Flock License Plate Reader Ban

At a glance

What: an ordinance (item 4) to ban Flock cameras and license plate readers across Providence.
Where it stands: introduced and referred to the Committee on "Hope" (as captioned), chaired by Juan Pichardo, on October 15, 2026; co-sponsored by the Council President (Rachel Miller) and Miguel Sanchez.
Next: a committee hearing with public testimony; notice to be posted.

Constant surveillance is a civil-rights concern; cited ICE use of such data, misuse by officers, and analysis of the city's own Flock data (millions of searches, hits where no data-sharing agreement exists) presented at the Special Committee on the Environment and Resiliency this spring.
Sponsor: Flock did not make anyone safer in the Brown University shooting; invest in community instead.
A supporting councilor noted continuous recording of every vehicle, drone and AI add-ons, and racial-equity concerns; he recalled a 2022 council resolution of concern that the administration bypassed.
Other Rhode Island cities and towns have already acted.

Flock has helped recover stolen vehicles, locate missing people and respond to the Brown shooting, and police are trusted to act professionally (acknowledged by a supporting councilor).

About 10 minutes across 1 meeting (from transcript timestamps; approximate).

Meeting	Minutes
2026-10-15 - City Council	10

2026-10-15 - City Council - Introduced and referred to committee; sponsor and a second councilor spoke in support, Juan Pichardo urged public input at the coming hearing.