TEMPE, AZ (AZFamily) — An item on Monday’s Tempe City Council meeting agenda that related to automated license plate readers was removed.
Last week, the city of Tempe announced it was cutting ties with the company Flock and ending its ALPR program. But at Monday’s meeting, item 8A1 was regarding the approval of a nearly $7 million contract with the company Axon. If you dig into the agenda packet, it included 11 Axon Fleet 3 ALPR cameras.
“Unfortunately, because of a clerical error, item 8A1 was not updated to reflect that decision and still includes language related to automated license plate readers. So at the request of staff, I am removing item 8A1 from tonight’s agenda,” said Tempe Mayor Corey Woods at the beginning of the meeting.
Even with the item pulled from the agenda, several people spoke out against ALPRs during public comment.
“It’s a step in the right direction, but the fact that we’re considering a contract with Axon is concerning to me because ALPRs are not the end of the problem; they’re part of the problem for sure,” a resident said during public comment.
“Whether this was included by error or not, it is still concerning,” added another.
Earlier this month, the city of Tempe announced it was ending data sharing with Flock and would open a transparency portal on how the Tempe Police Department uses the system before ultimately deciding to cut ties completely.
“I want to be very clear about this matter as well. This was a clerical error, not a change in direction. Tempe has ended its automated license plate reader program and we are not seeking another provider,” said Woods.
The Axon contract is expected to be brought back in front of city council in the future, without the language regarding the license plate cameras.
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