Overview
- South Portland officials withdrew a $4,000 request for another Flock Safety camera and paused a renewal plan, with a public workshop to review the system now planned.
- The city’s seven existing Flock cameras will stay in place under the current contract, which runs through June 4, 2027.
- In a close vote, Berkeley approved only a one‑year, $200,000 renewal for its license‑plate readers and rejected drones, pan‑tilt‑zoom cameras, and Flock’s investigative software.
- Privacy advocates warn the scanners build location logs that can enable tracking without warrants and cite past access by federal immigration agencies.
- Across the Bay Area, several councils have ended or restricted Flock deals, while Oakland and Richmond kept or expanded use, reflecting a split over the technology’s role in public safety.