Going forward, the Kalamazoo city commission will vote on the city’s contract with Flock Safety.
Flock is the company behind automatic license plate reader cameras used by the Kalamazoo Department of Public Safety.
During the commission meeting Monday night, Mayor David Anderson said that because the contract costs less than $100,000, KDPS hasn’t previously needed approval for the contract from the city commission. Commissioners voted unanimously to amend that policy to create an exemption for contracts with Flock.
The decision comes after the city’s use of the cameras drew protests at Monday’s commission meeting.
According to MLive, KDPS chief David Boysen and the local chapter of the NAACP have voiced support for the use of Flock, citing a drop in violent crime. But organizations like the Southwest Michigan chapter of the Democratic Socialists of America argue that data collecting using Flock has little public oversight and poses a danger to residents.
According to a recent report by MLive, the 39 ALPR cameras operated by KDPS were searched more than 750 times per day on average. They can be accessed by seven municipal, county, or state law enforcement agencies.
