Kalamazoo commissioners unanimously voted to require full commission approval before renewing contracts for license plate reader cameras like Flock Safety’s.
The Kalamazoo City Commission voted 7-0 on August 17 to require City Commission approval before the city renews or modifies any contract for automatic license plate reader (ALPR) technology, including with Flock Safety or any successor vendor.
Vice Mayor Drew Duncan introduced the measure as an amendment to the city’s purchasing policy, directing the city attorney and city manager to ensure no ALPR contract renewal happens automatically without a commission vote going forward. “We should ultimately have the say whether this surveillance technology goes up in our city or not,” Duncan told colleagues.
Closing a dollar-threshold gap
City purchasing policy generally requires commission approval only for contracts above $100,000. Commissioner Jae Slaby noted the city’s existing Flock contract had not come before the commission in the past not because it renewed automatically, but because it fell under that threshold. She amended Duncan’s motion to specifically add ALPR contracts to the purchasing policy’s list of special-circumstance exceptions, ensuring commission review applies regardless of the contract’s dollar amount. The amendment passed 7-0 before the underlying motion was adopted.
City Manager Malcolm Hankins confirmed the current ALPR contract renews annually, though he noted that structure isn’t fixed and could change.
Commissioner Chris Praedel said he saw no reason for the city to be uncomfortable with public visibility into how it spends taxpayer money on the technology. The commission did not take up a separate question raised during discussion about whether to reconsider the city’s current, multi-year Flock contract itself — the new approval requirement applies to future renewals and modifications going forward.
