October 14, 2026 – AUSTIN, Texas — Texas Comptroller Don Huffines has issued a sweeping ban prohibiting state grant funds administered by his office from being used to purchase, contract for, or maintain Flock cameras and other automated license plate reader (ALPR) technology.
The new policy directly targets technology that captures and converts vehicle images or license plate numbers into computer-readable, searchable data.
Under the strict directive, state grant recipients are barred from using funds to acquire prohibited surveillance equipment or services. Furthermore, local entities and agencies receiving these grants will no longer be permitted to use state funds to enter into, extend, or renew contracts for any covered vehicle-identification systems.
In a statement outlining the decision, Huffines framed the ban as a crucial protection of constitutional rights and individual privacy against government overreach.
“The government has no business tracking where law-abiding Texans drive. Doing it without a warrant is a clear violation of the Fourth Amendment of the Constitution,” said Huffines. “Texans should be able to drive to work, to church, or to the grocery store without a government camera logging it in a database.”
The decision marks a major policy shift regarding the funding of widespread vehicle surveillance across Texas, cutting off state-administered grant funding for automated tracking technologies in local communities.
