Article 94 Polk Presentation¶
ARTICLE 94: RESOLUTION/ AUTOMATIC
LICENSE PLATE RECOGNITION
SAFEGUARDS AND DRIVER PRIVACY
Sam Polk, Ph.D.
Town Meeting Member, Precinct 12
What is Automatic License Plate Recognition?
• ALPR cameras capture imagery
of passing vehicles and extract
information that they associate
with their license plate
• ALPR cameras are a data
dragnet, collecting movements
of millions of vehicles—
regardless of whether the driver
is suspected of a crime
Automatic Toll Charging School Bus Violation Detection
There are legitimate public-safety uses of ALPR when data governance is
well-scoped and access, sharing, and retention are tightly limited.
Example Public Safety Uses of ALPR
Civil Liberty Concerns Raised by ALPR
Mass collection of plate-location data without strong data governance safeguards
can chill lawful activity, enable targeting, and outpace local oversight.
Nearby ALPR Cancellations
Recent cancellations in Greater Boston highlight recurring concerns
about ALPR governance, vendor practices, and community trust.
Equity and Safety for All: An Arlington Priority
2016
2026
2017
2022
2025
ALPR Pilot discontinued by APD due to concerns about
disparate impacts on lower-income residents
Community Trust Act Resolution affirms commitment to
trust, inclusion, and safe access to local services
Town practices evaluated through equity lens in Community
Equity Audit to identify areas for improvement
Arlington reaffirms racial equity as guiding policy in its
decision-making in Racial Equity Statement
APD affirms non-participation in civil immigration
law enforcement in its Federal immigration Policy
2025 School Bus Violation Detection
Systems Home Rule Petition
Data Governance of Surveillance
Technologies in Arlington
2022 Face Surveillance
Resolution
Affirmed need for strong
safeguards for face
surveillance technology
Authorized systems under State
framework with strong data
governance safeguards
What This Article 94 Advocates Locally:
A Transparent Public Process for ALPR
Resolution opposes ALPR deployments or expansions without transparent public
process with considerations of deployment’s impact and data governance
ALPR Impact Report
• Purpose of ALPR System
• Assessment of equity, civil-
rights & privacy impacts
• Identified mitigations &
accountability strategies
ALPR Use Policy
• Authorized/prohibited uses
• Retention/deletion rules,
access controls, data sharing
• Logging & auditing practices
Project Initiation
Town identifies need for ALPR deployment/expansion
Public Comment
Residents comment on ALPR policy and impact;
Town considers community input and can revise.
Policy Drafting
Town drafts ALPR Impact Report & Use Policy
H.3755: What This Article 94 Advocates Statewide
Limits on Allowed Use Data Governance Standards
Warrant-Only Access Enforceable Consequences
Prohibits using ALPR to track
constitutionally protected activity
Data retention & minimization rules,
access controls and logging
Requires warrants for third party
access to vehicle-location data
Makes unproperly accessed data
inadmissible, provides path for remedy
APD and AHRC Support for Article 94
“Technology should strengthen public
safety while reinforcing, rather than
eroding community confidence.”
“State-level regulation and Town-level
diligence are necessary to safeguard the
rights of local drivers.”
