A bad week for Flock (but a good week for privacy and local organizing) in Washington state!
Good news from Issaquah, Redmond, Issaquah, and Auburn!
TAKE ACTION: Renton and Redmond have city council votes on Flock cameras this week
As the pushback against Flock’s AI surveillance cameras continues to grow all around the country, there are two important city council votes here in the Puget Sound area. If you live in Renton or Redmond — or visit either of the cities frequently, or have friends who work there — please take action Renton city … Read more
FISA fake “deadline” June 12. Will Schrier, MGP, and Strickland side with Republicans again?
UPDATE: Congress didn’t reauthorise FISA Section 702! See EFF’s Victory! 702 has Expired! and Get FISA Right’s What next on FISA Section 702? Good question! for more details. Thanks everybody who took action! Congress is once again voting on whether to reauthorize FISA Section 702’s warrantless surveillance — and potentially introduce reforms. Get FISA Right’s … Read more
Bipartisan amendment to ban Flock and other ALPRs fails — but there’s support for regulation
The proposed amendment to prohibit federal highway fund recipients from using Flock and other automated license plate readers (ALPRs) for any purpose except tolling failed 20-44 yesterday. The good news is that legislators from both parties acknowledged the abuses of ALPRs, and most agreed on the need for some regulation. And to be honest, 20 … Read more
Say no to Flock and ALPRs: ask Congress to limit ALPR usage for federal highway fund recipients
In A Bipartisan Amendment Would End Police License Plate Tracking Nationwide, Dell Cameron reports for Wired: US lawmakers plan to introduce an amendment Thursday at a House committee markup hearing that would prohibit any recipient of federal highway funding from using automated license plate readers for any purpose other than tolling—a sweeping restriction that, if … Read more
FISA warrantless surveillance: Congress is voting on reauthorization this week
Congress is once again voting on whether to reauthorize FISA Section 702’s warrantless surveillance — and potentially introduce reforms. Get FISA Right’s FISA Reauth state of play: new “deadline” April 30 is an overview of the complex political situation, with a dozen Republicans pushing back against attempts by Speaker Johnson and the Trump administration to … Read more
SB 6002, the Driver Privacy Act, passes the legislature
The Senate voted 39-10 to concur with the House’s weak version of SB 6002, regulating Flock and other ALPRs. It’s a very disappointing result. As Rep. Brianna Thomas said on the House floor Establishing any framework at this point for retention, access, and sharing is indeed a step forward. That said, the bill doesn’t meet … Read more
Washington state 2026 legislative session: where are we with five days left?
The Washington state legislative session ends on Thursday March 12 and it’s been even more intense than usual. Right now the discussions around SB 6002, the Driver Privacy Act regulating Flock and other ALPRs are the most intense. Sen. Trudeau’s original bill was a “compromise”, which advocates said was too weak to protect Washingtonians — … Read more
Washington state 2026 legislative session: off to a fast start!
My oh my … the Washington state legislative session started on January 12 and immediately shifted into ultra-high gear — we’ve already testified at multiple hearings. Social networks are the best way to keep up with what we’re up to. We’re on Blacksky at @2026.wa-privacy.net; you can also follow from Bluesky For Mastodon (or compatible software … Read more
HB 1671 (the People’s Privacy Act) and HB 1672 (Employee monitoring) die in Appropriations
Friday February 28 was the “fiscal cutoff”: any bills in the House not approved by the Appropriations committee are dead for the session. Alas, Appropriations never called a hearing or scheduled a vote on either of the bills we were supporting, so they’re both dead. If you came to this page because you clicked on … Read more