Oregon lawmakers are advancing legislation that would set ground rules for automatic license plate reader technology.
The Senate Judiciary Committee unanimously approved an amended version of SB 1516 Monday.
In previous public hearings, law enforcement leaders said too many restrictions could make the tool unusable. Privacy advocates and the ACLU said more restrictions are needed to prevent warrantless surveillance of people who aren’t suspected of crimes, and protect against federal misuse.
During Monday’s meeting, Sen. Floyd Prozanksi, D-Eugene, who chairs the committee, said the proposal lawmakers moved forward does not have every detail he was hoping for, but it does include essential accountability measures.
"This will in fact require agencies within the state to have some uniformity as to what they can and can't do in their contracts,” Prozanski said. “The requirements for sharing that information with other entities, requiring that it be logged appropriately so it can be audited and checked, and I do think this is a step in the right direction."
Prozanski, as well as a member of the privacy group Eyes Off Eugene who testified, wanted a more specific definition for end-to-end encryption.
End-to-end encryption, which is a feature designed to ensure only authorized users can read the data, is required in the version passed by the committee, but the specific definition Prozanski preferred was not included.
Eugene, Springfield and Lane County have all ended their contracts with automatic license plate reader Flock, as have several other cities around Oregon. Florence held a public hearing on the issue last month after public outcry, but the city council decided to keep using the technology.
The bill would require law enforcement to delete vehicle data if it's not linked to a criminal investigation after 30 days, and data sharing would be limited to Oregon with specific exemptions.
Law enforcement officers using the technology would be required to provide a specific reason for every search and identify themselves.
Police initiating tracking stops based on ALPR data would be required to visually verify that the driver’s plate matches the one they are looking for. The technology can misidentify vehicles and there have been several high-profile cases in other states where officers attempted to detain people based on faulty matches.
