Council members are set to vote on a $2 million contract with LiveView Technologies for AI powered mobile security trailers at Austin parks.

AUSTIN, Texas — This week, Austin City Council members are set to discuss a $2 million contract for AI-powered surveillance at city parks. But as some council members are concerned about the use of this type of technology, they’re also proposing an ordinance to add more oversight. 

On Thursday, council members will vote on a contract with LiveView Technologies for a three-year contract for a mobile security trailer and monitoring services in Austin parks. 

Back in 2023, Austin Parks and Recreation launched a pilot program with the trailers, aimed at reducing crime. Looking at the data, they said the program succeeded in reducing theft and other criminal activity in the parks.  

LiveView said under the contract, the city would own all of the data and only authorized employees and Austin police would get access to it. They said the data is hosted in a U.S.-based cloud and would be deleted permanently after 60 days. The company also clarified that no facial recognition would be used, and license plates will be redacted when it’s not relevant to the property crime investigations.

On Tuesday, council members will discuss the contract in a work session before voting on it on Thursday. The public is welcome to speak about the contract at Thursday’s meeting. 

Also happening this session, several council members have proposed an ordinance called the TRUST Act -or the Transparent and Responsible Use of Surveillance Technology Act- to regulate these trailers or other similar surveillance technology. 

Under the ordinance, they’re proposing that city departments must get approval from council before acquiring new surveillance technology or entering an agreement with a third-party entity to share the information from it. Their resolution also says the city manager must include a provision blocking any facial recognition technology, and present an annual surveillance report to city council each year. 

In a press release, Mayor Pro Tem Chito Vela said the goal is to strengthen transparency, oversight and privacy protections. 

“Surveillance technology can be an important tool for public safety,” Vela said. “But as these technologies become more powerful and pervasive, the City has a responsibility to be transparent, accountable, and clear about how they’re used, who has access to the data, and how residents’ rights are protected.”

Council members Mike Siegel, Vanessa Fuentes, Krista Laine and José Velásquez are all sponsors of the resolution. They’ll be taking a vote on the item during Thursday’s meeting.Â