Haines City, Florida

Pasco County Sheriff Chris Nocco is ending the county's interlocal agreement allowing license plate reader cameras along county rights-of-way, effective September 30, 2026, after county commissioners withdrew support for the program at meetings on Aug. 11 and Aug. 25, despite unanimously approving it in December 2024. Nocco, who opposes the termination, warned it will hurt the "solvability of crimes" and efforts to locate missing or endangered people, including human trafficking victims, and noted his agency's policy limited data retention to 30 days, well below the two years allowed under Florida law, with searches tied to a call for service or case number. Private and state-owned rights-of-way readers will remain unaffected.

The move follows heightened scrutiny of license plate reader misuse in Tampa Bay, including a Haines City officer arrested after allegedly searching his estranged wife's location over 700 times using Flock cameras. Gov. Ron DeSantis called license plate reader use "out of control," warning against Florida becoming a "surveillance state" while still backing tools for catching criminals. He said legislative action is likely needed and is reviewing New Hampshire's restrictions as a possible model, after an earlier AI Bill of Rights effort stalled in the Florida House.