Missouri Governor Mike Kehoe has signed an executive order requiring safeguards for automated license plate reader systems, including a prohibition on integrating AI facial recognition with the technology.
Executive Order 26-18 directs the Department of Public Safety to establish standards for state agencies and state-funded local law enforcement entities using ALPR systems. The minimum requirements include permanently deleting most license plate and vehicle data within 30 days and limiting use to legitimate criminal justice and lifesaving purposes.
Vendors would be prohibited from selling, sharing or commercializing data generated in Missouri. The order also calls for accountability measures to prevent and penalize misuse, addressing access to location information collected as vehicles travel on public roads.
ALPR systems capture license plates and vehicle characteristics for searches and investigations. Kehoe said indefinite storage could create a permanent record of people’s movements, including the places they visit and the people they meet. He described the order as an initial privacy safeguard that preserves legitimate public safety uses of the technology.
Misuse is to trigger immediate disciplinary proceedings, a criminal referral where appropriate and a mandatory report to the DPS director for officer license revocation or discipline. DPS Director Mark James said the department would work with state and local law enforcement and legislators on implementation.
The facial recognition restriction concerns integration with ALPR systems. Missouri has separately supported a Kansas City transit camera pilot involving facial recognition, a different application from roadside plate reading. The executive order’s stated scope is the use of ALPR technology by the covered agencies.
Combined surveillance tools have been adopted elsewhere, including a Baldwin County, Georgia, crime center using facial recognition and license plate tracking. That center brought Clearview AI and Flock Safety tools into the same investigative facility.
The Missouri standards will operate while the General Assembly develops a permanent statutory framework. Other local agencies are encouraged to adopt the practices voluntarily where existing contracts and law permit. The governor’s office identifies Flock Safety cameras among the ALPR products covered by the safeguards, alongside the broader category of automated plate-reading systems used for law enforcement investigations.
Sources: Missouri Governor’s Office
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By the ID Tech Editorial Team
