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License-plate readers · Brunswick County

Brunswick County

Using license-plate readers · 1 agency documented

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Brunswick County Sheriff's Office

Status
Using license-plate readers
Vendors
Flock Safety, Axon
Cameras
15
The Flock contract covers 8 readers, but 15 were operating in September 2026 because Flock never removed seven of the eight original cameras on private land after eight new ones were installed on state land (Port City Daily). The State Port Pilot reported 16 sheriff's cameras. Port City Daily also reported at least 94 Axon plate-reading cameras under a separate contract.
Contract
Flock Safety: $29,200 first year · from 2024 · approved by Brunswick County Board of Commissioners · Two-year contract approved in 2024 for 8 readers; $24,000 recurring per year. The office paid Flock $25,620 in November 2025. (Port City Daily, Sept. 24, 2026)
Contract
Axon: $4,000,000 total · from Nov. 2025 · approved by Brunswick County Board of Commissioners · Five-year Axon contract that Port City Daily reported includes about $1.4 million for plate-reader cameras. (Port City Daily, Sept. 24, 2026)
  1. Sept. 8, 2026 At the Sept. 8 commissioners meeting, Commissioner Pat Sykes raised Fourth Amendment concerns and asked for camera locations, costs and data-sharing details. Sheriff Brian Chism said he saw no constitutional problem and agreed to provide the information. Sheriff's office statistics showed the cameras recorded 636,342 vehicles in the prior 30 days. (The State Port Pilot, Sept. 16, 2026)
  2. Sept. 21, 2026 Commissioners unanimously approved a 30-day pause on buying new plate readers and agreed to form a review committee. (Port City Daily, Sept. 24, 2026)
  3. Oct. 16, 2026 The sheriff's office updated its Flock policy: it bars searches of family or friends, political searches and searches based on protected characteristics, says an alert cannot be the sole basis for action, limits searching to investigators, supervisors and analysts, and requires annual training and policy review. (WECT, Oct. 19, 2026)

Reported by news outlets; agency records not yet obtained.

Statewide

  1. 2015 Session Law 2015-190 added Article 3D to Chapter 20 of the General Statutes (G.S. 20-183.30 to 20-183.32), the state's rules for police use of automatic license plate readers. Later amendments came in 2021 and 2023. (North Carolina General Assembly, date not shown; North Carolina General Assembly, date not shown; North Carolina General Assembly, date not shown)
  2. 2015 Under G.S. 20-183.31, a state or local law enforcement agency must adopt a written plate-reader policy before its system goes live. The policy must cover the databases used, retention, sharing with other agencies, operator training, supervision, data security and access, audits at least once a year reported to the agency head, and use of systems the agency doesn't run. Data may be used only for law enforcement purposes and not to enforce traffic violations. (North Carolina General Assembly, date not shown)
  3. 2015 Under G.S. 20-183.32, captured plate data may be kept no longer than 90 days unless a sworn written preservation request or a state or federal search warrant applies; preserved data must be destroyed after one year unless the request is renewed. The data is confidential, not a public record, may be shared only with criminal justice officials for a legitimate law enforcement purpose on written request, and may not be sold. Hot lists must be updated every 24 hours or as soon as practicable. (North Carolina General Assembly, date not shown)
  4. 2023 Session Law 2023-151, Section 5, set up a pilot program letting NCDOT make agreements with the State Bureau of Investigation to place fixed plate readers on state-owned right-of-way. It also repealed G.S. 20-183.32A effective Jan. 1, 2024. Session Law 2024-43, Section 3, amended the pilot, which was set to expire July 1, 2026. (North Carolina State Bureau of Investigation (filed with the N.C. General Assembly), April 7, 2026; North Carolina General Assembly, date not shown)
  5. July 2024 Flock Safety obtained the state license it needed in July 2024; the license runs through July 31, 2026, The News & Observer reported, citing the Department of Public Safety. (The News & Observer (republished by AOL; original URL not found), Aug. 12, 2024)
  6. Jan. 2025 The N.C. Association of Chiefs of Police and the N.C. Sheriffs' Association helped the SBI pick the first pilot agencies. Each agency signed a memorandum of understanding with the SBI and could choose its own vendor; cameras on state right-of-way need an NCDOT encroachment approval first. (North Carolina State Bureau of Investigation (filed with the N.C. General Assembly), April 7, 2026)
  7. June 16, 2025 NCDOT approved the first encroachment agreements for plate readers in state right-of-way under the pilot. The first cameras went up July 20, 2025, installed by the Raleigh Police Department. (North Carolina State Bureau of Investigation (filed with the N.C. General Assembly), April 7, 2026)
  8. April 7, 2026 The SBI's initial report to legislative oversight committees said 32 agencies (12 police departments, 19 sheriff's offices and the State Highway Patrol) had asked for 250 cameras on state right-of-way. As of March 15, 2026, 17 agencies had installed 140 camera locations, with 75 more pending, and no data had been kept longer than 90 days. The SBI asked for an extension to July 1, 2028, a statewide coordinator position, $225,000 a year for access to vendors' data (pilot agencies used four vendors) and grants for cameras at state entry points. (North Carolina State Bureau of Investigation (filed with the N.C. General Assembly), April 7, 2026)
  9. July 7, 2026 The state budget, S.L. 2026-41 (Senate Bill 257), was signed. It made the SBI-NCDOT right-of-way plate-reader program permanent and requires the SBI to report on it each year to the Joint Legislative Oversight Committee on Justice and Public Safety. Similar language had been in House Bill 206 but was removed before that bill passed. The ACLU of North Carolina opposed the provision. (UNC School of Government, North Carolina Criminal Law blog, July 27, 2026; The News & Observer (via GovTech / Tribune Content Agency), July 16, 2026)
  10. July 2026 An NCDOT spokesperson said the department does not install or run the cameras but can inspect them to confirm they sit in approved spots in the right-of-way. (The News & Observer (via GovTech / Tribune Content Agency), July 16, 2026)

State agencies

North Carolina State Bureau of Investigation

Status
Using license-plate readers
Vendors
Vendor not named in source
Cameras
Count not documented
Administers the state right-of-way program: 140 camera locations installed by 17 agencies as of March 15, 2026.
  1. April 7, 2026 The SBI reported that its own investigators had used plate-reader data in homicide, drug and missing-person cases, and that pilot agencies used four vendors. (North Carolina State Bureau of Investigation (filed with the N.C. General Assembly), April 7, 2026)
  2. July 7, 2026 The budget made the SBI's right-of-way program permanent and added an annual report to lawmakers. (UNC School of Government, North Carolina Criminal Law blog, July 27, 2026)

From agency records.