San Francisco Cuts License Plate Reader Data Retention to 30 Days Under New Lurie Rules

San Francisco police will keep license plate reader data for 30 days instead of up to a year under new rules Mayor Daniel Lurie announced on Tuesday, September 29, 2026. The policy covers the city’s network of more than 400 automated license plate reader cameras, all run under a contract with Flock Safety, and it was put in place administratively, without a vote of the Board of Supervisors.

What changes

Based on reporting from Mission Local, the San Francisco Standard and CBS News Bay Area, the new rules do the following:

• 30-day retention. Plate scans come off Flock’s platform after 30 days (previously up to 12 months). After that, the San Francisco Police Department holds sole control of the data, per the Standard.
• Longer holds need approval. Officers can keep data past 30 days only with supervisor or command approval tied to an active investigation.
• Every search needs a case number. Searches must be linked to an incident report or dispatch number, and officers must document how the data is used.
• Audits. SFPD will review Flock search logs monthly, and the Department of Police Accountability has been asked to audit the system once a year.
• Prohibited uses. CBS reports the policy bars using the data for civil immigration enforcement, for investigations into reproductive or gender-affirming health care, or to monitor First Amendment activity.

Why now

The cameras have drawn criticism since earlier reporting found that out-of-state and federal agencies had searched San Francisco’s Flock data about 1.6 million times, access that California law does not allow. Mission Local notes that the city’s Human Rights Commission released a report on the cameras the day before the announcement, and that Oakland and San Jose already use 30-day retention.

Lurie framed the change as a balance. “San Franciscans expect us to keep them safe and protect their privacy,” he said in a statement quoted by the Standard and CBS. District Attorney Brooke Jenkins told the Standard that officials want to explain why the technology is useful before concerns grow.

Critics say the rules do not go far enough. CBS quotes an ACLU attorney saying internal agency oversight is insufficient, and Mission Local reports that Flock itself recommends a seven-day retention period, shorter than the city’s new limit.

What comes next

Two things are still ahead. The Board of Supervisors is expected to vote early next year on extending the city’s Flock contract, according to the Standard. Separately, Assemblymember Matt Haney is working with Lurie’s office and Jenkins on state legislation that would make improper use or sharing of license plate data a crime. Mission Local reports the bill could be introduced as early as December.

The policy does not remove any cameras. It changes how long the scans are kept and who can search them. For more on City Hall this fall, see our coverage of the Lurie-backed charter measures on the November ballot.

Sources: Mission Local (Frankie Solinsky Duryea, September 29, 2026); San Francisco Standard (September 29); CBS News Bay Area (September 29); Hoodline (September 29).

Photo: Owen, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons.