether the city has exercised an extension option.
The clauses also say that, with a separate Flock contract held by the Rhode Island State Police, there are "reportedly more than 100" Flock cameras in Providence.
The sponsors cite three concerns raised by constituents: federal immigration agents using Flock data, authorized users searching the data to stalk partners or former partners, and frequent misidentification of people and vehicles. The text describes these as grounded in "patterns of behavior in other jurisdictions." It does not describe a Providence incident.
The city's legislative record for the ordinance contains no response from the mayor's office or the Police Department, and we have not obtained their positions from a primary source.
After the Nov. 12 hearing, the committee can vote on whether to send the ordinance to the full council. The council's next regular meeting is listed for Nov. 19 at 6 p.m.
