Permits for new automated license plate readers along Texas state roads have stopped flowing. The transportation department froze the approvals on Governor Greg Abbott’s directive, leaving Flock cameras and rival brands unable to win a spot on state-owned rights-of-way.
Cameras already watching those roads stay. More than 900 readers run by the Department of Public Safety keep operating, and the pause also catches deals that won approval but never reached installation.
The agency drew a careful line around its own role. It checks that placements are safe and correctly mounted, does not install the hardware and never touches the plate data it helps position. Officials confirmed the suspension Thursday.
The move follows an August halt on state money for Flock purchases, which came after reporting on a $1 auto insurance fee that quietly bankrolled a statewide camera network. Cutting off permits bites harder than cutting off funding. A rights-of-way approval decides whether a camera can be mounted at all, so private buyers and local police departments feel the freeze alongside state troopers.
Florida took a comparable step in September, ordering readers off its state highways within 30 days. Nevada lawmakers have requested plate reader legislation, and Texas legislators expect to revisit the program. Retention limits and misuse complaints have dogged the cameras across several states.
