South Windsor Mayor Craig Zimmerman votes to terminate the town's Flock contract and remove its license plate readers
Craig ZimmermanMayor of South Windsor, Connecticut, and member of the Town Council
On October 5, 2026, South Windsor Mayor Craig Zimmerman voted with a 6-3 majority of the Town Council to terminate the town's contract with Flock Safety and remove its license plate readers. The CT Post reports he said the town cannot control what happens with the data and that the contract language did not reassure him.
“Action: Voted on October 5, 2026 for the South Windsor Town Council resolution to terminate the town's contract with Flock Safety and remove its license plate readers.”
Reporting
Reporting
Where this statement fits
Should Flock-style license-plate surveillance networks exist?
Networked automated license-plate readers record passing vehicles and let agencies search or share travel records across locations. Candidates and officials disagree over whether to prohibit these networks, keep them with legal limits, or defend their use for investigations. This tracker records attributable positions on that choice, including proposals that would affect only public funding or data access.
Source and context
Reporting
About this source
CT Post report on the South Windsor Town Council's October 5, 2026 vote to end the Flock contract.
Reporting
About this source
WTNH report on the South Windsor Town Council vote to remove Flock cameras, republished by AOL.
Before the quotation
The CT Post reports that the council voted 6-3 after a public hearing at which no member of the public spoke in favor of the readers, and that the resolution calls for the town manager to terminate the contract and remove the readers within 60 days.
After the quotation
WTNH reports that Zimmerman said the cameras' data will be purged and removal will take about 30 days, and that a future proposal to bring the cameras back would need new rules. The CT Post reports he said he was initially supportive of the program.
How this statement is classified
The label describes this statement's response within the context above.
Why this label?
The reference point is whether networked license-plate reader systems such as Flock should exist and be used. Zimmerman votes to end the contract and remove the readers, which rejects the system in South Windsor, so we labeled it Condemned and placed it at Ban or remove. The CT Post reports he said there are benefits to law enforcement but also privacy concerns. The closest competing label is Mixed or conditional, which would fit support for continued use under limits; WTNH reports he said a future proposal to bring the cameras back would need new rules, but the vote itself removes them.
- Recorded on
- Published here
More from this case
Read the full caseNanette Barragán says the lack of federal limits on plate-reader data "is not acceptable"
“Right now, there are few meaningful federal limits on how this kind of data is collected, stored, or shared. There is also a failure to hold companies accountable or put strict rules in place on the use and collection of data. That is not acceptable. When there are no real limits on who can access this data, it becomes easier for agencies like ICE to use it against immigrant families and working communities, the very people our public safety systems should be protecting, not putting at risk. This is about more than privacy. It is about whether people can go to work, visit a doctor, or move through their communities without being tracked and having that information used against them. We can have public safety and privacy. What we cannot have is a surveillance state that tracks people without accountability, and I will keep pushing in Congress to close that gap.”Read statement
Robert Murray asks to move his Flock position to "Ban or remove"
“Please change my answer to "Ban or remove"”Read statement
Delegate May Nivar welcomes Henrico and Goochland moving away from Flock and calls for safeguards
“I’m encouraged that Henrico and Goochland have each decided to move away from Flock cameras after hearing residents’ concerns about privacy and accountability. Public safety and privacy are not competing values. Law enforcement needs effective tools, but those tools must be used responsibly and with appropriate safeguards. ... As the General Assembly revisits this issue next session, we must work toward the right balance between public safety, privacy, accountability, and the authority of local communities to make decisions that reflect their residents’ values.”Read statement
Cite this record
- Publisher
- The Dispute Index
- Title
- South Windsor Mayor Craig Zimmerman votes to terminate the town's Flock contract and remove its license plate readers
- First published
- Last updated
- Permalink
- https://disputeindex.com/events/5247-on-october-5-2026-south-windsor-mayor-craig
Last updated marks the most recent saved version of this published statement.
The Dispute Index. "South Windsor Mayor Craig Zimmerman votes to terminate the town's Flock contract and remove its license plate readers". First published: 2026-10-09. Last updated: 2026-10-09. https://disputeindex.com/events/5247-on-october-5-2026-south-windsor-mayor-craig