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License-plate readers · Hampden County

Hampden County

Using license-plate readers · 5 agencies documented

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Agawam Police Department

Status
Using license-plate readers
Vendors
Flock Safety
Cameras
6
Six leased license plate reader cameras; five were installed as of June 2026.
Contract
Flock Safety: $57,900 term (two-year lease) · from Feb. 2026 · approved by City Council approved a Massachusetts Gaming Commission Community Mitigation Fund grant in September 2025; Flock was added through an amended grant application · The Shoestring reports a subscription of $3,000 per camera per year and about $4,000 per camera. Start month approximate: The Shoestring says use began in February 2026, The Reminder says cameras were installed since March 2026. (The Shoestring, Aug. 17, 2026; The Reminder, June 22, 2026)
  1. Sept. 2025 City Council approved the Community Mitigation Fund grant that was later used to lease the Flock cameras (month only reported). (The Shoestring, Aug. 17, 2026)
  2. June 15, 2026 City Council questioned Flock representatives and the police chief about the cameras; no vote was reported. (The Reminder, June 22, 2026)
Conflicts and open questions
  • Per police and Flock at the June 15, 2026 meeting: data is kept 30 days unless tied to an investigation; departments within a 50-mile radius can request access; searches about reproductive health care and immigration are blocked.
  • Chief Eric Gillis said he was not aware of the amended grant application.
  • Sources for these notes: The Reminder, June 22, 2026.

Reported by news outlets; agency records not yet obtained.

Holyoke Police Department

Status
Using license-plate readers
Vendors
Flock Safety
Cameras
Count not documented
No count disclosed.
  1. Sept. 2, 2026 City Council sent an order to its Public Safety Committee asking for a review of how Flock and any other plate-reader technology was authorized and is used, including the contract, cost, data sharing, retention and compliance with state data-sharing law. No vote count was reported. (The Reminder, Sept. 3, 2026)
Conflicts and open questions
  • The Shoestring reported Holyoke's Flock readers were included in more than 3.5 million searches from January to early June 2026, and that Holyoke police ran more than 40 searches a day.
  • The Public Safety Committee was scheduled to meet Sept. 21, 2026; no outcome was found in this round.
  • Sources for these notes: The Shoestring, Aug. 17, 2026; The Reminder, Sept. 3, 2026.

Reported by news outlets; agency records not yet obtained.

Springfield Police Department

Status
Using license-plate readers
Vendors
Flock Safety
Cameras
Count not documented
No count disclosed.
Conflicts and open questions
  • In August 2026 a department spokesperson told Western Mass News the department had used Flock cameras for three years and that its data is shared with local agencies but not nationally.
  • The Shoestring (Aug. 17, 2026) lists Springfield among departments appearing in Flock search data in 2026 and says the city did not answer its records request; the outlet appealed.
  • No contract, approval record or Flock transparency portal was found in this round; the portal URL guessed (springfield-ma-pd) did not load. Candidate for a records request on contract terms and camera count.
  • Sources for these notes: Western Mass News, Aug. 20, 2026; The Shoestring, Aug. 17, 2026.

Reported by news outlets; agency records not yet obtained.

West Springfield Police Department

Status
Using license-plate readers
Vendors
Flock Safety
Cameras
Count not documented
No count disclosed.
Conflicts and open questions
  • Named by The Reminder (June 2026) among area communities using Flock; The Shoestring lists West Springfield among departments in 2026 Flock search data.
  • Western Mass News (Aug. 20, 2026) reported a resident petition seeking removal of Flock cameras; town officials had not responded.
  • Sources for these notes: The Reminder, June 22, 2026; The Shoestring, Aug. 17, 2026; Western Mass News, Aug. 20, 2026.

Secondhand report; not yet confirmed with the agency.

Westfield Police Department

Status
Using license-plate readers
Vendors
Flock Safety
Cameras
Count not documented
No count disclosed.
Conflicts and open questions
  • Named by The Reminder (June 2026) among area communities using Flock. No contract, vote or portal found in this round.
  • Sources for these notes: The Reminder, June 22, 2026.

Secondhand report; not yet confirmed with the agency.

Statewide

  1. Jan. 14, 2015 Sen. Cynthia Creem filed S.1817 in the 2015-2016 session to regulate automatic license plate reader systems, including a 14-day deletion requirement and annual reporting; it was referred to the Transportation committee. A similar bill (S.1648) had been filed in 2013-2014. (Massachusetts Legislature, Jan. 14, 2015)
  2. Jan. 14, 2025 Rep. Steven Owens (D-Watertown) filed H.3755, "An Act establishing driver privacy protections," with Rep. Lindsay Sabadosa added on Jan. 21, 2025. The bill would create a new Chapter 90K limiting government ALPR use: 14-day retention unless tied to a specific criminal investigation, a warrant to reach other entities' ALPR data, no sharing except in judicial proceedings, and no use to track constitutionally protected activity. (Legiplex (Massachusetts Legislature bill record), Feb. 27, 2025; NBC Boston / State House News Service, Sept. 9, 2026)
  3. Oct. 7, 2025 The ACLU of Massachusetts published network audits and contract records it obtained through public records requests to nearly 80 police departments, reporting that Massachusetts police spent over $2 million on Flock technology over three years and that out-of-state agencies searched data from Massachusetts departments. An update on Feb. 26, 2026 said more than 80 Massachusetts police departments have Flock contracts. (ACLU of Massachusetts, Data for Justice Project, Oct. 7, 2025)
  4. Jan. 2026 The ACLU of Massachusetts sent a letter to municipal leaders whose police use Flock or another plate-reader vendor, asking them within 30 days to confirm their vendor, obtain settings and contract terms, disable sharing outside Massachusetts, and end contracts where outside sharing cannot be stopped. (ACLU of Massachusetts, Jan. 1, 2026)
  5. March 2026 The Joint Committee on Transportation endorsed H.3755 on an 11-0 vote, after which the bill went to House Ways and Means, where it remained as of September 2026. Its sponsor said he expects to refile a revised version next session. (NBC Boston / State House News Service, Sept. 9, 2026; The New Bedford Light / State House News Service, Sept. 10, 2026)
  6. Sept. 2026 Gov. Maura Healey's office referred questions on plate readers to the Executive Office of Public Safety and Security, whose spokesperson said the office supports appropriate safeguards and will keep monitoring the issue; no executive action was described. A six-member conference committee was working on data privacy legislation (S.2619 / H.5479), which the H.3755 sponsor said may affect ALPR data. (The New Bedford Light / State House News Service, Sept. 10, 2026; NBC Boston / State House News Service, Sept. 9, 2026)
  7. Sept. 2026 The ACLU of Massachusetts said 25 Massachusetts municipalities had canceled Flock contracts or ended pilots over the preceding 18 months. (NBC Boston / State House News Service, Sept. 9, 2026)
  8. Sept. 16, 2026 Rep. Adam Scanlon (D-Bristol) said he plans to file legislation with Rep. Marcus Vaughn setting statewide standards for plate readers, covering data retention, access rules, and auditing. No bill number was given. (Boston 25 News, Sept. 16, 2026)

State agencies

Massachusetts State Police

Status
Using license-plate readers
Vendors
Motorola Solutions
Cameras
Count not documented
No count disclosed.
  1. 2020 In 2020, State Police stopped using a plate-reader surveillance system after finding that a glitch had been recording inaccurate data for more than five years, according to MassLive's 2023 reporting. In that same reporting, a State Police spokesperson named Neology as a technology company the agency uses. (MassLive (via Government Technology), Oct. 17, 2023)
  2. 2025 During Boston's 2025 Flock trial, the State Police submitted 2 of the 15 requests to add plates to the Boston system's hot list. (City of Boston, Sept. 15, 2026)
  3. Oct. 7, 2025 The ACLU of Massachusetts reported that the State Police have contracts with Vigilant Solutions, a plate-reader data company. (ACLU of Massachusetts, Data for Justice Project, Oct. 7, 2025)
  4. Sept. 2026 A state public safety spokesperson told the Globe that the State Police do not use Flock Safety cameras. (The Boston Globe, Sept. 2, 2026)
  5. Sept. 4, 2026 In a statement, the State Police said fewer than 2% of members can query ALPR data, that each query requires a case number or reference, a reason, a time period and a geographic area, that users must complete privacy training, and that queries are monitored and audited. (The New Bedford Light / State House News Service, Sept. 10, 2026)
Conflicts and open questions
  • Vendor: a State Police spokesperson named Neology in 2023 reporting; in 2025 the ACLU of Massachusetts named Vigilant Solutions, a Motorola Solutions company.
  • The 2020 date is year-only; the source gives no month.

Reported by news outlets; agency records not yet obtained.