ARANSAS COUNTY, Texas —
Rockport may soon join neighboring cities in deciding the future of its automated license plate reader cameras, with a potential discussion scheduled for the September 22 city council meeting.
The decision comes after Ingleside and Aransas Pass both voted to end their agreements with Flock. For Jacob Miller, who advocates against the technology through DeFlock 361, those outcomes were encouraging.
"It felt like a win. It felt like a small win, you know, in that small town. It felt like when we unite over common issues and put all our little petty differences aside, we as a whole and a community can make changes and get things to move in our direction," Miller said.
Ahead of any potential Rockport discussion, the Rockport Police Department recently released data from 2025 and so far in 2026 showing how it has used Flock cameras in investigations. According to the department's data, the cameras assisted in 23 arrests in 2025.
The technology reads license plates and can document details including a vehicle's make, model, color, location, and direction of travel. Rockport police say the cameras do not use facial recognition, identify drivers or passengers, or record conversations. The department says officers can only access the system for legitimate law enforcement purposes, and that searches are documented and subject to audits.
Privacy remains one of the central concerns surrounding the technology. Miller said the cameras amount to constant government surveillance of residents' movements.
"Flock, in my opinion, is massive government overreach... it's constant tracking of our movements. You're capturing me entering town. Then you're capturing me going to the store. Then you're capturing me go to my son's soccer practice. Whatever it might be, you're watching every single movement and logging it," Miller said.
Rockport police say they understand those concerns and point to department policies, oversight, and audits as safeguards for how the system is used.
The police chief said the city could discuss whether to modify, continue, or end its Flock contract at the September 22 city council meeting, and that the department is not leaning in any particular direction ahead of that decision. Rockport's Flock cameras remain active in the meantime.
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