Latest news with #HouseBill2724
Yahoo
18-02-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
License plate reader bill survives, but surveillance concerns loom
Flock Safety cameras capture license plates. (Photo courtesy of Flock Safety) Despite near defeat and intense debate, a proposal to regulate automated license plate readers is still alive in Virginia's General Assembly — though not without significant revisions and shifting alliances. House Bill 2724, sponsored by Del. Charniele Herring, D-Alexandria, aims to rein in the widely used but loosely regulated surveillance technology. Initially, Herring sought to cap law enforcement's data storage at 30 days, but opposition from criminal justice and immigrant rights groups led her to slash the limit to 21 days. That move, however, cost her the support of police and sheriffs' associations, who spoke against the bill during Monday's Courts of Justice Committee hearing. The same panel defeated the measure last week before reviving it for further consideration. The bill has already cleared the House of Delegates, and Senate amendments now limit storage to 21 days, though departments can choose to retain data for even shorter periods. Charlottesville Police Chief Michael Kochis, for instance, said his department keeps records for only seven days, a policy shaped by local community concerns. He has backed the legislation since it was first workshopped in the state crime commission last year. Herring said her bill would make Virginia the most restrictive state when it comes to regulating the technology, though New Hampshire limits storage for just three minutes. Among the 18 states that currently regulate the technology, 17 of them limit data retention. A report to the Crime Commission, which Herring chairs, shows how many states range from a few weeks to a few months. New Hampshire has the tightest restrictions on data retention while Alabama is one of the most loose at up to five years. Advocates and some lawmakers have also raised alarms that license plate data could be subpoenaed by federal agencies like Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) or by states with abortion bans, potentially exposing Virginians who travel for reproductive health care. Herring has acknowledged that the pending state law 'cannot wholly avoid federal warrants and subpoenas' but argues her bill at least sets guardrails for existing and future plate reader use. Sens. Lashrecse Aird, D-Petersburg, and Jennifer Carrol Foy, D-Prince William, have speculated that the devices are more likely to be installed in predominantly Black and brown neighborhoods — areas that have historically experienced more negative interactions with law enforcement. Herring's bill also faced backlash for its proposal to allow state law enforcement to install readers along state roads. Critics argue this could lead to an expansion of surveillance before existing oversight measures are fully tested. 'I think we are doing real harm by expanding this by not allowing additional time to see how these guardrails will work and how they will be applied,' Aird said last week. 'I don't think limiting the legislation to existing cameras will be a detriment to law enforcement. This is not the time to expand them — we need to see how this legislation will work with the cameras that are in place.' To address those concerns, lawmakers adopted a reenactment clause on Monday. This means that while the bill would regulate existing cameras if signed into law, and any expansion of readers along highways would require further legislative approval next year. While additional adjustments could still be made if the bill advances, this compromise may remain in place. With the 2025 legislative session set to end this weekend, the bill's fate now rests in the Senate. If it clears that hurdle, Gov. Glenn Youngkin will have the option to approve, veto, or amend the legislation before it becomes law. SUBSCRIBE: GET THE MORNING HEADLINES DELIVERED TO YOUR INBOX
Yahoo
10-02-2025
- Automotive
- Yahoo
License plate reader bill faces more scrutiny in Virginia Senate
Flock Safety cameras capture license plates. (Photo courtesy of Flock Safety) As lawmakers seek to regulate use of automated license plate readers in Virginia, debates continue about how best to do so. Legislation faced a brief defeat in a Senate committee on Monday before being revived for further deliberation. License plate readers are typically cameras mounted on poles or overpasses (but can also be dashboard cameras) that capture a photograph or video clip of a vehicle and its license plate along with the location, date and time of the capture. The technology has grown in popularity across the country in both public and private sector use — from businesses to homeowner associations to law enforcement agencies. But with no state regulation, the technology's use exists in a legal gray area. House Bill 2724 limits how police can use the data it collects with the cameras and restricts how long the information can be stored. The bill by Del. Charniele Herring, D-Alexandria, cleared the House of Delegates last week, but in the Senate some members said allowing the data to be kept for 30 days was too long. They also were concerned that it allowed law enforcement to install cameras along state roads. Senate Majority Leader and committee chair Scott Surovell, D-Fairfax called it a 'tradeoff' and a 'balance' to both regulate the usage of license plate readers while granting expanded installation to law enforcement. Following deliberation in the state's Crime Commission last year, Herring's bill landed on a 30-day limit to store data. It's a sticking point for some advocates however. Several immigrants' rights groups and the Virginia chapter of the NAACP hope that the lawmakers can reduce data storage to seven days. It's something Charlottesville's police department already does. Chief Michael Kochis, who has repeatedly spoken in support of Herring's bill, said his department self-regulates seven days based on local community feedback, but he noted that other departments may prefer the 30 days outlined in the bill. Sen. Jennifer Boysko, D-Fairfax, then proposed an amendment to limit storage to seven days but it didn't have the votes. Sens. Lashrecse Aird, D-Petersburg, and Jennifer Carroll Foy, D-Prince William, pushed back hardest from the dais. 'We are authorizing mass surveillance on a massive scale. This is Big Government, 'Big Brother' in a big way,' Carroll Foy said, referencing George Orwell's '1984' novel. She also echoed concerns from immigrants' rights groups that license plate reader data could potentially be subpoenaed by Immigration and Customs Enforcement, and added that she's worried states with abortion bans could also subpoena information to track if someone sought an abortion in Virginia. She and Aird also noted suspicion that the readers may be more likely to be installed in communities of color, which have historically had more negative interactions with law enforcement. Aird backed law enforcements' arguments that readers are a useful tool in solving crimes, but suggested tweaking the bill to not allow for highway expansion just yet. 'I think we are doing real harm by expanding this by not allowing additional time to see how these guardrails will work and how they will be applied,' she said. 'I don't think limiting the legislation to existing cameras will be a detriment to law enforcement. This is not the time to expand them — we need to see how this legislation will work with the cameras that are in place.' But Herring called her bill an 'important action in creating a uniform policy across the Commonwealth as we track where those cameras are in use.' She added that while many existing cameras are mounted around the state on secondary roads and private properties, 'interstates become targets for human trafficking.' After debate and public comment the bill was briefly defeated this session — with Surovell and Sen. Russett Perry, D-Loudoun, the only Democrats to support it advancing. Republicans Sen. Bill Stanley, R-Franklin, and Senate Minority Leader Ryan McDougle, R-Hanover, joined most Democrats in defeating the bill. However, by the end of the committee meeting, McDougle brought up a reconsideration of the vote to continue debate on the bill — meaning it can come up again when the Courts of Justice committee meets Wednesday. With the 2025 legislative session already past its midpoint, bills that have cleared the House and Senate are now in review in the opposite chamber for a chance to end up on the governor's desk. SUBSCRIBE: GET THE MORNING HEADLINES DELIVERED TO YOUR INBOX
Yahoo
05-02-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
License plate reader bill clears the House, but privacy concerns persist
Flock Safety cameras capture license plates. (Photo courtesy of Flock Safety) Virginia lawmakers are moving to regulate automatic license plate readers (ALPRs) for the first time, but privacy advocates warn that the legislation could expand surveillance rather than rein it in. The House of Delegates passed a proposal Tuesday that would impose rules on the use of ALPRs, a technology that has become widely adopted by law enforcement, private businesses, and homeowner associations but has largely operated in a grey legal area. House Bill 2724, sponsored by Del. Charniele Herring, D-Alexandria, seeks to limit how police can use the data collected by the cameras and restrict how long it can be stored. It also authorizes the Virginia Department of Transportation to issue permits for ALPR installation along the state's highways. The legislation follows growing concerns over the potential misuse of the technology. In Norfolk, residents have filed a federal lawsuit arguing that ALPR cameras violate their Fourth Amendment rights, which protect against unreasonable searches and seizures. In another troubling case, a mother and children were held at gunpoint after being mistakenly identified as driving a stolen car based on an ALPR alert. While Herring's bill is meant to create safeguards around ALPR use, critics argue it actually paves the way for a major expansion of surveillance across Virginia. Justice Forward Virginia founder Brad Haywood took to social media this week to accuse Herring of pushing legislation that benefits private companies selling ALPR systems rather than protecting civil liberties. Haywood said Herring was 'passing it off as 'regulation' when she knows full well that it gives Flock Safety 60,000 more miles of highways on which to install its Big Brother cameras.' Flock Safety, one of the leading manufacturers of ALPRs, has aggressively marketed its cameras nationwide, partnering with police departments and private entities to expand their use. With Herring's bill now headed to the Senate, it is likely to face continued scrutiny and pushback. When lawmakers examined ALPR regulations last year, Sen. Danny Diggs, R-Yorktown, defended the technology and its use to law enforcement from his perspective as a former sheriff. Meanwhile, Sen. Lashrecse Aird, D-Petersburg, raised concerns about potential misuse, warning that ALPRs could disproportionately impact people of color. SUBSCRIBE: GET THE MORNING HEADLINES DELIVERED TO YOUR INBOX
