What is Manchester deciding?
VTDigger reported that Police Chief James Blanchard updated the selectboard on Tuesday night about the town's Flock contract. The contract is set to expire in March, and Blanchard is researching other systems before the town renews anything.
The reason is a new state law. Vermont is set to enact 23 V.S.A. § 1609 on July 1, 2027. It says no state agency, department or political subdivision of the state shall use automated license plate recognition systems. Manchester will likely lose the ability to use that technology once the law takes effect.
Why did the town pause and restart its cameras?
- The town paused Flock use while the Agency of Transportation reviewed it, because the cameras were first meant for work-zone traffic safety.
- The town resumed use in February after Transportation Secretary Joe Flynn said its camera use fell within the existing law.
- The Department of Public Safety confirmed that data gathered by such systems is not promulgated.
What changes for drivers in Manchester?
Under the statute as quoted, Manchester would lose the ability to use automated plate readers after July 1, 2027. The source does not say what would happen to the town's existing cameras, or whether they would be removed or switched off.
What does not change: the statute as quoted covers state agencies and political subdivisions. VTDigger doesn't say how it would apply to cameras run by private businesses, and this report does not address them. You can check mapped cameras on the camera map and read how plate readers work for background.
Which alternative is the town looking at?
One alternative the team is looking into is the Unify Camera System, the same system already on the exterior cameras at the public safety building. Blanchard said one appeal is that it can store data on town-owned equipment rather than a vendor-managed cloud.
Blanchard listed open questions:
- Potential cost
- How data would be sent to an in-house server
- Whether Unify can offer the capability the department wants
- Power, since Flock cameras run on solar and Blanchard prefers hardwired cameras
What are residents saying?
Peter Campbell, who runs The Crooked Ram restaurant, told the board that residents were shocked to learn about the town's surveillance use and that trust in police and town government had suffered. Board member Jonathan West said the town should control its own data and be transparent about why it uses the cameras. Vice Chair Heidi Chamberlain said the town's original intent was not deceitful and that the board is responding as the issue develops.
What happens next?
Blanchard wants the State to clarify how it reads Section 1609 before the town makes a significant investment. He would rather keep researching alternatives over the next few months and decide before the renewal comes due.
The next dated deadlines are March, when the Flock contract expires, and July 1, 2027, when the state law is set to take effect.