Attribution: https://westvalleyfamilies.substack.com/p/sedona-pulls-the-plug-on-flock-safety
Author: Jen Barber
Jen’s Two Cents has obtained the official termination letter ordering Flock Safety to remove its cameras from Sedona this month.
Sedona’s controversial experiment with Flock Safety’s license plate reader (ALPR) cameras has come to an abrupt end — just months after the city signed on to spend more than $51,000 on the surveillance program.
Jen’s Two Cents has obtained the termination letter and contract details through a FOIA records request, revealing how quickly Sedona soured on its deal with Flock Safety.
In a series of reports on the spread of automated license plate reader technology across Arizona, Jen’s Two Cents has been closely tracking the unfolding story in Sedona. On September 9, 2025, the city council of one of Arizona’s most-visited tourist towns — with a population of fewer than 10,000 residents — cast a unanimous 7–0 vote. It was an about-face from its August 13th meeting: not just to sever a contract, but to pull the plug on surveillance technology tracking every driver who passed through the city’s streets.
You can read my earlier reporting here: Tourist Town Turns Off Flock
Now, newly obtained documents reveal how the deal was formally terminated.
The Termination Letter: “Cease Immediately”
As we’ve reported extensively, resident pushback shifted the tone in Sedona — where the city had already signed the contract and installed the cameras before the community ever had a chance to weigh in. When residents finally learned about the surveillance, they made it clear: the cameras had to go.
In a September 10th letter exclusively obtained through a public records request, Sedona City Manager Anette Spickard notified Flock Safety of the city’s decision to terminate the agreement.
The letter, sent to Flock Safety executive Hamza Al Baroudi, cites the Linking Agreement signed in March 2025. It orders:
- Immediate termination of all services and system access.
- Removal of Flock-owned equipment from city property within 30 days.
- A prorated refund for unused services.
“Termination is effective immediately upon receipt of this Notice,” Spickard wrote.
The Invoice: $51,146 for 12 Cameras
Records also obtained by Jen’s Two Cents show that on June 4, 2025, Flock Safety billed the Sedona Police Department $51,146 for its first year of service. The invoice covered:
- 12 license plate reader cameras ($36,000)
- Installation and infrastructure fees ($1,600 combined)
- MASH-tested pole implementation ($10,000)
- Sales tax ($3,546)
This marked the initial year of a 12-month term (2025–2026) for the program.
Mounting Controversy
Sedona’s decision comes as Flock Safety faces growing scrutiny nationwide — from questions about data-sharing with outside agencies, to debates over whether its surveillance technology actually improves public safety.
In Sedona, city councilmembers publicly sparred over Flock transparency. One councilmember even suggested the company was not an honorable partner after what the council described as conflicting statements about whether Sedona’s ALPR data was being shared beyond city limits… specifically with federal agencies such as ICE.
View the September 9th Sedona City Council Meeting here:
Jen’s Two Cents.
I have not received a response to my own inquiry to Flock’s media office. However, in a KNAU report, the company reportedly insisted that “local law enforcement agencies always maintain ownership and control of their data,” adding that any sharing is “voluntary and at the discretion of the agency.”
Records show Flock Safety markets its ALPRs as crime-fighting tools deployed in over 1,000 cities and 600 police departments. Each Falcon 2 camera can log thousands of vehicles a day, capturing not just plates but a full “vehicle fingerprint” — make, model, color, paper tags, even cars with no plates — and matching them in real time against federal, state, or local hotlists.
Records: “RFP #21-119 FIXED CAMERA ALPR SOLUTION FOR POLICE Page 23”
Flock touts encryption, multi-factor authentication, and quarterly security audits, but its contracts reveal key caveats: data sharing with other agencies is allowed through MOUs.
We’ll be watching tonight’s council work session in Surprise, Arizona, where lawmakers and staff will discuss the potential use of ALPR technology. On the agenda: a proposal to “increase public awareness and transparency” around deploying Flock cameras as a crime-prevention and investigative tool.
Deflock Tucson 
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