The Issue

This petition is adapted from a constituent letter sent to the San Mateo mayor, deputy mayor, and council members on August 10, 2026.

As members of the San Mateo community, we the undersigned emphatically oppose the City's use of Automated License Plate Readers (ALPRs) and other dragnet surveillance devices. The City's position that it values the privacy of its residents cannot reconciled with its continuing use of ALPRs in their current configuration, and the use of these devices poses serious threats to our rights to due process under the 4th Amendment to the Constitution.

We demand that the City immediately turn off and uninstall ALPRs and terminate any contracts with Flock Safety or allow them to expire.

The City alternatively has the power to enact measures to mitigate the privacy violations and potential for abuse inherent to the use of such systems by 1) imposing stricter limits on the data retention period, 2) clarifying the San Mateo Police Department ALPR Policy language, and 3) requiring that audits of the system and data searches be independent and public.