Taylor Shuts Off Its Flock Cameras, Saying They Rarely Helped Solve Crimes

The City of Taylor has ended its contract with Flock Safety and switched off the eight license plate cameras the company maintained on the two state highways through town, the city announced Monday.

The cameras, Flock automated license plate readers on Highway 79 and Highway 95, had been in place since late 2023. The city bought them expecting that the readers and access to the Flock database “would help solve crime,” according to the announcement.

Why the City Ended It

The Taylor Police Department reviewed how officers used the cameras and the database. It found that “the frequency of use is far less than anticipated and their usefulness has not been realized in solving crimes,” the city said. The city added that it “is not satisfied with data security and protection measures by Flock Safety.”

Police Chief Joseph Chacon gave three reasons for ending the agreement.

“With the recent loss in confidence in the Flock Safety program, its discontinued use in other departments, and the lack of benefit to our community, we do not believe it is worth continuing our agreement with Flock,” Chacon said.

He left room to return to the technology under different terms. “We may revisit the use of Automated License Plate Readers in the future should data security concerns be addressed,” he said.

The eight cameras have been disabled and will be removed “in the coming days as a part of the termination process,” the city said. Taylor runs no other license plate readers.

No Council Vote

The decision did not go through a council vote. The Taylor City Council met in closed session with the city attorney on September 24 to discuss the city’s agreement with Flock Safety, and the council minutes record no action on it afterward. A resident raised the Flock agreement with the council during public comment at the same meeting.

A Statewide Pullback

Taylor, in Williamson County, is the latest Texas government to step back from the cameras.

The Midland City Council voted 7-0 on October 13 to end its own Flock contract, as the Texian Partisan reported. Gov. Greg Abbott paused state funding for the cameras in August and halted new license plate reader permits along state roads. The comptroller’s office has barred the grant money it administers from paying for Flock cameras and similar systems.

League City voters were asked Tuesday whether their police department should keep its Flock cameras, the first such vote in Texas. The city council there had already ordered the cameras down if a majority voted no.

Lawmakers are expected to take up rules for license plate readers when the Legislature convenes January 12, Texas Scorecard reported.

The call in Taylor was made in Taylor, by the police department that used the cameras and found little in them worth keeping. The Legislature will decide in January what rules govern the ones still running elsewhere.