1. United States
2. Ariz.
3. Letter

I am writing to urge you to oppose Senate Bill 1111, which would actually weaken public oversight of automated license plate reader technology rather than protect Arizonans from government overreach as claimed. While Senator Kevin Payne frames this legislation as establishing standards for ALPRs, the bill contains a provision that exempts all ALPR data from public records requests. This is particularly concerning given documented abuses of this technology. Texas police used Flock Safety systems to search for a woman who received an abortion in a state where it was legal. The Glendale Police Department used an anti-Romani slur when conducting searches. Arizona law enforcement has deployed ALPRs to monitor protesters exercising their First Amendment rights. These abuses only came to light through public records requests, the very mechanism this bill would eliminate. Dave Maass, director of investigations at the Electronic Frontier Foundation, called Senate Bill 1111 "among one of the weakest bills I've seen when it comes to regulating license plate readers." The bill's language is vague about what data could be released, and it fails to establish the strict access controls mentioned in Senator Payne's press release, instead leaving those decisions to individual law enforcement agencies. Flock Safety operates more than 80,000 AI-powered cameras across 49 states, and recent cybersecurity research revealed these cameras were exposed to the internet without login requirements. Errors in Flock redactions exposed millions of potential surveillance targets. This technology requires robust oversight, not less transparency. Arizona needs legislation that actually protects privacy through warrant requirements, criminal penalties for misuse, mandatory annual reports, and preserved public records access. Senate Bill 1111 as written is worse than the status quo because it would codify secrecy into law while providing minimal meaningful restrictions on use. I urge you to oppose this bill and support genuine privacy protections for Arizonans.