OLYMPIA [By: Cassie Diamond] – The state House passed a bill March 5 establishing regulations on automated license plate reader (ALPR) cameras.
Senate Bill 6002 restricts the use of ALPR cameras to certain state and local agencies, requires data collected by these cameras be deleted after 21 days with certain exceptions and prohibits the sharing of data except in court proceedings.
ALPR cameras, also called Flock cameras, capture images of vehicle license plates, recording the date, time and location where the image was taken. Law enforcement commonly use these cameras to compare captured license plates against those on “hot lists” for stolen vehicles or wanted individuals.
In Washington, at least 80 cities, six counties and three tribal governments have installed ALPR camera systems. However, many cities in the state have moved to suspend or remove their cameras due to privacy concerns and the potential for misuse.
A 2025 University of Washington report that found federal immigration enforcement agencies had accessed the Flock ALPR databases of several Washington law enforcement agencies, which further stoked surveillance anxieties.
Supporters argue the regulatory structure proposed by the measure would protect the privacy of Washingtonians while still allowing for legitimate uses of the technology.
Rep. Osman Salahuddin, D-Redmond, the bill’s House sponsor, emphasized the need to provide a clear framework for how ALPR cameras can be used given the lack of laws regulating the technology in Washington.
“Washington needs the tools to solve crimes in our community,” he said. “At the same time, we need to respect community surveillance concerns and ensure the use of this data aligns with our values as a state.”
Rep. Jim Walsh, R-Aberdeen, expressed support for SB 6002, commending the proposal for striking a good balance between reasonable expectations of privacy and public safety.
“As ever, we are here to make tough calls,” Walsh said, “and I think that this bill, at this point, in this form, makes the right tough call.”
But some lawmakers thought the measure went too far.
Rep. Cyndy Jacobsen, R-Puyallup, pointed to the usefulness of ALPR cameras in solving crimes and suggested that the policy’s restrictions on where these cameras can be used are too limiting.
However, Jacobsen acknowledged the issues of governmental overreach presented by the technology and noted she would only be “a very soft no” on the bill.
Other lawmakers thought the measure didn’t go far enough.
Rep. Brianna Thomas, D-West Seattle, said the legislation fails to address the full scale of harms posed by ALPR cameras.
“What concerns me today is that the safeguards in this bill do not go far enough to match the power of the technology that we are considering,” she said. “The result is that we risk normalizing operating as people, as Washingtonians, under a surveillance state.”
The House voted to advance the measure 84-10, with four excused. SB 6002 previously received bipartisan support in the Senate as well with a 40-9 vote.
The amendments adopted on the House floor mostly made minor adjustments and clarifications to the existing legislation.
The most significant change came from an amendment that would expand the list of crimes police can use ALPR cameras to investigate to include gross misdemeanors.
The bill must now be sent back to the Senate, where the changes made by the House will either be approved or rejected. If approved, it will advance to the governor’s desk to be signed into law.
The Washington State Journal is a nonprofit news website operated by the WNPA Foundation. To learn more, go to wastatejournal.org.
Author: Washington State Journal
