{"id":423779,"date":"2026-09-02T09:18:08","date_gmt":"2026-09-02T09:18:08","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/423779\/"},"modified":"2026-09-02T09:18:08","modified_gmt":"2026-09-02T09:18:08","slug":"abbott-funding-freeze-prompts-dallas-police-to-cancel-321-flock-cameras","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/423779\/","title":{"rendered":"Abbott Funding Freeze Prompts Dallas Police To Cancel 321 Flock Cameras"},"content":{"rendered":"

Dallas Police will cancel<\/a> 321 Flock Safety automated license plate-reading cameras on September 15 after Gov. Greg Abbott (R-Texas) barred state grant money from supporting them.<\/p>\n

The decision followed “official notification” about the directive’s impact, the department announced Tuesday evening. More than 300 Flock cameras will remain operating across Dallas, DPD said.<\/p>\n

State directive cuts Dallas network<\/p>\n

The 321 cameras “will no longer be eligible” for affected state grant funding, and DPD will cancel them “to ensure compliance with the Governor’s directive,” the department said in a statement<\/a>.<\/p>\n

DPD left several key questions unanswered. The department did not identify the state agency that sent the notice, release either document, list affected camera locations, disclose the dollar value tied to the 321 cameras, or explain how it will handle grant obligations.<\/p>\n

Dallas still lacked answers about the funding freeze’s local impact on August 30, as previously reported<\/a> by The Dallas Express.<\/p>\n

Dallas officers and city employees had approved access to 684 cameras as of August 29, CBS Texas reported<\/a>. Separately, the City Council approved<\/a> a three-year taxpayer-funded Flock contract worth up to $5,738,414.61, including $3,922,914.61 from the General Fund, $1,690,500 from a state Motor Vehicle Crime Prevention Authority grant fund, and $125,000 from a federal grant.<\/p>\n

Compared with the reported access count, 321 is about 47%, but DPD gave no precise remaining inventory or grant-source breakdown.<\/p>\n

Police cite public-safety role<\/p>\n

“These cameras remain an important investigative tool and are used daily by detectives and officers to develop leads, identify vehicles associated with criminal activity, and assist in solving crimes,” DPD said.<\/p>\n

Flock served as the primary investigative tool in 12 Dallas homicide cases in 2026 and 15 in 2025, Deputy Chief William Griffith told CBS Texas in an August 29 report<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Fourth Amendment and private-access concerns require safeguards, and law enforcement must use the technology responsibly if agencies use it at all, Abbott said in an August 28 interview<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Council considers separate local cut<\/p>\n

A separate city amendment would eliminate $1.5 million for Flock equipment and services, redirecting $1 million to district infrastructure and $500,000 to eviction legal assistance, Dallas City Council Member Adam Bazaldua (District 7) said in an Instagram post<\/a>.<\/p>\n

The amendment<\/a> is on the city’s September 2 workshop agenda<\/a>. Council members are expected to take nonbinding straw votes, KERA reported<\/a>. Dallas scheduled final budget adoption for September 16<\/a>. The local proposal remains separate from the September 1 state-grant cancellation.<\/p>\n