Chandler City Council’s Flock camera renewal vote is scheduled for Aug. 13

Chandler’s City Council is scheduled to consider renewing the city’s contract for Flock Safety automated license-plate readers on Aug. 13, after the item was withdrawn from the July 16 agenda.

The delay gives residents more time to review the proposed contract extension, the program’s data practices and concerns raised during a May council meeting. The Aug. 13 meeting will involve scheduled consideration, not an automatic renewal.

What changed

A notice attached to the July 16 agenda said the renewal item had been withdrawn by the department and would be considered at the Aug. 13, 2026, regular City Council meeting. ABC15 reported that the city said the delay would give council members more time to get questions answered.

ABC15 also reported that council members were expected to meet with experts before the August meeting. The report said a previously expected executive-session discussion was not going forward at that time. Councilmember OD Harris told ABC15 he had not received information about such a meeting and called for more transparency.

What is proposed

Chandler’s May 21 council record lists a proposed renewal of fixed-camera automated license-plate-reader services from Flock Group Inc. The proposed amount is not to exceed $153,400, using the City of Tempe’s contract.

The council record says Chandler began using Flock readers as a pilot program in March 2024 and had reached agreements allowing up to 40 automated license-plate readers in the city. The record describes the technology as assisting police with identifying and recovering stolen vehicles and locating vehicles associated with missing or endangered people.

KJZZ reported that Chandler had about 40 Flock cameras and roughly 7,600 alerts during the fiscal year. Those alerts measure system activity; they do not by themselves establish crimes, arrests or confirmed matches.

Data retention and sharing

KJZZ reported that Chandler owns the collected data, decides who may receive it and keeps it for 30 days. Chandler shares Flock data with local law-enforcement agencies and the U.S. Marshals Service.

During the May council discussion, city and Flock representatives also discussed access controls and data security. The council record states that data reaching the 30-day retention limit is deleted through Flock’s cloud-storage process. Those practices, along with any changes to the proposed terms, should be checked against the final August agenda packet and contract materials.

Resident concerns

Public comments documented in the May council record included objections to surveillance, camera locations, data control, retention, sharing and privacy. Some speakers questioned the program’s effectiveness and asked how many arrests or cases had been helped by the cameras. Others urged the city not to renew the contract or to redirect the money to community programs.

Other speakers supported the cameras and cited public-safety uses. The comments show competing views about the technology; they do not establish that Chandler or Flock committed a legal violation.

How residents can participate

Chandler’s meeting information lists Aug. 13 as a regular City Council meeting, when formal action may be taken. The city says comments on posted agenda items are heard before the council vote. Speakers generally must sign up no later than 10 minutes before the regular meeting begins and may speak for up to three minutes. Written comments may be submitted online or at the meeting and become part of the meeting record.

Residents should review the final Aug. 13 agenda, staff recommendation, contract language and funding information when those materials are posted. They should also check whether the item remains on the agenda and whether the proposed amount or terms have changed.

The council could approve, reject or delay the renewal. Its action will determine the next step for Chandler’s Flock program.

Sources

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