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HARRIS COUNTY, Texas - Harris County leaders are taking a closer look at how local law enforcement uses Flock cameras across the area and potential next steps.
Hidalgo calls for stronger oversight
Judge Lina Hidalgo is calling for a thorough examination of the county's Flock camera system after receiving a report from the Office of the County Administrator.
The request comes ahead of Friday's scheduled Harris County Commissioners Court meeting, following the release of the report and presentation.
Judge Hidalgo released a recent review of Harris County's Automated License Plate Reader (ALPR) system and new details were revealed on how many cameras are in Harris County, who has access to the data, and how money is being spent.
The Office of County Administration (OCA) released the findings ahead of Friday's Commissioners Court meeting following growing questions over privacy, oversight, and data sharing.
By the numbers:
The report highlights a vast difference between the number of cameras funded directly by Harris County government and the total footprint of surveillance devices active in the area:
154 County-Funded Cameras: Officials verified 154 directly County-funded Flock systems, including 125 associated with Commissioners Precincts — 63 in Precinct 2, one in Precinct 3, and 61 in Precinct 4 — and 29 operated by county law enforcement agencies.
5,300 Flock cameras reported in Harris County: Community-mapping project DeFlock identified around 3,500 ALPR devices, while a December 2025 analysis from Flock Safety data estimated up to 5,300 active Flock devices operating within Harris County. These include cameras funded separately by municipalities, school districts, utility districts, HOAs, and private businesses.
County Spending: As of October 2026, Harris County has authorized $1,643,060 in funding in their agreement with Flock Group, Inc. and $1,421,835 in purchase orders. The county also has an active Vigilant Solutions, LLC contract. They approved $632,480 in funds with $536,202 in dispatched purchase orders.
Data access and retention: Under the contract agreement with Flock Group, it is stated that Harris County is the owner of the footage and data generated. Access to the data is limited at the County to employees, agents, and contractors of County law enforcement agencies. The Flock data is deleted from the system after 30 days.
Dig deeper:
The recent report from the Office of the County Administrator can be seen below:
Who owns more than 4,000 ALPR systems in Harris County?
The review by Harris County Judge Hidalgo noted that of the estimated 5,300 ALPR cameras in Harris County, only 154 are county funded as mentioned above. Also, the report says Harris County Sheriff's Office reported they have about 500 cameras from 17 flock networks.
In that case, there are about 4,600 ALPR cameras in the county whose ownership is unknown and it is unclear who has access. The review states they could be owned by HOAs, MUDs, corporations, or others.
The Source: Information from his article was gathered from the ALPR Report and ALPR Presentation released by Harris County Judge Lina Hidalgo.