A statewide freeze on new Flock license plate reader cameras could ripple across the Clear Lake area, where the Harris County Sheriff's Office manages 480 of the devices in 20 networks countywide.
The Texas Department of Transportation confirmed Thursday, Sept. 17, that it had suspended permits for Flock cameras and similar automated license plate readers installed by third parties on state-owned roadways, the Texas Tribune reported. The agency acted at Gov. Greg Abbott's direction. The suspension covers new applications and agreements already approved but not yet installed, though cameras already in place are not affected.
The Texas Tribune reported that a presentation by the Schertz police chief placed the start of the pause at Sept. 8. TxDOT did not confirm that date.
The permit freeze follows Abbott's Aug. 28 order directing all state agencies to stop funding Flock cameras. The Texas Tribune reported that the Motor Vehicle Crime Prevention Authority had helped state and local agencies install at least 3,200 Flock cameras since 2023, funded partly by a $1 fee on Texas auto insurance policies under a 2023 law targeting catalytic converter theft.
The Texas Tribune reported that in the month before Abbott's Aug. 28 radio interview, at least six police departments and sheriff's offices across Texas had officers placed on leave, under investigation, or criminally charged for misusing the cameras. In that interview, Abbott pointed to a Lufkin police officer indicted on 100 felony counts for alleged misuse of Flock data.
Deer Park misuse and Harris County fallout
Closer to home, a Deer Park police officer was disciplined after an internal audit found the officer had searched license plates more than 150 times in queries unrelated to any investigation. The Deer Park Police Department announced the discipline Aug. 14 and said it created a public transparency portal for its Flock data.
The same day, the Harris County Sheriff's Office suspended three deputies' access to the Flock system and launched a misconduct review. Harris County's Flock contract runs through June 2027 at roughly $869,000.
In an Aug. 14 statement announcing the deputies' suspension, Harris County Sheriff Ed Gonzalez said, "The license plate readers have thwarted kidnapping attempts, led to the quick apprehension of armed robbery crews, and helped recover countless stolen vehicles. But as with any powerful new public safety tool, this technology is subject to abuse."
What it means locally
Harris County has the highest number of Flock cameras of any U.S. county, with more than 4,000 logged on a national tracking map, according to Axios Houston. Most camera networks in the county are owned by municipal utility districts and neighborhood associations, with HCSO serving as system administrator, the Texas Tribune reported.
No public records confirm whether Friendswood, Webster, Seabrook, Nassau Bay, or Clear Lake Shores police departments individually operate Flock cameras or hold state-funded Flock contracts. Seabrook was among the recipients of a 2022 grant from the state's Motor Vehicle Crime Prevention Authority, a program that allows communities to purchase automated license plate readers, according to a Texas Department of Motor Vehicles press release. It's unclear whether Seabrook used the funding for that purpose. The TxDOT suspension applies only to cameras on state rights-of-way. Locally funded cameras on city streets or private property are not directly affected.
Flock responded to the scrutiny in August by shortening its default data retention from 30 days to seven, adding methods to detect suspicious searches, and requiring a case code before any query, the company said.
Harris County Judge Lina Hidalgo has called for a special Commissioners Court meeting on Flock cameras in October. Residents who want to know whether their local department uses the technology can contact their city's police department directly.
