Can police use automatic license plate readers without restrictions?

What the Law Says

California law strictly regulates law enforcement use of automatic license plate readers (ALPRs) through Assembly Bill 287 (AB 287), codified in Penal Code §1798.90.5. The statute establishes privacy safeguards, data retention limits, usage restrictions, and transparency requirements.

Under AB 287, law enforcement agencies must adopt written policies governing ALPR use before deploying the technology. These policies must be publicly available and include procedures for data security, access controls, auditing, and staff training.

The law prohibits storing ALPR-collected data for longer than 60 days unless it is associated with an active investigation, a court order, or a documented law enforcement purpose — and even then, retention beyond 60 days requires documented justification.

ALPR data may not be used to track the movements of individuals over time unless a warrant is obtained or an exception applies — such as exigent circumstances, consent, or a valid emergency exception under the law.

Statutory Text

A law enforcement agency shall not retain information collected by an automatic license plate reader system for longer than 60 days unless the information is associated with an active investigation, a court order, or a documented law enforcement purpose.

— Penal Code §1798.90.5(c)(1)

Statutory Text

Information collected by an automatic license plate reader system shall not be used to track the movement of individuals over time unless a warrant has been obtained...

— Penal Code §1798.90.5(d)(1)

Sources