Kentucky bill proposes statewide limits on license plate data

LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WDRB) – A bill in the Kentucky legislature would set guidelines on how police departments, local governments and homeowners’ associations can use data from photos of vehicles’ license plates.

Senate Bill 129, filed Tuesday by Sen. Jimmy Higdon (R-Lebanon), requires those entities to keep information from automated license plate readers for no longer than 90 days unless it’s being used in a felony prosecution or is subject to a subpoena.

The measure also prohibits the sale of recorded images or data “for any purpose” and bans the data from being made available except to law enforcement agencies or when subpoenaed.

"There has to be some regulation," Higdon said in an interview Wednesday.

He said his main concern is ensuring that vehicle data isn't sold to third parties. "That information has got to be protected. They can't keep it forever, either," he said.

Homeowners' associations are included in the bill in an effort to ensure that license plate data isn't used for nefarious purposes, such as keeping tabs on neighbors' private lives, Higdon said.

WDRB News reported last November that Kentucky was not among 16 states that have passed legislation setting uniform statewide policies on using data from the cameras. The technology, which is typically fixed on streetlights and other infrastructure, takes pictures that show not only vehicles' license plates, but unique details like roof racks and stickers and and how often a car passes by.

Flock Safety, a leading camera manufacturer, touts its system as a 21st-century tool for police to solve crimes. Some civil liberties and privacy advocates say the technology lets police paint an intimate portrait of drivers' lives and needs strict regulation.

Kate Miller, advocacy director for the American Civil Liberties Union of Kentucky, is among those who has called for state legislators to pass a statewide law addressing the cameras.

While she was still reviewing the bill, "we are thrilled to see some common sense policies proposed for this ever increasingly used technology," Miller said in an email. "Without limitations on the retention of data, ALPRs could be ripe for government surveillance, this helps ensure Kentuckians retain some right to privacy as they go about their days on our roadways."

WDRB's investigation found a patchwork of policies at individual police departments in Kentucky and southern Indiana – as well as several with no rules at all.

Louisville Metro Police are among the departments that use the cameras in Kentucky.