Fairfield County license-plate readers

Stamford Police Department

Status: Program documented, current use unconfirmed
Vendors: Vendor not named in source
Cameras: Count not documented
No count found.
Sources: Patch, March 24, 2023; Westfair Business Journal, March 5, 2026; WFSB, May 28, 2026

March 2023 Patch, citing The Darien Times, reported that Stamford already had a license plate reader system similar to the one Darien was considering. (Patch, March 24, 2023)
March 5, 2026 The Westfair Business Journal named Stamford among about 40 municipalities with Flock cameras, with no Stamford-specific detail. (Westfair Business Journal, March 5, 2026)
May 28, 2026 WFSB listed Stamford police among departments that had not yet given the station the plate reader data it requested. (WFSB, May 28, 2026)

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Norwalk Police Department

Status: Using license-plate readers
Vendors: Flock Safety
Cameras: 11
11 Flock license plate cameras, as reported in April and September 2026. Does not address any readers on patrol cars.
Sources: The Hour, via GovTech, April 29, 2026; News 12, Sept. 2, 2026; Connecticut Public, Aug. 11, 2026

Sept. 2009 Norwalk police showed two license plate readers mounted in police vehicles, bought with a federal grant. (News 12 Connecticut, Sept. 16, 2009)
2023 The Hour quoted the police chief as saying Norwalk's 11 Flock cameras went in during 2023, most of them on Routes 1 and 136 by East Avenue and in the Rowayton and Cranbury areas. (The Hour, via GovTech, April 29, 2026)
Aug. 2025 Police stopped sharing camera data with out-of-state agencies and federal law enforcement, The Hour reported; in-state sharing is limited to local police and municipalities. (The Hour, via GovTech, April 29, 2026)
2026 A lieutenant has audited officers' searches since early 2026, The Hour reported. (The Hour, via GovTech, April 29, 2026)
April 23, 2026 Police presented the camera program to the Public Safety and General Government Committee, where residents raised data and immigration concerns. (The Hour, via GovTech, April 29, 2026)
Sept. 2026 Norwalk police launched a Flock transparency portal and reported retaining data for 21 days, News 12 reported; the chief had cited 30 days in April. (News 12, Sept. 2, 2026; The Hour, via GovTech, April 29, 2026)

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Greenwich Police Department

Status: Using license-plate readers
Vendors: Axon, Rekor Systems
Cameras: 40
27 vehicle-mounted readers (Axon in-car system) plus 13 fixed readers (Rekor), per the police chief. The total of 40 is our addition.
Sources: Greenwich Free Press, Aug. 27, 2026; Westfair Business Journal, March 5, 2026

Aug. 27, 2026 Police Chief James Heavey wrote that the department uses no Flock equipment and that it stores and controls its own plate data. (Greenwich Free Press, Aug. 27, 2026)
Aug. 27, 2026 Heavey wrote that no federal agency receives the data and that sharing is confined to agencies in four states (Connecticut, New York, Massachusetts, Rhode Island) that accept Connecticut's limits. (Greenwich Free Press, Aug. 27, 2026)
Aug. 27, 2026 Heavey wrote that state law caps retention at 21 days outside an active criminal investigation and that department practices already comply. The letter gives no separate retention period for the department. (Greenwich Free Press, Aug. 27, 2026)

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Fairfield Police Department

Status: Using license-plate readers
Vendors: Axon
Cameras: Count not documented
The department's page gives no count, and it declined to give one in March 2026. Patrol vehicles also carry mobile readers.
Contract: Axon: not stated on the department page funded through the police Information Technology budget line, FY27 (Fairfield Police Department, 2026)
Sources: Fairfield Police Department, 2026; Fairfield Police Department, date not shown

May 2023 The Westfair Business Journal, citing the department's site, reported the cameras were installed in May 2023. The department's Flock page as opened gives no installation date and credits plate reader cameras in an August 2022 hit-and-run case. (Westfair Business Journal, March 5, 2026)
2026 The department says a rewritten Axon contract replaced the Flock system and that it no longer uses Flock cameras or takes part in Flock's network. (Fairfield Police Department, 2026)
2026 Under department policy, plate data is purged within 21 days unless held as possible evidence, every search needs a police file number and a stated purpose, and the Office of Professional Standards checks activity monthly. (Fairfield Police Department, 2026)
2026 The department says it gives outside agencies no direct or indirect search access to its plate data and that federal agencies have no direct query access. Sharing requests go through the police chief's office, and out-of-state agencies must affirm in writing that they will follow Fairfield policy and Connecticut law. (Fairfield Police Department, 2026)
March 2026 The department declined to say how many readers it had, citing operational and security reasons, the Westfair Business Journal reported. (Westfair Business Journal, March 5, 2026)

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Westport Police Department

Status: Using license-plate readers
Vendors: Flock Safety
Cameras: 29
29 cameras in total per WFSB (May 2026). The Westport Journal counts 20 Flock readers, stationary ones at town entrances and exits plus readers in police cars; the sources do not say what the other nine are.
Contract: Flock Safety: $80,000 per year to maintain and operate; contract terms not reported (Westport Journal, Aug. 2026)
Sources: WFSB, May 28, 2026; Westport Journal, Aug. 2026

Jan. 2025 The department began using its Flock readers in January 2025, the Westport Journal reported, and they cost the town $80,000 a year to run and maintain. (Westport Journal, Aug. 2026)
Oct. 2025 WFSB's review of Westport's records counted 54,796 outside-agency searches labeled 'Investigation' in October 2025. (WFSB, May 28, 2026)
Nov. 2025 WFSB's review found immigration or ICE terms searched at least 11 times in November 2025, without saying which agencies ran those searches, and noted such searches are no longer allowed under state law. Westport told the station it does not share information with ICE. (WFSB, May 28, 2026)
May 2026 Westport told WFSB a supervisor audits the system twice a month and that the audits have found no improper use. (WFSB, May 28, 2026)
Aug. 2026 Police said data is now deleted automatically after 21 days and that officers must name the crime or class of crime before searching, the Westport Journal reported. (Westport Journal, Aug. 2026)

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Darien Police Department

Status: Using license-plate readers
Vendors: Flock Safety
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12 fixed and 1 portable, per Darien police to WFSB (May 2026).
Contract: Flock Safety: $47,300 first year including installation, then $39,500 per year, proposed five-year lease agreement (April 2024); no signed contract opened (Patch, April 9, 2024)
Sources: WFSB, May 28, 2026; Patch, April 9, 2024

April 2024 The Board of Selectmen approved a bid waiver for 13 stationary Flock readers and endorsed adding the request to the fiscal 2025 budget; no tally reported. (Patch, April 9, 2024)
Dec. 2025 Darien reported 2,949 in-department searches for July through December 2025, WFSB found. (WFSB, May 28, 2026)
May 2026 Darien told WFSB that outside agencies reach its cameras only with its approval and that federal agencies may not search them. (WFSB, May 28, 2026)

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New Canaan Police Department

Status: Using license-plate readers
Vendors: Flock Safety
Cameras: Count not documented
No reliable current count. 10 readers in October 2023; the town approved 5 more readers and 8 security cameras in November 2024; a November 2025 story gives a total of 18 without separating types.
Contract: Flock Safety: $140,000 ($28,000 per year) five-year agreement · from Oct. 2023 (New Canaanite, Oct. 11, 2023)
Contract: Flock Safety: $67,500 purchase of 5 readers and 8 security cameras, state auto theft grant · from Nov. 2024 (New Canaanite, Nov. 19, 2024)
Contract: Flock Safety: $28,000 per year, FY26 operating budget (New Canaanite, Nov. 2, 2025)
Sources: New Canaanite, Oct. 11, 2023; New Canaanite, Nov. 19, 2024; New Canaanite, Nov. 2, 2025

Oct. 3, 2023 The Board of Selectmen voted 3-0 for the five-year, $140,000 Flock agreement. (New Canaanite, Oct. 11, 2023)
Nov. 2024 The Board of Selectmen voted 3-0 for the $67,500 Flock purchase, funded by a state auto theft grant. (New Canaanite, Nov. 19, 2024)
Oct. 21, 2025 The Board of Selectmen voted 3-0 for a $28,000 annual Flock service contract; the story gives 30-day retention unless there is an active investigation. (New Canaanite, Nov. 2, 2025)

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Reported by news outlets; agency records not yet obtained.

Ridgefield Police Department

Status: Using license-plate readers
Vendors: Flock Safety
Cameras: 6
6 cameras, locations withheld, per Ridgefield police to WFSB (May 2026).
Sources: WFSB, May 28, 2026

May 2026 Ridgefield told WFSB it shares only with agencies that agree to follow Connecticut law and that no federal agencies are allowed. (WFSB, May 28, 2026)

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Reported by news outlets; agency records not yet obtained.

Wilton Police Department

Status: Using license-plate readers
Vendors: Flock Safety
Cameras: 11
11 fixed Flock readers, down from 12 in the original contract after installation problems at one site (Good Morning Wilton, August 2026). Police say some form of plate reader has been used for over 10 years.
Contract: Flock Safety: $33,000 ($3,000 per device) per year · from Nov. 2024 (Good Morning Wilton, Aug. 18, 2026)
Sources: Good Morning Wilton, Aug. 18, 2026; Town of Wilton, date not shown

June 2014 Wilton police received an $18,000 state grant to cover one license plate reader. (Good Morning Wilton, June 17, 2014)
Nov. 4, 2024 The Board of Selectmen unanimously approved the Flock contract, pending Town Counsel review. (Good Morning Wilton, Aug. 18, 2026)
March 2025 The first Flock devices were installed. (Good Morning Wilton, Aug. 18, 2026)
Jan. 12, 2026 Wilton police announced a Flock transparency portal by town email. (Good Morning Wilton, Feb. 4, 2026; Town of Wilton, date not shown)
Aug. 18, 2026 Good Morning Wilton reported the department shares data with 63 Connecticut agencies and 25 agencies in New York, Massachusetts and Rhode Island, and has no current plans to add locations. (Good Morning Wilton, Aug. 18, 2026)

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Monroe Police Department

Status: Using license-plate readers
Vendors: Flock Safety
Cameras: 7
7 leased readers on Routes 111, 25, 110 and 59 (The Monroe Sun, October 2025; WFSB, May 2026).
Sources: The Monroe Sun, Oct. 10, 2025; WFSB, May 28, 2026

2025 Monroe acquired its seven Flock readers in 2025, leasing the cameras while keeping ownership of the records, the police chief told The Monroe Sun. (The Monroe Sun, Oct. 10, 2025)
May 2026 Monroe told WFSB it has left the national network and now shares only within Connecticut. (WFSB, May 28, 2026)

Conflicts and open questions

Reported by news outlets; agency records not yet obtained.

Newtown Police Department

Status: Use suspended
Vendors: Flock Safety
Cameras: 18
18 stationary Flock cameras, which the department agreed to deactivate. Readers in patrol cars are separate and not counted; the resolution covers stationary readers only.
Sources: The Newtown Bee, Aug. 29, 2026; The Newtown Bee, Aug. 14, 2026; Town of Newtown, Aug. 19, 2026; Town of Newtown, Aug. 5, 2026

July 2, 2026 A police memo in the council packet reported 323 officer searches in June 2026, many of them duplicates, and found a sample of ten consistent with policy. (Town of Newtown, Aug. 5, 2026)
Aug. 5, 2026 A question-and-answer document compiled by police with the Board of Police Commissioners, in the packet for the Legislative Council's Aug. 5 meeting, says the department's two Rekor readers were converted to Flock. (Town of Newtown, Aug. 5, 2026)
Aug. 5, 2026 The Legislative Council rejected, 2-8, a motion for a round table and a December vote, then voted unanimously to draft a resolution on Flock and to charge its Ordinance Committee to review town surveillance systems. (Town of Newtown, Aug. 5, 2026)
Aug. 19, 2026 The Ordinance Committee voted 5-0 to send the full council a resolution for a moratorium on new stationary readers and for active ones to be deactivated and obscured. (Town of Newtown, Aug. 19, 2026)
Aug. 19, 2026 The Ordinance Committee voted 5-0 to send a draft 12-month moratorium ordinance to legal review. (Town of Newtown, Aug. 19, 2026)
Aug. 19, 2026 The Legislative Council approved the resolution, The Newtown Bee reported, without giving a tally. (The Newtown Bee, Aug. 29, 2026)
Aug. 21, 2026 The Newtown Police Department agreed to deactivate the cameras, according to a press release reported by The Newtown Bee. (The Newtown Bee, Aug. 29, 2026)

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2012 A 2012 license plate reader bill cleared two legislative committees but never received a House floor vote, the Middletown Press reported in 2026. (The Middletown Press, via GovTech, Feb. 4, 2026)
June 19, 2022 CT Mirror reported that Connecticut then had no statute governing police use of plate reader data and did not require its deletion by any deadline; measures the ACLU backed in 2012 and 2013 to purge data after 14 days did not advance. (CT Mirror, June 19, 2022)
Aug. 21, 2023 The Connecticut Post reported, citing state police, that state and local agencies had purchased 93 plate readers in total, and said no current figure existed for how many were active statewide. (Connecticut Post, via GovTech, Aug. 21, 2023)
Nov. 10, 2025 The ACLU of Connecticut and allied groups called for a statewide moratorium on plate readers until legislation passes, and the ACLU said it filed 94 public records requests with police departments, including one to the Connecticut State Police. (ACLU of Connecticut, Nov. 10, 2025; WSHU, Nov. 11, 2025; Journal Inquirer, via GovTech, Nov. 11, 2025)
Feb. 4, 2026 The Middletown Press, crediting a CT Insider investigation, reported that out-of-state police and other authorities had run thousands of searches of Connecticut camera data, often tagged "ICE" or "ICE-assist". It also reported that no official tally shows how many Connecticut towns use readers and that officials keep no central list of them. (The Middletown Press, via GovTech, Feb. 4, 2026)
March 9, 2026 The Judiciary Committee held a public hearing on HB 5449, An Act Concerning Automated License Plate Reader Systems. (Connecticut General Assembly, April 9, 2026; CT Mirror, March 10, 2026)
March 18, 2026 The Government Administration and Elections Committee set a public hearing on HB 5552, on state contract requirements for plate reader information. The committee approved a substitute on March 23, and the bill was tabled for the House calendar on April 9. (Connecticut General Assembly, April 9, 2026)
March 23, 2026 The Judiciary Committee approved a substitute HB 5449, 32-9. It was tabled for the House calendar on April 9. (Connecticut General Assembly, April 9, 2026; Connecticut General Assembly, April 9, 2026)
April 2026 The state Senate passed SB 397, which carried plate reader language that the ACLU of Connecticut says came from HB 5449. CT Mirror reported no tally. (CT Mirror, April 14, 2026; ACLU of Connecticut, May 6, 2026)
April 7, 2026 The Office of Fiscal Analysis note on HB 5449 said the Police Officer Standards and Training Council had already adopted a plate reader model policy and that DESPP had the expertise to write regulations, projecting no fiscal impact. (Connecticut Office of Fiscal Analysis, April 7, 2026)
May 2026 The House passed SB 397 91-53, CT Mirror reported on May 1; the no votes were every House Republican plus four Democrats. (CT Mirror, May 1, 2026)
May 2026 The Justice Department sued Connecticut and officials including Attorney General William Tong over SB 397, WTIC reported on May 16. The report describes a challenge to rules on federal officers such as face coverings and does not mention the plate reader provisions. Tong said the state would "vigorously defend the law." (WTIC News, May 16, 2026)
May 2026 The Journal Inquirer reported that Attorney General William Tong had said earlier that he intended to examine the searches CT Insider uncovered. No Attorney General opinion or enforcement action on plate readers was found. (Journal Inquirer, via Police1, May 7, 2026)
May 4, 2026 SB 397 was approved as Public Act 26-14; sections 13 to 15 regulate plate readers. Most operating limits apply from October 1, 2026, and contract requirements apply from the section's effective date. (Connecticut General Assembly, May 4, 2026; Connecticut Office of Legislative Research, Aug. 12, 2026)
May 4, 2026 PA 26-14 caps retention of plate reader data at 21 days, with exceptions including warrants and court orders, supervisor-approved evidence holds in active criminal investigations, and de-identified traffic analytics. (Connecticut General Assembly, May 4, 2026; Connecticut Office of Legislative Research, Aug. 12, 2026)
May 4, 2026 PA 26-14 bars using plate reader systems or data to assist immigration enforcement, to investigate legal reproductive or gender-affirming care, to identify people in First Amendment activity, or to target people by protected characteristics. (Connecticut General Assembly, May 4, 2026; Connecticut Office of Legislative Research, Aug. 12, 2026)
May 4, 2026 PA 26-14 limits sharing to other Connecticut public agencies; individuals seeking data on vehicles registered to them; law enforcement in New York, Rhode Island or Massachusetts and multijurisdictional task forces with a Connecticut member, on written assurance of compliance; and other law enforcement, federal included, only with a judge's probable cause warrant or for a possible Terrorist Screening Database match. It bars real-time, bulk or automatic access except in response to a documented, case-specific request. (Connecticut General Assembly, May 4, 2026; Connecticut Office of Legislative Research, Aug. 12, 2026)
May 4, 2026 PA 26-14 makes plate reader data confidential and not a public record, while device locations (with a federal funding exception) and redacted audit and access logs are public. (Connecticut General Assembly, May 4, 2026; Connecticut Office of Legislative Research, Aug. 12, 2026)
May 4, 2026 PA 26-14 lets the Attorney General sue vendors, with civil penalties of up to $2,500 per violation, and lets aggrieved people seek injunctive or declaratory relief against public agencies from October 1, 2026. (Connecticut General Assembly, May 4, 2026; Connecticut Office of Legislative Research, Aug. 12, 2026)
May 4, 2026 PA 26-14 deadlines: POST model policy by December 1, 2026; agency adoption and a standard reporting form by January 1, 2027; annual agency reports each January 31; a consolidated UConn Institute for Municipal and Regional Policy report by July 30, 2027; DESPP regulations by January 1, 2028. (Connecticut General Assembly, May 4, 2026)
Aug. 5, 2026 Senators Bob Duff and James Maroney asked towns to hold off voluntarily on installing new plate readers and Flock cameras, promised further privacy legislation in 2027, and said they would ask DESPP for a town-by-town tally of where Flock cameras are and how many there are. (Connecticut Senate Democrats, Aug. 5, 2026; WFSB, Aug. 5, 2026)
Aug. 7, 2026 Gov. Ned Lamont asked POST to issue guidance on safety cameras and plate readers within 30 days for local and state police, and urged municipalities to "immediately pause the installation of any new cameras and ALPRs" until it was final. (Office of the Governor of Connecticut, Aug. 7, 2026)
Aug. 12, 2026 The Office of Legislative Research issued report 2026-R-0125 summarizing the new law, citing PA 26-14 sections 13 to 15 as amended by PA 26-76 section 46. (Connecticut Office of Legislative Research, Aug. 12, 2026)
Sept. 2026 POST adopted a report recommending seven-day retention rather than 21, along with periodic audits, a required case number for data lookups and a ban on shared user accounts. Its chair called the recommendations "only advisory." Reports differ on length (59 or 50 pages), and no vote tally was reported. (CT Mirror, Sept. 24, 2026; Connecticut Public, Sept. 24, 2026)
Sept. 2026 A POST survey counted 1,564 plate reader cameras statewide, as reported by agencies. Of 97 responding agencies, 71 reported fixed readers, and 19 agencies reported no cameras deployed. The largest single agency, unnamed, reported 323 cameras. Reports differ on the vendor figures for Flock (39.4%), Axon (28.3%) and Rekor (24.2%): WFSB describes them as shares of respondents, CT Mirror as shares of cameras. (WFSB, Sept. 24, 2026; CT Mirror, Sept. 24, 2026)
Sept. 29, 2026 WFSB reported that Flock emailed Connecticut departments about a "security incident" in which device names, locations and types were put online. Flock said no pictures, footage or sensitive police data got out, and that it first learned of the access problem in November 2025. (WFSB, Sept. 29, 2026; NBC Connecticut, Oct. 5, 2026)
Oct. 1, 2026 The law's operating limits took effect. WFSB reported that Flock capped retention at 21 days in its Connecticut software and warned that agencies failing to confirm they would follow state rules would lose access to Connecticut agencies' data. (WFSB, Oct. 1, 2026; Connecticut General Assembly, May 4, 2026)

State agencies

Connecticut State Police (DESPP)

Status: Using license-plate readers
Vendors: Flock Safety, Vendor not named in source
Cameras: 15
At least 14 cruiser-mounted cameras and one stationary reader, per the Journal Inquirer in November 2025, which also reported 30 more on order as of May 2025. The article names no source for these figures and no vendor for them.
Sources: Journal Inquirer, via GovTech, Nov. 11, 2025; The Day, via GovTech, Nov. 3, 2025

Aug. 21, 2023 The Connecticut Post reported, citing state police, that 93 plate readers had been purchased, and said no current figure existed for how many were active statewide. (Connecticut Post, via GovTech, Aug. 21, 2023)
Nov. 2024 Inside Investigator reported that DESPP never answered its November 2024 records request about plate reader data. (Inside Investigator, July 12, 2026)
Nov. 2025 The Day listed the state police among at least 45 Connecticut departments with a Flock partnership, without saying whether that covers its own cameras. (The Day, via GovTech, Nov. 3, 2025)
Nov. 10, 2025 The ACLU of Connecticut said it sent a public records request to the state police about its plate reader use. (ACLU of Connecticut, Nov. 10, 2025; Journal Inquirer, via GovTech, Nov. 11, 2025)

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University of Connecticut (parking enforcement)

Status: Program documented, current use unconfirmed
Vendors: Vendor not named in source
Cameras: Count not documented
No count found. A UConn notice describes car-mounted cameras that match plates to permit records.
Sources: UConn Today, July 14, 2021; Inside Investigator, July 12, 2026

July 2021 UConn Parking and Transportation Services said in a July 2021 post that license plate recognition enforcement using car-mounted cameras would start that August. (UConn Today, July 14, 2021)
Nov. 2024 Inside Investigator reported that UConn gave it data from its ALPR system in response to requests filed in November 2024; the article does not say which UConn unit runs the system. (Inside Investigator, July 12, 2026)

Conflicts and open questions

Reported by news outlets; agency records not yet obtained.