Following procedural error, Edmonds unanimously cancels Flock contract

Published 2:08 pm Wednesday, June 10, 2026

EDMONDS — After a procedural error, the Edmonds City Council unanimously voted Tuesday to cancel the city’s contract with Flock Safety.

On May 26, Edmonds Mayor Mike Rosen announced that the city had canceled its contract with the automated license plate reader company. Earlier that day, he and Police Chief Loi Dawkins sent a letter to Flock, saying that the police department was terminating its service agreement with the company effective immediately. The next day, a Flock representative told the city they would begin processing the cancellation, according to an email attached to Tuesday’s City Council agenda.

On June 1, Rosen and Dawkins sent another letter to the company, recognizing that the city could not move forward with canceling the contract without City Council approval. The council had approved the two-year agreement with Flock for 19 cameras in October 2024.

“That letter was issued before the city council took action authorizing termination of the contract,” the June 1 letter read. “Accordingly, the letter should not be understood as the final authorized action of the city unless and until it is ratified or otherwise acted upon by the city council.”

On Tuesday, Dawkins said the decision stemmed from a new state law that places stricter guardrails on automated license plate reader use. Although the law exempts ALPR footage from the Public Records Act, it includes other record retention requirements, such as an audit trail.

“There have been some changes in legislation, and that’s led us to believe that with those changes comes a lot of liability, and due to our staffing, due to some of the requirements of record retention, some of the requirements related to public disclosure and liability exposure, we’re recommending that you approve authorization for the mayor to terminate this contract,” Dawkins said.

In his initial announcement, Rosen cited a recent 404 Media report that found the FBI is looking to spend up to $36 million for access to a nationwide license plate reader network without warrants. Flock is one of two companies that have the nationwide capacity the FBI is looking for, according to the report.

Rosen also cited general community concern about public surveillance and increased immigration enforcement throughout the county.

Edmonds has had its camera network paused since December, city spokesperson Natasha Ryan said in a May 27 email. In October 2025, the University of Washington reported that federal agencies — including U.S. Customs and Border Protection and Homeland Security Investigations — accessed several Flock networks throughout the state. Shortly after, The Daily Herald reported that federal agencies accessed several networks in Snohomish County. Edmonds was not included in the report, but records later obtained by The Daily Herald show that some federal agencies accessed Edmonds’ network in the same time frame.

“I can’t support this motion strongly enough,” council member Chris Eck said. “… My greatest concern is that it’s been demonstrated locally and throughout the country that the technology is indeed being used by our federal government for various purposes, with no recognition of the civil rights of people in our community.”

Council President Pro Tem Jenna Nand asked if there was any risk of Flock sharing the data already collected by Edmonds’ cameras with the federal government.

“We’re certain that that information is not at risk to be released,” Dawkins said in response.

The cameras were funded through a $131,880 grant from the Washington Auto Theft Prevention Authority. Terminating the contract early has no financial impact to the city, Dawkins said.

Edmonds is the third city in Snohomish County to cancel its contract with the automated license plate reader company. In December 2025, the Mountlake Terrace canceled its contract with Flock Safety before its cameras were installed, citing community division and public records concerns. In February, the Lynnwood City Council ended its contract with the company seven months after it first installed the cameras.

Jenna Peterson: 425-339-3486; jenna.peterson@heraldnet.com; X: @jennarpetersonn.