Texas Governor Greg Abbott orders halt on new license plate reader permits on state roads

Texas Governor Greg Abbott has ordered the Texas Department of Transportation to stop issuing new permits for Flock cameras and other automated license plate readers along state roads. The suspension, confirmed on Thursday, also applies to approved but not yet installed cameras. Existing cameras, including over 900 operated by the Texas Department of Public Safety, remain active. The action follows growing privacy concerns and reports of police misuse. Hundreds of cameras have already been shut down since Abbott's late August funding freeze. Law enforcement defends the cameras as effective crime-solving tools, while opponents cite privacy risks.