The Boone County Sheriff's Office plans to hold public discussions about its 20 Flock Safety license plate reader cameras, the agency confirmed to WCPO on Aug. 26.
The sheriff's office, based in Burlington, approved the cameras in June but declined an interview request. No date, location or format for the discussions has been announced.
The move comes as Northern Kentucky communities are pulling back from the surveillance technology. Independence began removing its 10 Flock cameras immediately after Mayor Chris Reinersman announced the decision on Aug. 24. Fort Mitchell removed its cameras the week prior. Newport ended its Flock pilot in July after a town hall.
"While I personally continue to believe the cameras can be a valuable and appropriate law enforcement tool, I also believe strongly that elected officials must respect the will of the people they represent," Reinersman wrote in his Aug. 24 statement.
Covington also postponed a Aug. 26, vote on $6 million in funding for cruiser-mounted license plate readers, opting to hold a public discussion first. Covington's Sebastian Torres said the city's technology differs from Flock because data would be stored locally rather than shared across a national network.
What the cameras capture
Flock cameras photograph a vehicle's license plate and record its make, model, color and distinguishing features, tagged with location, date and time. The Cincinnati Enquirer reported on what the cameras collect and how law enforcement accesses the data.
Flock recently shortened its default data retention from 30 days to seven and made misuse detection mandatory for all customers, according to WLWT's reporting on the Independence public meeting.
Those changes followed high-profile abuse cases. A Shively, Kentucky, police officer was arrested after allegedly using Flock to search for his ex-girlfriend's vehicles more than 2,000 times between January and May.
U.S. Sen. Josh Hawley, R-Mo., announced Aug. 26 that he is investigating Flock Safety over misuse concerns, according to Politico. He requested documents from the company by Sept. 8.
Local lawmaker plans regulation bill
State Rep. T.J. Roberts, R-Burlington, plans to file legislation next session to ensure the technology complies with constitutional privacy standards. A bill Roberts introduced earlier in 2026 to ban automatic license plate reader cameras statewide did not pass, though a separate regulation bill did.
"It's not really a political issue, it's a constitutional one," Roberts told Spectrum News in an Aug. 7 interview.
The Enquirer reported Aug. 23 that more than 1,000 Flock cameras watch the greater Cincinnati area. Northern Kentucky alone has just over 100, according to LINK nky.
No timeline has been set for the Boone County Sheriff's Office discussions. Residents can contact the office at 859-334-2175.
