Flock camera fight goes national as Democrats intensify scrutiny

A once-niche fight over automated license plate readers and surveillance cameras powered by artificial intelligence has emerged as a flash point in the debate over developing technology, garnering the attention of lawmakers on both sides of the aisle.Privacy concerns surrounding automated license plate readers have long attracted attention from conservative GOP lawmakers, who have repeatedly rallied around calls to “Stop the Flock.” But now, Democrats are increasingly messaging on the issue as well, bringing the technology into a broader push to place guardrails on emerging technologies and limit access to people’s personal information.Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) called on Flock Safety to delete the personal data of people without a criminal record and to answer questions about the use of that data in a letter to Flock CEO Garrett Langley on Sunday. Schumer’s letter also demands answers about a recent hacking of the company’s cameras and reported misuse of the license plate readers by Oct. 16. “We cannot allow this company to continue to operate in the shadows,” Schumer posted on X. “No one in New York or anywhere in America should give up their privacy just by stepping outside.”Flock’s surveillance network includes more than 120,000 cameras across 49 states, according to the company. Proponents of the technology argue the cameras help law enforcement catch criminals, while detractors say they invade people’s privacy and violate their 4th Amendment rights against “unreasonable searches and seizures.”Scrutiny over Flock’s surveillance cameras and license plate readers has intensified this year after a Washington Post investigation found at least 50 law enforcement officers have been charged or accused of misusing the surveillance camera systems to stalk or harass people.The interest of Democrats in Flock’s surveillance technology marks a bipartisan bridge on AI-powered technology from lawmakers who are otherwise on the opposite ends of the ideological spectrum.Rep. Chip Roy (R-TX), a member of the House Freedom Caucus, told the Washington Examiner that Democrats are “moving to where the people are while many (not all!) Republicans drag feet,” calling it a “mistake” on the part of the GOP for not taking action on the surveillance technology.Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY) and Sens. Bernie Sanders (I-VT) and Jeff Merkley (D-OR) introduced legislation Friday to prohibit the federal government from using automated license plate readers and block funding for state and local governments that employ the technology.“At a time of growing concern about the unchecked power of artificial intelligence, Flock is eviscerating the very notion of privacy by installing tens of thousands of cameras in communities across America without their consent,” Sanders said in a statement announcing the Ban Flock Act.He continued, “We cannot allow America to become a surveillance state where a handful of AI oligarchs profit by giving the government the power to track our every movement.”Rep. Marlin Stutzman (R-IN) called the cameras a “breach of privacy and cannot continue to go unregulated.”Still, Stutzman noted the timing of Democrats’ concern over the surveillance technology, with less than 30 days till the November elections where Republicans’ slim House majority is on the line.2026 MIDTERM ELECTIONS LIVE UPDATES: LATEST NEWS, RESULTS AND ANALYSIS“That being said, this recent anti-Flock push by frontline Democrats to get something done on the matter feels more to me like a ploy before midterms than it does an actual want to protect Americans,” Stutzman said.The push against Flock cameras comes as Democrats have largely supported regulating AI and data centers this cycle. The hard-left wing of the Democratic Party has been sharply critical of the AI industry’s rapid, largely unregulated growth, warning that the risks of the technology advancing faster than developers can keep pace with could be detrimental to humanity.