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License-plate readers · White County

White County

Program documented, current use unconfirmed · 2 agencies documented

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Sparta Police Department

Status
Program documented, current use unconfirmed
Vendors
Flock Safety
Cameras
Count not documented
No count disclosed. The Bockman Way cameras are shared with the White County Sheriff's Office.
  1. Dec. 1, 2025 The White County Sheriff's Office said the Flock cameras on Bockman Way were placed jointly with Sparta police and serve both agencies. (SpartaLive, Dec. 1, 2025)
Conflicts and open questions
  • The sheriff ordered the county's Flock cameras removed in 2026. Whether the shared Bockman Way cameras were included is not known.

Reported by news outlets; agency records not yet obtained.

White County Sheriff's Office

Status
Ended or removed
Vendors
Flock Safety
Cameras
12
12 Flock cameras (8 hardwired, 4 solar long-range), per a Flock representative at the June 2026 budget committee; also 12, per the December 2025 SpartaLive report. Removal was ordered in 2026.
  1. April 2025 The County Commission approved the sheriff's request for Flock cameras, according to the commission chair in July 2026. (The UC Now, July 20, 2026)
  2. Dec. 1, 2025 The sheriff's office announced it was starting to use 12 Flock plate-recognition cameras. A captain said they were paid for by selling surplus equipment. Earlier cameras on Bockman Way are shared with Sparta police. (SpartaLive, Dec. 1, 2025)
  3. June 2026 The county Budget Committee voted 3-1 to approve the budget as submitted, including $25,000 for Flock cameras and pursuit-alert contracts. County Executive Denny Wayne Robinson cast the only no vote. (The UC Now, June 2, 2026)
  4. July 2026 The County Commission voted to rescind its earlier resolution authorizing the Flock cameras. The chair said removing them was up to the sheriff's office, which held the contract. (The UC Now, July 20, 2026)
  5. Aug. 2026 Sheriff Steve Page said he had ordered the Flock cameras removed in response to community feedback. (The UC Now, Aug. 7, 2026)
Conflicts and open questions
  • The commission chair said the cameras were installed 'around September or October' of 2025.
  • The budget committee meeting date was not given (article June 2, 2026). The rescission vote was on a 'Monday' (article July 20, 2026). The sheriff's statement is undated (article Aug. 7, 2026). Only months are used for all three.
  • Whether removal is complete was not confirmed; the status follows the sheriff's removal order.

Reported by news outlets; agency records not yet obtained.

Statewide

  1. 2014 Tennessee law (T.C.A. § 55-10-302, added by Acts 2014, ch. 625) bars government agencies from keeping data captured by automated license plate recognition systems for more than 90 days. Data kept as part of an ongoing investigation may be held longer but must be destroyed when the investigation ends without charges or when the related criminal case concludes. (City of Murfreesboro, Sept. 15, 2023)
  2. 2021 A 2021 state law authorizes TDOT to let law enforcement agencies install cameras on interstate and state highway rights of way. TDOT later said the law gives it permission to allow such cameras but does not require it to. (Tennessee Lookout, May 20, 2022; Tennessee Department of Transportation, April 23, 2025)
  3. April 22, 2021 Gov. Bill Lee signed SB 699 (Public Chapter 201), which made captured plate data from license plate reader systems confidential and not open to public inspection. The Senate passed it 29-0 and the House 86-1. As passed, the confidentiality provision was set to expire July 1, 2026. (Plural Policy (Open States), April 22, 2021)
  4. March 2022 TDOT turned down a West Tennessee police department's request to put a plate reader on a state highway right of way. The department cited an ongoing review of the state's role in plate-reader use. A Tennessee Lookout column reported that the Lee administration was reviewing privacy, data collection and public safety questions around the cameras. (Tennessee Lookout, May 20, 2022)
  5. April 6, 2022 HB 2586, sponsored by Rep. Michael Curcio, would have raised the state's 90-day limit on keeping plate-reader data to 100 days. It was taken off notice in the House Criminal Justice Subcommittee and did not pass. (FastDemocracy, April 6, 2022)
  6. April 23, 2025 TDOT issued Traffic Memorandum TM 2504, which sets out how local governments and law enforcement agencies get permission for surveillance cameras, including plate readers, on interstate and state route rights of way. Each request is reviewed by the Department of Safety and Homeland Security, regional TDOT offices and TDOT's Excess Land Committee, and needs a signed license agreement before installation. Agencies with cameras already on state right of way must go through the same steps. (Tennessee Department of Transportation, April 23, 2025)
  7. July 28, 2026 State Rep. Jason Zachary (R-Knox County) said he plans to talk with other state lawmakers about plate-reader limits before the January legislative session. Rep. Gloria Johnson (D-Knoxville) questioned whether the cameras are needed. U.S. Rep. Tim Burchett has introduced a federal bill that would bar federal funds from paying for license plate readers. (WVLT / WMC Action News 5, July 28, 2026)
  8. Aug. 20, 2026 The Tennessee Sheriffs' Association and the Tennessee Association of Chiefs of Police announced a joint effort to draft recommended principles and model-policy guidance for plate-reader use, which they expect to present to the General Assembly before the 2027 session. Safeguards under consideration include a documented law enforcement purpose for searches, human verification of alerts before enforcement, access limited to trained staff, search audits, rules on sharing, retention and deletion, and discipline for misuse. (Tennessee Association of Chiefs of Police / Tennessee Sheriffs' Association, Aug. 20, 2026)
  9. Aug. 21, 2026 TBI said it supports responsible use of plate-recognition technology, limits access to trained, authorized staff, bars personal and political use, and requires audits. Director David Rausch said the technology must be used responsibly with clear rules and accountability. TBI said it would work with partners and policymakers on standards. (WTVF NewsChannel 5, Aug. 21, 2026; WZTV FOX 17 / WTVC NewsChannel 9, Aug. 23, 2026)
  10. Sept. 2026 In a WVLT interview, Attorney General Jonathan Skrmetti said plate readers are likely legal when they collect data in plain view for a limited purpose. He said he expects the General Assembly to take up the issue, and that lawmakers could choose a ban or set limits on how long data is kept and how it is used. No formal Attorney General opinion was cited. (WSMV / WVLT, Sept. 17, 2026)

State agencies

Tennessee Bureau of Investigation

Status
Using license-plate readers
Vendors
Vendor not named in source
Cameras
Count not documented
No count disclosed. TBI describes using plate-reader data in investigations; it did not say whether it owns cameras.
  1. 2024 TBI said plate-reader data helped investigators quickly narrow in on suspects in the shooting of a Tennessee state trooper. (WZTV FOX 17 / WTVC NewsChannel 9, Aug. 23, 2026)
  2. Aug. 21, 2026 TBI said in a statement that it uses plate-recognition technology in some cases. It said Georgia plate data helped find a 1-year-old taken from Tennessee and helped track a missing at-risk adult to Colorado. TBI said its policy bars personal, political and retaliatory use and requires audits. (WTVF NewsChannel 5, Aug. 21, 2026; WZTV FOX 17 / WTVC NewsChannel 9, Aug. 23, 2026)
Conflicts and open questions
  • The statement does not name a vendor. In the cases TBI cited, the plate data came from other states' or agencies' cameras.

Reported by news outlets; agency records not yet obtained.

Tennessee Highway Patrol (Department of Safety and Homeland Security)

Status
Program documented, current use unconfirmed
Vendors
Vendor not named in source
Cameras
Count not documented
No count disclosed.
  1. Oct. 15, 2012 WCYB reported that a Tennessee state trooper's cruiser had a four-camera plate-reader system that checked plates against a database, and that the patrol was adding such systems on an ongoing basis. (WCYB, Oct. 15, 2012)
  2. April 23, 2025 Under TDOT's TM 2504, the Department of Safety and Homeland Security reviews every application for a plate reader or surveillance camera on state highway right of way. (Tennessee Department of Transportation, April 23, 2025)
Conflicts and open questions
  • No current source found on THP's own plate-reader program. The 2012 report is the latest found.

Reported by news outlets; agency records not yet obtained.