6 September 10 - 16, 2026 dallasobserver.com DALLAS OBSERVER Classified | MusiC | dish | Culture | unfair Park | Contents Month XX–Month XX, 2026 dallasobserver.com DALLAS OBSERVER | CLASSIFIED | MUSIC | DISH | MOVIES | CULTURE | NIGHT+DAY | FEATURE | SCHUTZE | UNFAIR PARK | CONTENTS | Well, Flock me then Dallas City Council overwhelmingly backs Flock funding. BY AUSTIN WOOD D allas City Council members overwhelmingly supported maintaining funding for Dallas police Flock cameras at a Sept. 2 briefing. Council members debated proposed revi- sions to preliminary budget changes made at last week’s meeting, along with additional amendments submitted to the city manager. One new amendment proposed by Adam Bazaldua would have stripped $1.5 million in funding for DPD’s Flock camera system — ef- fectively eliminating the program — and re- directed the money to an eviction advocacy program and infrastructure improvements. The council strongly opposed the pro- posed measure. Only Mayor Pro Tem Jaime Resendez, council member Paula Blackmon and Bazaldua voted to support. As the coun- cil has yet to adopt a final budget, the straw votes are nonbinding and do not represent definitive budget decisions. “At the end of the day, it’s a great tool, but we do have to make sure that those who abuse the tool get held accountable, and that’s something that we do need to tighten and make sure that we’re doing,” council member Jesse Moreno said. Chad West withdrew another amend- ment that would have eliminated funding for AI-powered cameras mounted on Dallas sanitation trucks. Instead, staff will brief the city council’s Quality of Life, Arts and Cul- ture committee before the end of the year. Funding for the eviction advocacy program was tentatively restored, in part, through an amendment that redirected $500,000 in homeless street outreach funding to the program. The program was originally approved to receive roughly $1 million in annual funding when council passed last year’s budget, although those funds never materialized. ‘Every camera I can get’ Flock cameras, specifically automated license plate readers (ALPRs), have drawn increas- ing public scrutiny in recent months. The cameras face oncoming traffic on public roadways and scan license plates as vehicles pass. Police can then search the cloud data- base for plate numbers tied to ongoing inves- tigations, which DPD officials argue have had an invaluable effect on investigative work. The system also lets Dallas police access other law enforcement agencies’ databases through the company’s cloud network, which includes more than 120,000 auto- mated license plate readers and video cam- eras operating across 49 states. The department has 684 ALPRs in operation, ac- cording to a Flock transparency website. However, Dallas police officials announced Tuesday that they would shut down 321 cameras by the end of the month due to changes in Austin. The announcement came after Texas Gov. Greg Abbott last week ordered a pause in state funding for Flock Safety systems amid ongoing public backlash. An investigation by Texas Monthly has found that the state has disbursed at least $30 million in grants to local law enforcement agencies for Flock Cameras, with some of the funding coming from $1 fees added to insurance registrations. Dallas police have used Flock cameras since the council approved the first contract in 2022. In May 2025, the city council ap- proved a five-year, $5.5 million extension with the Flock Group. Of that funding, roughly $1.7 million is tied to state Depart- ment of Motor Vehicles-tied grants. As they have previously, DPD representa- tives pushed back on the recommendation to eliminate funding for Flock ALPRs, which they said allow the department to track a vehicle throughout the city. They cited the investigative benefit and its role in solving homicide cases. The department has used Flock technology to solve 14 homicide cases this year, according to the transpar- ency dashboard. Like several other council members, Kathy Stewart cited anecdotal evidence about using the cameras to investigate and deter crime in her district. She said while there are concerns, the investigative poten- tial is apparent. “I don’t believe the potential for misuse outweighs the public safety value of this tool,” Stewart said. “It helps our officers identify suspects and locate vehicles and solve crimes, as you all have just said, significantly faster. The answer to misuse is stronger safeguards, not eliminating an effective tool.” DPD representatives said they use the technology daily, and Sgt. Adam Reinhart told the council that the department runs its database for 2,100 unique plates each week. The AI-powered technology has drastically cut down on the man-hours needed to sort through information, and Flock ALPRs were cited as effective tools to police motor theft, business rob- beries and missing persons cases by DPD officials. Council member Lorie Blair said that the Flock cameras have had a marked effect on public safety in her district, especially in high- crime areas and in animal cruelty investigations. “Every tool that you guys can get is a tool that we need,” Blair said. “Every camera I can get, I’m going to ask for it. If I had money in my budget, I’d buy some for you, and I would have strategic locations that I would ask you to place them.” A controversial vendor Backlash against the technology has built nationwide and in Texas in recent months. Dallas police have reported more than a dozen vandalism cases involving Flock AL- PRs, while cities including Austin, San Mar- cos, and, as of last week, Wylie have ended their Flock contracts in the last two years. Concerns over Flock technology are far-reaching and cross party lines. Some worry that state or federal agencies will have access to the databases, especially in a city like Dallas that has received federal grant funding for its Flock Contract. Dallas Police representatives told the Observer in July that few federal agencies, including the US Postal Inspection Service, have access to the department’s Flock database, with immigra- tion enforcement not among them. The cameras have also drawn scrutiny over concerns about misuse and overreach. In 2025, it was reported that North Texas au- thorities had tapped into 83,000 Flock cam- eras to locate a woman suspected of having an abortion. The Barbed Wire reported on data collected by 404 Media in June 2025 and found that at least 180 immigration-re- lated Flock searches had been made by five Texas law enforcement agencies. Stalking is also a major issue, with numerous cases of lo- cal law enforcement using the technology to surveil past romantic partners or strangers. “This isn’t because I want to prevent DPD from doing anything,” Bazaldua said after introducing the amendment. “This is because it’s been done across the country, and there are a lack of controls for this to | UNFAIR PARK | “I DON’T BELIEVE THE POTENTIAL FOR MISUSE OUTWEIGHS THE PUBLIC SAFETY VALUE OF THIS TOOL” Flock cameras can be seen in plain sight throughout North Texas now. Adobe Stock
