Mount Vernon city officials are stepping back from automated license plate reader cameras after residents objected, according to Knox Pages. On Monday, council members gave initial approval to a measure that would let the existing Flock Safety agreement end on Oct. 25. The proposal also would stop the city from putting ALPR cameras in place for a year and bar others from mounting such devices on municipal property.
Safety-Service Director Tanner Salyers said officials listened to what the public told them, describing an obligation to protect both public safety and constitutional rights. He said state or federal courts, not local government, are the right venue to resolve legal questions about the technology, and pointed to interest among Ohio gubernatorial candidates in restricting ALPR plus the possibility of legislation from the January 2027 General Assembly. Because higher-level rules may change, he argued, local limits could prove pointless.
Salyers also said a Justice Assistance Grant, federal money routed through the Ohio Department of Safety, paid for the police department's cameras and that future funding is uncertain. If the grant ends, he said, the city could be left with the bill.
During public participation, Miller Township resident Sally Bowen welcomed the possible non-renewal but asked whether data will still be collected before Oct. 25, how prior data will be protected, and whether police can reach information from private cameras. Aaron Stepp also stressed privacy and safeguarding information.