HOUSTON – A request by ENOUGH for records about Harris County’s use of Flock Safety license plate cameras came with a price tag of more than $121,602 a figure that has raised questions about how much information is contained in the county’s Flock-related records and how difficult it is for the public to access them.
The Harris County Sheriff’s Office said the estimate was driven by the breadth of ENOUGH’s original request, which officials said generated a search of more than 400,000 emails and attachments.
Recommended Videos
The request is part of a broader effort to examine how law enforcement agencies across the Houston area use Flock Safety automated license plate readers, or ALPRs.
The cameras scan license plates and collect vehicle data that law enforcement agencies can use during investigations. Supporters of the technology say it can help investigators locate vehicles connected to crimes. Critics have raised concerns about privacy, data access and the possibility of the system being misused to track people.
RELATED: Flock cameras across Houston: Who has access and what happens when they’re misused?
ENOUGH has received thousands of pages of records from smaller agencies without a similar cost estimate. The $121,602 estimate came from the Harris County Sheriff’s Office.
Why the records request was so expensive
According to the Sheriff’s Office, our original request was extremely broad.
The office also said the estimate was not intended to suggest that records were being withheld because of the subject matter.
I narrowed our records request and am now waiting for the department to provide a new estimate and response.
The distinction is important: the $121,602 figure was an estimate based on the scope of the original request, not a fee ENOUGH ultimately agreed to pay for the records.
The Harris County Sheriff’s Office is subject to the Texas Public Information Act, which generally provides public access to government records while allowing certain information to be withheld under statutory exceptions.
Hidalgo says the $121,000 estimate surprised her
Harris County Judge Lina Hidalgo said the size of the estimate surprised her when I asked about it.
“It’s surprising because I know Sheriff Gonzalez is really involved in wanting to find a good balance between oversight and the law enforcement benefit,” Hidalgo said.
READ MORE: At least 900 Flock cameras have been unplugged in Texas since state funding was cut
Hidalgo said the request also made her wonder what information is available from the county’s constable offices.
“It makes me wonder what we’re getting from the constable’s offices,” she said.
Hidalgo said she wants residents to continue asking questions of the elected officials and agencies involved.
The county judge has previously said she supports the use of ALPR technology to help solve crimes and save lives, while also arguing that stronger privacy protections and oversight are needed.
Hidalgo said commissioners court’s October 15th meeting will dedicate some time to Flock.
Hidalgo said during a September meeting, she had asked the county purchasing agent, county administrator and county attorney for information about the county’s Flock contract.
She said the review raised a question about who is authorized to access information collected by the cameras.
“When I asked, ‘Who can access the data?’ I thought I would hear something like, you know, members of the sheriff’s department or, you know, police officers, but that’s not what’s in the contract,” Hidalgo said. “The contract just says Harris County.”
She said she hopes the county can determine who has accessed Flock information, how often it has been accessed, where cameras are located and who administers the system.
Hidalgo has said she wants the discussion to include information about the county’s Flock contracts, the agencies that can access the data, camera locations and the safeguards governing the technology.
