(The Center Square) – House lawmakers passed a bill Thursday that creates a regulatory framework in Washington state for automated license plate readers, or ALPR, systems such as Flock Safety cameras.
ALPR cameras capture images of passing vehicles and store that information in a searchable database used by law enforcement nationwide. The technology is frequently used to find missing people, stolen vehicles and wanted criminals, but critics have raised concerns over creating a new surveillance state.
In some cases, officers have misused the technology to track down past romantic partners and surveil people for personal reasons. Senate Bill 6002 tries to strike a balance between public safety and a right to privacy, earning bipartisan support in the state Senate last month and the House on Thursday.
“This is a truly well-worked solution to a real problem,” Rep. Jim Walsh, chair of the Washington State Republican Party, explained on the House floor. “But you’ll see some on this side who are concerned, either about not enough protection to privacy, or conversely, not enough utility to law enforcement.”
SB 6002 creates a statewide framework for where ALPRs can be placed, how long agencies can retain the data and who can use that information and for what reasons. While earlier versions of the proposal required agencies to delete data within 72 hours, the one approved Thursday allows retention for 21 days.
Notably, the legislation prohibits the use of ALPRs for civil immigration enforcement, as federal agents tap the database to carry out operations across the country. While that aligned with many Democrats, Republicans focused more on limiting government overreach without tying up a vital investigative tool.
Last month, the Senate passed the proposal with a 40-9 vote after 10 Republicans, including caucus leaders, joined Democrats in support. The House voted 84-10 on Thursday, with four excused and 28 Republicans joining Democrats in support, though Walsh and other floor leaders ultimately voted nay.
“In Washington, over 80 cities, six counties and three tribal governments have deployed automatic license plate readers,” Rep. Osman Salahuddin, D-Redmond, said on the House floor. “Yet our state still lacks the privacy laws that are stuck in the rearview mirror right now — this is the Wild West.”
Rep. Brianna Thomas, D-Seattle, called the bill a “step forward,” but said SB 6002 doesn’t do enough to stop an emerging surveillance state. Rep. Cyndy Jacobsen, R-Puyallup, said she was a “soft no” on Thursday, due to limits on where ALPRs can be placed. She specifically cited the prohibition on ALPRs around schools; the bill also prohibits Flock cameras around places of worship, courts and food banks.
Many agencies have used tax dollars to stand up ALPR systems, saving money they might otherwise have spent on additional officers to gather information that these cameras capture passively. SB 6002 could reduce legal exposure for those jurisdictions by requiring safeguards to prevent misuse of ALPRs.
While the proposal has now cleared the state House and Senate, changes made on the floor Thursday require approval from the chamber of origin. SB 6002 now heads back to the Senate for concurrence on those amendments, before heading to Gov. Bob Ferguson’s desk for his signature to become law.
“This is personal to me,” said Rep. Jenny Graham, R-Spokane, whose sister was a victim of Gary Ridgway, the notorious Green River Killer. “If you’re somebody that’s had a family member missing, I cannot begin to explain what that’s like when you don’t know where they are.”
