ITHACA, N.Y. — Common Council will decide whether or not to end its contract with Flock Safety, the company behind a network of artificial intelligence (AI) powered police cameras. The move comes after months of mounting opposition from local anti-surveillance activists.
Flock’s cameras capture images of vehicle, then use AI powered software to sort through the data and create a visual “fingerprint” for each one. Law enforcement can search that data using terms as simple as a car color, make and model or whether it has dents or bumper stickers.
Flock touts that its cameras are present in over 5,000 communities across the U.S. The devices are marketed as a powerful crime-fighting tool, but the technology has attracted criticism from national and local groups who fear its potential for abuse, and the concentration of data in one company.
Common Council first approved a contract with Flock Safety in December 2023 to use 22 of its cameras across the city for an annual cost of about $70,000, and last renewed its contract with the company in March 2025.
The council’s initial vote to use contract with Flock was accompanied by little pushback or fanfare. But opposition to the technology swelled after cameras began to appear above city streets in spring 2025.
A little over two years since that initial vote, a resolution to cut ties with Flock is on the council’s March 4 agenda. If approved, the city would cease its use of all Flock cameras and request the company remove its technology from Ithaca’s borders “as soon as practicable.”
It’s a welcome development for Flock Off, a single-issue activist group focused on ridding Ithaca of Flock cameras. Flock Off activists packed Common Council chambers on Feb. 5 to demand the city end its contract with the technology company.
Flock Off and its supporters have raised the concern that data gathered by Flock cameras in Ithaca could inadvertently aid federal law enforcement officer operations. It’s a possibility that has played out in other communities.
City officials are will face a question other Flock clients have as well. Many municipalities across the country have ended their use of Flock cameras, while others believe it is still a tool that contributes to public safety.
Local law enforcement officials have emphasized that guardrails are in place to prevent federal agencies from accessing the data that Flock cameras gathered in Ithaca. In response, critics of Flock have cited instances in which those guardrails appeared to have failed.
Ithaca is a sanctuary city, which prevents local law enforcement from cooperating with federal immigration enforcement agencies.
The installation of the cameras roughly coincided with the start of the Trump administration’s ongoing immigration crackdown. Nationally, that effort has faced sustained criticism for its violent tactics and violations of human rights and due process.
Leadership at the Ithaca Police Department (IPD) and Tompkins County Sheriff’s Office have remained supportive of Flock’s as a tool to promote public safety. Local law enforcement have even emphasized when Flock technology played a role in different investigations. In a press release on Feb. 10, Sheriff Derek Osborne attributed the arrest of a burglar to Flock Safety cameras.
The resolution to end the city’s contract with Flock was filed by freshman Alderperson Robin Trumble, who represents the city’s 4th Ward.
Trumble said he had taken note of the prolonged public pushback against the technology and wanted to bring the issue to a vote.
“It’s a pretty basic issue about privacy and civil liberty […] and not anti-police or anti-IPD,” Trumble said. “It’s more so that we just can’t afford costly mistakes that are putting people’s security at risk.”
Asked if he had the votes needed to end the contract, Trumble said, “I think I have the support. I definitely can’t confidently say that, though.”
Trumble added that no matter what way the vote went he wanted the community to see the council consider ending the contract.
Alderperson Patrick Kuehl, who also represents the 4th Ward, said he thought the resolution would pass unanimously.
“I would be surprised if anybody votes against it,” Kuehl said.
Kuehl said he thought that IPD was using Flock “for a lot of important work” but that did not resolve the concerns about how the technology could be misused.
“I think that there are good arguments from the police department, but we’re not living in normal times,” Kuehl said
Kuehl and Trumble both participated in the anti-Flock protest on Feb. 5.
Mayor Robert Cantelmo did not immediately respond to a request for comment before publication.
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