No decision yet on whether Providence police can keep using license plate reader cameras. The HOPE committee heard testimony and voted to continue the ordinance. Police defended the cameras and suggested exploring a different vendor; more than a dozen speakers urged a full ban. Written testimony can still be sent through the City Clerk’s Office.
Providence, R.I. — A Providence City Council committee on Thursday heard more than two hours of public testimony on a proposed ordinance that would ban automated license plate readers in the city. The committee then voted to continue the item without acting on the ban itself, according to the Providence Special Committee on Health, Opportunity, Prosperity and Education (HOPE)’s published meeting recording.
The session was limited to public comment. The item, as read into the record, is an ordinance amending Chapter 18.5 of the city’s Code of Ordinances, titled Police, to add a Section 18.5-5 relating to automated license plate readers. The Providence Police Department currently uses license plate reader cameras supplied by Flock Safety, according to police testimony…