Idaho Falls council bars Flock from using city footage to train AI, approves contract addendum

The Idaho Falls City Council voted to approve an addendum to its contract with Flock Group Inc. that prohibits Flock from using customer data (the city's automated license-plate reader footage) to train or improve machine-learning or artificial-intelligence models. The amendment also narrows permitted uses to those allowed under Idaho law and is intended to supersede the vendor's boilerplate terms where they conflict with the addendum.

City Attorney explained the change to council and the public: "Provided that Flock may not use customer data to train or improve any machine learning or AI models." He said the addendum limits permitted purposes to the law-enforcement purposes authorized under Idaho code and requires any outside end user to sign an agreement to abide by that code before receiving data. Police department staff also described operational changes including clearer transparency fields and more frequent audits.

Public commenters pressed the council to reject or restrict the technology. Finn Garrett, a City Downs resident, urged rejection of the system, saying, "We are the ones who vote, not the cameras." Garrett told council he had compiled documentation he believes shows inaccuracies in Flock's portal and demonstrated capabilities he described as a "digital trail" and heat maps to show where a car traveled and where a person frequents.

Council discussion focused on limiting data use, who can be an authorized end user, and audit frequency. The police department said it would require written agreements from out-of-state agencies and would increase internal audits to twice a month (exceeding the state's twice-per-year minimum). A motion to approve the amendment passed and the mayor and city clerk were authorized to sign the associated documents.

Why it matters: automated license-plate reader contracts raise privacy and oversight questions for residents and local governments. The addendum narrows vendor uses of footage and clarifies sharing rules; council signaled it will also evaluate alternatives to Flock in the coming months.