As Public Fury Mounts, Texas Pulls the Plug on Flock Surveillance Funding

In brief

• Abbott ordered Texas agencies to halt state funding for Flock cameras, his office confirmed to the Texas Tribune.
• The Tribune found the state helped install at least 3,200 cameras since 2023, much of it funded by a $1 auto-insurance fee meant for catalytic converter theft; Abbott cited a "crackdown" amid misuse cases.
• The order adds to a bipartisan backlash, including Bernie Sanders's planned federal legislation.

Texas Gov. Greg Abbott has ordered state agencies to stop funding Flock Safety's AI-powered surveillance cameras, the latest blow to the license-plate-reader company as backlash over its nationwide network intensifies.

Abbott issued the directive Thursday night, his office confirmed to the Texas Tribune, which reported the move as it prepared to publish an investigation showing a state agency had steered at least $30 million toward building out Texas's Flock network through grants to local police.

Spokesperson Andrew Mahaleris told the Tribune that agencies are clarifying that state funds cannot be used for Flock cameras, noting most city funding for the devices comes from the federal government.

According to the Tribune, the state's Motor Vehicle Crime Prevention Authority has helped install at least 3,200 Flock cameras since 2023, with the Department of Public Safety adding nearly 1,200 more under a $15.9 million contract. Much of that money traced back to a 2023 law that tacked $1 onto auto insurance policies to fight catalytic converter theft, funds lawmakers told the Tribune were never discussed for surveillance cameras.