JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – You may have driven past a Flock camera without ever knowing what it was, or what information it could capture.
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Now, Jacksonville City Councilman Jimmy Peluso wants to change how the city handles the automated surveillance technology, including who gets a voice before a new camera goes up.
Peluso is hosting a public meeting Friday at 10:30 a.m. at City Hall to discuss automated surveillance equipment policies, regulation and a possible temporary moratorium on new cameras.
Peluso told News4JAX’s reporter Briana Brownlee and Photojournalist Jesse Hanson he already has draft legislation he wants to bring forward. But Friday’s meeting is not a vote on that legislation.
Instead, he wants to determine what Jacksonville is legally allowed to do under Florida law and what other communities in the state have done.
“I do have some draft legislation that I’m going to present tomorrow,” Peluso said.
What Peluso wants to change
Peluso said his proposal would include an inventory of automated surveillance cameras in Duval County and a new process for installing them.
He also wants to explore giving neighborhoods a way to petition for a camera to be removed.
“I think you should go to the CPACs. I think you should speak with a community before you put up a new camera. It’s also meant to create an inventory of all the cameras in Duval County, and then the ultimate goal is let’s create a process that if a neighborhood wants to, there’s a petition process to remove a camera,” Peluso said.
The city’s official notice for Friday’s meeting specifically lists automated surveillance equipment policies, regulations and a temporary moratorium among the topics to be discussed.
Peluso said his goal is to leave the meeting with a better understanding of what legislation he can file.
“What tools do we have available to us, and then I provide my vision for what I want to see, which is inventory, a moratorium on new ones, a new process for how to install them, and then the ability for a neighborhood or a community to remove them,” he said.
He said any proposed legislation would still have to go through a legal review.
“We’re in the middle of our budget season, so there’s a lot of our attorneys and a lot of staff work going towards the budget,” Peluso said. “So I don’t expect this to be, you know, done tomorrow.”
Peluso said he hopes the process can move forward within the next few weeks, depending on the legal review.
Why Flock cameras are controversial
Flock cameras are automated license plate readers that capture information about vehicles passing by, including license plate information and the time and location associated with a sighting. The technology allows law enforcement to search vehicle information as part of criminal investigations.
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Supporters say the technology can give investigators another tool when trying to identify vehicles connected to crimes.
Critics worry that searchable vehicle information can create a detailed record of people’s movements and raise questions about privacy, access and how the information is used. Those concerns have fueled debate in communities across Florida.
Peluso said he understands the potential benefit of the technology.
“JSO is aware. They’ve been talking to me about, you know, hey, there’s real value in these cameras, and I think they’re right. I do understand the value,” he said.
But he said residents should have more control over the technology.
“I do understand the value. However, I want to make sure that residents are more in charge of this rather than, you know, Peter Thiel and Palantir and whoever else who’s probably making a lot of money off this,” Peluso said.
That statement reflects Peluso’s concern about the role and financial interests of private companies involved in surveillance technology; it is not an independent finding about any company.
Jacksonville residents interviewed by News4JAX also expressed sharply different views.
Kevin Garrett said he is comfortable with the cameras and believes they can help police track people suspected of crimes.
“But also, too, if somebody robs a bank, right? You can track him everywhere now. I mean, it’s good to know where you are,” Garrett said.
Garrett said he does not consider the cameras an invasion of privacy when they are observing people in public.
“When you come out of the public world, this is not private,” he said.
Gregory Gabriel, a Jacksonville resident from St. Nicholas, disagreed.
“I would say that safety is no reason to give up your rights. There’s always going to be crime. You put all the cameras you want, and on every street border, it’s still not going to stop crime,” Gabriel said.
Gabriel said he was surprised by the number of cameras in Duval County and described them as “intrusive behavior from our politicians and our government.”
The debate is also becoming political
The Flock camera debate has moved into Florida’s 2026 governor’s race.
Republican nominee Byron Donalds has called for a full and immediate pause on Flock cameras, citing constitutional and privacy concerns.
Democratic nominee David Jolly has called for significant restrictions on the technology and has said he does not support an outright ban. He has proposed requiring stronger safeguards around government access to Flock data.
Both candidates’ positions come as communities across Florida and the country debate how automated license plate readers should be used and regulated.
DeSantis called Flock cameras and license plate readers “out of control.”
For Jacksonville, the immediate question is narrower: What can the city legally regulate?
Peluso said he wants to hear from attorneys, other council members and the public Friday before deciding what comes next.
“I just want to make sure that we’re empowering citizens and community members to know what’s around them and to potentially, if they want to, find a way to remove them,” Peluso said.
The public meeting begins at 10:30 a.m. Friday in the Lynwood Roberts Room on the first floor of Jacksonville City Hall, 117 W. Duval St.
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