Republican Florida congressman introduces bill requiring warrants for Flock Safety cameras

Greg Steube’s Flafo Act would require federal agencies to obtain warrants before accessing or sharing data from networked license plate readers

A Florida Republican has introduced a bill that would bar US federal agencies from using Flock Safety’s licence plate cameras and similar systems without a warrant, amid a nationwide backlash against the surveillance company.

Greg Steube’s Facilitating Liberty and Accountability for Flock Observations (Flafo) Act, introduced on Friday, would require a judicial warrant before federal agencies could buy, operate, access or share data with networked licence plate readers. It would also make US Department of Justice grants to local police conditional on their adopting similar rules.