Huntington, WV $2.1M Flock Safety Surveillance Contract (Approved 2026)
Huntington, WV · Huntington, WV City Council 6-4 vote, July 14, 2026, approving $2.1M Flock Safety surveillance contract
The Huntington, West Virginia City Council voted 6-4 on July 14, 2026 to approve a $2.1 million contract with Flock Safety for a citywide surveillance package: 40 automated license plate readers, 17 cameras, 2 drones, 2 gunshot detectors, and audio detection capability. The vote came after a council meeting that ran more than 8 hours, at which more than 50 residents spoke in opposition. This entry indexes a government AI surveillance deployment, not a protection; available coverage describes no independent oversight, audit requirement, or data-sharing restrictions attached to the approval. Two days later the ACLU of West Virginia filed a mandamus petition challenging the contract (see litig-aclu-wv-v-huntington-flock-2026).
Technical detail
Huntington (WV) City Council 6-4 vote, July 14, 2026, approving $2.1M Flock Safety contract. Package: 40 automated license plate readers (ALPRs), 17 cameras, 2 drones, 2 gunshot detectors, and audio detection. Meeting exceeded 8 hours; 50+ residents spoke in opposition. Surveillance-adoption entry — no oversight conditions, audit mechanism, or third-party data-sharing limits reported in coverage. Subject of ACLU-WV mandamus petition filed July 16, 2026 in Cabell County Circuit Court on procurement/property-law grounds.
Who is protected: No protections attached — indexed as a surveillance deployment. Huntington, WV residents and drivers are subject to ALPR, camera, drone, gunshot-detection, and audio-detection surveillance; available coverage reports no independent oversight, audit, or data-sharing restrictions in the approved contract.
Who must comply: City of Huntington, WV and Huntington Police Department (contract administration); Flock Safety (vendor)
Key facts
| Jurisdiction | Huntington, WV |
|---|---|
| Level | City / local |
| Status | In effect |
| Protection strength | Limited protection |
| Effective date | 2026-07-14 |
| Enacted | 2026-07-14 |
| Citation | Huntington, WV City Council 6-4 vote, July 14, 2026, approving $2.1M Flock Safety surveillance contract |
| Enforced by | Huntington City Council; Huntington Police Department (operational control) |
| Topics | consumer data privacy · police and surveillance AI · automated decision-making |
| Last verified | 2026-07-19 |
| Official source | Huntington City Council approves purchase of Flock cameras despite public opposition — West Virginia Watch ↗ |
More AI rules in Huntington, WV
- ACLU-WV v. Huntington (Flock contract mandamus) · Blocked / in litigation
Related consumer data privacy rules elsewhere
- TAKE IT DOWN Act · In effect
- FCRA (AI in credit & background checks) · In effect
- COPPA + 2025 Rule (childrens data) · In effect
- TCPA (AI voice calls) · In effect
- DEFIANCE Act (deepfake-porn civil suits) · Proposed / pending
- CCPA/CPRA + ADMT Regulations · In effect
See something wrong or out of date? Submit a correction — every entry must carry a verifiable official source.