Midland Ends Flock Camera Contract as Texas Cities Unwind License Plate Networks
Midland's council voted 7-0 to end its Flock Safety license plate camera contract, joining a statewide pullback after moves by the governor and the comptroller.
The Midland City Council has voted to end the city’s contract with Flock Safety and take down its license plate cameras, making Midland the latest Texas city to drop the company’s system.
The council adopted a resolution Tuesday, October 13, directing the city manager to send Flock a 60-day written notice of termination. The vote was 7-0, Texas Scorecard reported. The resolution says the contract, which took effect February 10, 2026, lets the city end it “at will, for any reason or no reason,” with 60 days’ notice and no penalty, and that the council finds ending it “to be in the public interest.”
What the city gives up
The contract covered 71 fixed cameras and two portable units, according to Texas Scorecard, which reported that Flock will remove them at no extra cost. City officials told Fox 7 Austin that ending the contract now saves about $225,000, the cost of the second year of a two-year agreement worth about $451,000.
The decision covers only Flock cameras the city pays for. It does not touch the Midland County Sheriff’s Office, private owners, or the city’s separate contract with Axon, which Texas Scorecard reported includes license plate readers.
A statewide pullback
Midland follows Dallas, Wylie and Pflugerville, which have dropped some or all of their Flock cameras, according to Fox 7 Austin. Gov. Greg Abbott has paused state funding for the cameras and ordered the Texas Department of Transportation to stop issuing permits for license plate readers along state roads.
On October 13, the same day Midland voted, Comptroller Don Huffines barred money from the grants his office administers from paying for Flock cameras and similar systems. Lawmakers are expected to take up rules for license plate readers when the Legislature meets in January, Texas Scorecard reported.
Supporters in law enforcement say the cameras help solve crimes, Fox 7 reported. Residents and city leaders in Midland raised concerns about privacy, cost and misuse, according to Texas Scorecard.
The cameras were bought by Texas cities, and Texas cities are deciding to turn them off. The Legislature will decide in January what rules apply to the ones that stay.
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