Ban Flock Act
- Introduced
- Passed House
- Passed Senate
- Became Law
Introduced; referred to House Oversight and eight other committees
Would bar federal agencies from using automatic license plate readers or buying their data unless Congress authorizes a specific use, cut certain federal grants to states and cities that keep using them, and ban federal money for the systems.
Latest update
Introduced in the House; referred to the Committee on Oversight and Government Reform and to the Judiciary, Transportation and Infrastructure, Energy and Commerce, Education and Workforce, Ways and Means, Natural Resources, Financial Services, and Homeland Security Committees
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Read the full billOfficial bill recordKey facts
- Where
- United States
- Bill number
- H.R.10691 (119th)
- Status
- Introduced
- Introduced
- October 1, 2026
- Threat
- Low
- Last update
- October 1, 2026
Topics
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What it does
The bill covers all automatic license plate readers, not only Flock's. Federal agencies, contractors and anyone acting for them could not use the readers or buy plate data collected by others, such as police, parking firms and data brokers. The only exceptions are toll collection, under strict limits, and any use that Congress later authorizes in a separate law with a 48-hour data limit. No federal money could pay for the readers or their data. From the next fiscal year, five federal departments could not give grants to a state or city unless it bans the readers too. People harmed could sue for damages, and the federal government could not use evidence gathered in violation in any case or investigation.
What’s at stake
License plate reader networks turn ordinary driving into a searchable location history, and federal agencies can tap that history through data brokers and local police networks without running a single camera. This bill closes that purchase route along with direct federal use, and it uses grant money to push state and local police toward the same ban. The grant condition covers five large departments, so a state or city that takes their money would have to choose between that money and its cameras. The bill does not touch readers paid for with non-federal money: a city that drops its federal grants, or a private company spending its own money, could still run readers.
Our take
Mass plate scanning records the movements of millions of people who are suspected of nothing, and the Ban Flock Act goes after the whole system, including the federal habit of buying that data from others. It is stronger than a funding cutoff: outside toll collection, federal use would stop unless Congress writes a narrow law with a 48-hour retention cap, and people whose data is misused could sue for damages. The bill also reaches far past Flock Safety to every automatic license plate reader, whoever makes it. Sens. Bernie Sanders and Jeff Merkley have announced a Senate version, but no Senate bill had appeared on congress.gov as of Oct 2, 2026.
Timeline
Introduced in the House; referred to the Committee on Oversight and Government Reform and to the Judiciary, Transportation and Infrastructure, Energy and Commerce, Education and Workforce, Ways and Means, Natural Resources, Financial Services, and Homeland Security CommitteesLatest
The record
Sponsor
Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY)
Committee
House Oversight and Government Reform Committee, House Judiciary Committee, House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee, House Energy and Commerce Committee, House Education and Workforce Committee, House Ways and Means Committee, House Natural Resources Committee, House Financial Services Committee, House Homeland Security Committee
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