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Stockton Police | License plate readers

Stocktonia reports that the city's Flock Safety paperwork lists a December 2021 effective date and three amendments, the most recent adding drones, extending the agreement through April 2031 and bringing its total potential value to more than $5.4 million. The City Council voted 7-0 on March 31, 2026 to approve a $3.15 million expansion. We have read no city record of the contract or of any amendment to it.

At a glance

Contract chronology, as reported by Stocktonia
"the city's paperwork lists an effective date of December 2021, a July 2024 amendment for 911 software, a November 2024 amendment for cameras, and the current amendment to add drones." [1]
Council vote, as reported by Stocktonia
"The Stockton City Council voted 7-0 Tuesday to approve a $3.15 million expansion of its contract with Flock Safety, adding a police drone response system," in a report headlined "despite public opposition." The June 2026 report dates the vote to March 31. [2] [1]
Term and total value, as reported by Stocktonia
"The amendment added Flock's Drone as First Responder platform to Stockton's existing camera system and extended the agreement through April 2031, bringing the contract's total potential value to more than $5.4 million over five years." [1]
Drone response system, as reported by Stocktonia
"six docked drones that could respond to calls in 30 seconds to four minutes, send live video before officers arrive and help stretch police staffing." [1]
Federal funds accepted, as reported by Stocktonia in November 2024
"The Stockton City Council on Tuesday approved a resolution to accept $963,000 in federal funds that will be used in part for the installation of license plate readers across the city." [3] [4]
Cameras, as reported by Stocktonia on July 15, 2026
"Stockton has 120 Flock cameras mounted on streets around the city to record license plates" [5]
Cameras on the crowdsourced DeFlock map, as reported by Stocktonia in June 2026
"shows 132 cameras in view in Stockton, including 105 listed as Flock Safety cameras" [1]
The city's own inventory of readers
no city count of readers, and no list of where they are mounted, is in the records we fetched
The contract and its amendments
we have read no city record; the chronology above is Stocktonia's account of the city's paperwork [1]
Retention, sharing and the rules for drone flights
no policy for the readers or the drones is in the records we fetched

How it happened

  1. Procurement

    Effective date of the city's Flock Safety agreement, as reported

    Stocktonia reports that "the city's paperwork lists an effective date of December 2021" for the agreement with Flock Safety. We have read no city record of it. [1]

  2. Expansion

    Amendment for 911 software, as reported

    Stocktonia reports "a July 2024 amendment for 911 software" in the city's paperwork. [1]

  3. Expansion

    Amendment for cameras, as reported

    Stocktonia reports "a November 2024 amendment for cameras" in the city's paperwork. [1]

  4. Decision

    Council accepts $963,000 in federal funds for license plate readers, as reported

    Stocktonia reported on November 14, 2024 that "The Stockton City Council on Tuesday approved a resolution to accept $963,000 in federal funds that will be used in part for the installation of license plate readers across the city," and that "Stockton officials hope the installation of about 100 license plate readers on the city's streets will make it easier to track down criminals." A press release from the office of U.S. Representative Josh Harder is headlined "Harder Secures $963,000 for Strengthening Stockton's Public Safety Program". We have read no city resolution or staff report. [3] [4]

  5. Decision

    Council approves a $3.15 million expansion adding drones

    Stocktonia reports that "The Stockton City Council voted 7-0 Tuesday to approve a $3.15 million expansion of its contract with Flock Safety, adding a police drone response system," in a report headlined "despite public opposition." Its later story describes "six docked drones that could respond to calls in 30 seconds to four minutes, send live video before officers arrive and help stretch police staffing," and says the amendment "extended the agreement through April 2031, bringing the contract's total potential value to more than $5.4 million over five years." [2] [1]

  6. Coverage

    Stocktonia reports 120 Flock cameras on city streets

    In a report on other cities reconsidering their Flock Safety contracts, Stocktonia writes that "Stockton has 120 Flock cameras mounted on streets around the city to record license plates." It is a dated figure in local reporting. We have read no city inventory. [5]

Almost everything on this page about Stockton’s license plate reader program comes from the nonprofit newsroom Stocktonia, with one figure also appearing in a press release from a member of Congress. We have read no city contract, amendment, staff report or council record for it.

What was reported

Stocktonia’s June 8, 2026 account of the program says “the city’s paperwork lists an effective date of December 2021, a July 2024 amendment for 911 software, a November 2024 amendment for cameras, and the current amendment to add drones.”[1] The same report describes what the newest amendment buys: “six docked drones that could respond to calls in 30 seconds to four minutes, send live video before officers arrive and help stretch police staffing.” On the amendment itself it says: “The amendment added Flock’s Drone as First Responder platform to Stockton’s existing camera system and extended the agreement through April 2031, bringing the contract’s total potential value to more than $5.4 million over five years.”[1]

The vote itself was reported on April 1, 2026: “The Stockton City Council voted 7-0 Tuesday to approve a $3.15 million expansion of its contract with Flock Safety, adding a police drone response system,” under a headline that records the vote passing “despite public opposition.”[2] The June story dates that vote to March 31.[1]

Where the money came from

The November 2024 amendment for cameras has a council action beside it in the same newsroom’s earlier reporting. On November 14, 2024 Stocktonia wrote that “The Stockton City Council on Tuesday approved a resolution to accept $963,000 in federal funds that will be used in part for the installation of license plate readers across the city,” and that “Stockton officials hope the installation of about 100 license plate readers on the city’s streets will make it easier to track down criminals.”[3]

The federal side of that figure appears in a press release from the office of U.S. Representative Josh Harder, headlined “Harder Secures $963,000 for Strengthening Stockton’s Public Safety Program”.[4] That is a member of Congress’s own announcement rather than a record of money received. We have read no city resolution, grant agreement or budget document for it.

Two camera counts, neither of them the city’s

The first is a reported figure with a date on it. On July 15, 2026 Stocktonia wrote that “Stockton has 120 Flock cameras mounted on streets around the city to record license plates.”[5] That is a newsroom’s count, published on a day we can cite, and not a document the city has released.

The second is a community map. Stocktonia’s June 2026 report says “DeFlock, a crowdsourced project that tracks automated license plate reader cameras and other surveillance devices, shows 132 cameras in view in Stockton, including 105 listed as Flock Safety cameras. DeFlock describes itself as a community-driven project that maps surveillance devices and relies on public submissions. Because the map is crowdsourced, its findings are not an official city inventory.”[1]

We treat that the same way the reporting does. A crowdsourced map is a record of what people have submitted, and it is a different kind of evidence from an agency inventory. The city’s own count is not in the records we fetched, so the row for it on this page stays empty.

What it does not establish

A contract chronology described in a news story is not the contract. The dates above, the $3.15 million figure, the April 2031 term, the $5.4 million potential value and the drone description all rest on Stocktonia’s reading of city paperwork we have not seen.[1] No retention period, no sharing list, no audit result and no policy for either the readers or the drones is in the records we fetched.

Questions

Who runs Stockton's license plate readers?
The Stockton Police Department, under an agreement with Flock Safety. Everything we can say about that agreement comes from Stocktonia's reporting on the city's paperwork, which lists an effective date of December 2021 and three amendments. We have read no city record. [1]
How many cameras are there in Stockton?
No city inventory is in the records we fetched. Two other counts exist, and they are different kinds of record. Stocktonia reported on July 15, 2026 that "Stockton has 120 Flock cameras mounted on streets around the city to record license plates." The same newsroom reported in June 2026 that DeFlock, a crowdsourced map built from public submissions, "shows 132 cameras in view in Stockton, including 105 listed as Flock Safety cameras," adding that "Because the map is crowdsourced, its findings are not an official city inventory." [5] [1]
What did the City Council approve in 2026?
Stocktonia reports a 7-0 vote "to approve a $3.15 million expansion of its contract with Flock Safety, adding a police drone response system," which its June 2026 report dates to March 31. That report also says the amendment "extended the agreement through April 2031, bringing the contract's total potential value to more than $5.4 million over five years." [2] [1]
How was the camera program paid for?
In part with federal money, according to local reporting. Stocktonia reported in November 2024 that the council "approved a resolution to accept $963,000 in federal funds that will be used in part for the installation of license plate readers across the city," with officials hoping for "about 100 license plate readers" on city streets. A press release from the office of U.S. Representative Josh Harder is headlined "Harder Secures $963,000 for Strengthening Stockton's Public Safety Program". We have read no city resolution, budget document or grant agreement. [3] [4]
What do the drones do?
Stocktonia describes "six docked drones that could respond to calls in 30 seconds to four minutes, send live video before officers arrive and help stretch police staffing." No policy governing those flights is in the records we fetched. [1]

On the map

The community has mapped 325 devices of this type in the county on OpenStreetMap. These are community reports: the vendor and operator of each point are unverified, and none is confirmed to belong to this system. See them on the map →

Street names from reverse geocoding — © OpenStreetMap contributors (ODbL).

What we do not know

What you can do

Show up

Systems like this one are approved by boards, councils and committees that meet in public. We have not yet confirmed where each of them meets in San Joaquin County.

What we have documented in San Joaquin County →

Protect yourself

Practical steps to shrink your personal data trail. Our guides publish at launch; until then, EFF's Surveillance Self-Defense is the best starting point.

Surveillance Self-Defense →

Sources

  1. 1.
    Stocktonia, "Stockton approved Flock drones. Here's what the system is — and why it has drawn scrutiny elsewhere" · News · · accessed · archived copy
  2. 2.
    Stocktonia, "Stockton approves $3.15M police drone program despite public opposition" · News · · accessed · archived copy
  3. 3.
    Stocktonia, "Stockton moves toward implementing license-plate readers on city streets" · News · · accessed · archived copy
  4. 4.
    Office of U.S. Representative Josh Harder, press release, "Harder Secures $963,000 for Strengthening Stockton's Public Safety Program" · Primary document · accessed · archived copy
  5. 5.
    Stocktonia, "Stockton embraced Flock surveillance cameras. Other cities are now scrapping plans amid ICE, privacy fears" · News · · accessed · archived copy

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