SB34 ALPR Data Sharing (Livermore Police Department)

Dear Jennifer Pinsof,
Thank you for your interest in the public records of the Livermore Police Department.  Your request has been submitted and assigned the reference number P000336-020424 for tracking purposes. Records Requested: Dear Custodian of Records:

This letter constitutes a request under the California Public Records Act ("CPRA") from the Electronic Frontier Foundation, submitted with the assistance of MuckRock News.
We request the following records related to Automated License Plate Readers ("ALPRs") and your law enforcement agency ("Agency").

Part A - Information related to ALPR data sharing.
A1. The names of agencies and organizations with which the Agency shares ALPR data;
A2. The names of agencies and organizations from which the Agency receives ALPR data;
A3. The names of agencies and organizations with which the Agency shares “hot list” information;
A4. The names of agencies and organizations from which the Agency receives “hot list” information.

The information requested in items A1-A4 is readily available for extraction through the ALPR software you use. For example, with Vigilant Solutions/Motorola Solutions, this data can be exported easily using the Data Sharing Report function. With Flock Safety, this information is available through the transparency portal function. Other software, such as BOSS, has similar functionality.

Most agencies have encountered little difficulty in providing this information (see below). In a small number of cases, an agency has interpreted items A1-A4 as requesting the creation of a record that does not exist. We disagree: this data is maintained by your software, can be exported through software your agency has already purchased, and is therefore subject to CPRA.

However, should you disagree, you may alternatively produce the following records:

A5. All agreements, memoranda of understanding, requests, or other certifying documents that external agencies have signed to comply with Sec 1798.90.52(b) for accessing your agency's ALPR data. These documents are also often required under the "Releasing ALPR Data" subsection of a California law enforcement agency's SB 34 policy.

A6. All agreements, memoranda of understanding, requests, or other certifying documents that your agency has signed pursuant to Sec 1798.90.52(b) to access other agencies' ALPR data.

A7. All "records of access" required by Sec. 1798.90.52(a) for the periods January 1, 2021 until the date of processing this request.

Items A5-A7 are not necessary if your agency provides the information requested in items A1-A4. We feel that items A1-A4 are more focused and would require less labor from your agency to produce.

Part B - Information Related to Numbers of “Detections” (plate scans) and “Hits” (plate scans that matched to a hotlist)
B1. The aggregate number of "detections" collected during 2023.

B2. The aggregate number of “hits” during 2023.

B3. The aggregate number of "detections" from January 1, 2024 until the date this request is processed. If your agency has a retention period shorter than 1 year, please provide whatever data is available based on your retention period. For example, most Flock Safety systems may not have this data beyond 30 days.

B4. The aggregate number of “hits” from January 1, 2024 until the date this request is processed. If your agency has a retention period shorter than 1 year, please provide whatever data is available based on your retention period.

The information requested in items B1-B4 is readily available through the ALPR software you use. For example, with Vigilant Solutions/Motorola Solutions, this data can be exported easily using the Hit Ratio Report function. With Flock Safety, this information is available through the transparency portal function. Other software, such as BOSS, has similar functionality. As noted above, this information exists within your system and can be easily exported with existing software.

Please note that more than 80 California law enforcement agencies have provided the information requested in Parts A1-A4 and B1-B4 in previous years. For your reference we have included a table (attached) with the names of the agencies that have historically provided these records.

CPRA requires you to undertake reasonable efforts to locate responsive records and to work in good faith with requesters to respond to their request. See CYAC v. City of National City, 220 Cal.App.4th 1385, 1430 (2013). Thus under the CPRA you are obligated to conduct a reasonable search and cannot deny a request merely because it might generate a large volume of records.

We ask that you please respond to this request within 10 days either by providing all the requested records or by providing a written response setting forth the legal authority on which you rely in withholding or redacting any document, as well as stating when documents will be made available. Should you choose to withhold or reject this request, we ask that you provide an explanation of why your agency is responding differently compared to the many others that have complied with our request.

We also request that any records maintained in an electronic format be provided in that same format (such as a PDF, CSV or XLS file), to avoid copying costs.

However, should you be unable to do so, EFF will reimburse you for the direct costs of copying these records (if you elect to charge for copying) plus postage. If you anticipate that these costs will exceed $25.00, or that the time needed to copy the records will delay their release, please contact me so that I can arrange to inspect the documents or decide which documents I wish to have copied. Please also provide an invoice and a cost breakdown of the fee estimate. If the fees are less than $25.00, please copy and send the records and invoice as soon as possible, and we will promptly pay the required costs.

Thank you for your consideration of this request. If you have any questions or concerns, or if I can provide any clarification that will help identify responsive documents or focus this request, please do not hesitate to contact me at ALPR@eff.org.

Sincerely,

Jennifer Pinsof
Staff Attorney
Electronic Frontier Foundation

Attachments:

https://cdn.muckrock.com/outbound_composer_attachments/jpinsof/131963/table.pdf
Upload documents directly: https://www.muckrock.com/
The request is being forwarded to the appropriate department(s) for processing.

You can monitor the request progress by using the link below.  The Livermore Police Department will email you when the request is complete.

--- Please respond above this line ---

RE: PUBLIC RECORDS REQUEST of February 04, 2024, Reference # P000336-020424
Dear Jennifer Pinsof,
The Livermore Police Department received the following records request from you on February 04, 2024.

Your request is being processed in accordance with California Government Code Section 6250 and the California Public Records Act (CPRA). The CPRA requires public agencies make reasonably identified, non-exempt public records available for inspection or provide copies upon payment of the direct costs of duplication.
You requested the following:Dear Custodian of Records:

This letter constitutes a request under the California Public Records Act ("CPRA") from the Electronic Frontier Foundation, submitted with the assistance of MuckRock News.
We request the following records related to Automated License Plate Readers ("ALPRs") and your law enforcement agency ("Agency").

Part A - Information related to ALPR data sharing.
A1. The names of agencies and organizations with which the Agency shares ALPR data;
A2. The names of agencies and organizations from which the Agency receives ALPR data;
A3. The names of agencies and organizations with which the Agency shares “hot list” information;
A4. The names of agencies and organizations from which the Agency receives “hot list” information.

The information requested in items A1-A4 is readily available for extraction through the ALPR software you use. For example, with Vigilant Solutions/Motorola Solutions, this data can be exported easily using the Data Sharing Report function. With Flock Safety, this information is available through the transparency portal function. Other software, such as BOSS, has similar functionality.

Most agencies have encountered little difficulty in providing this information (see below). In a small number of cases, an agency has interpreted items A1-A4 as requesting the creation of a record that does not exist. We disagree: this data is maintained by your software, can be exported through software your agency has already purchased, and is therefore subject to CPRA.

However, should you disagree, you may alternatively produce the following records:

A5. All agreements, memoranda of understanding, requests, or other certifying documents that external agencies have signed to comply with Sec 1798.90.52(b) for accessing your agency's ALPR data. These documents are also often required under the "Releasing ALPR Data" subsection of a California law enforcement agency's SB 34 policy.

A6. All agreements, memoranda of understanding, requests, or other certifying documents that your agency has signed pursuant to Sec 1798.90.52(b) to access other agencies' ALPR data.

A7. All "records of access" required by Sec. 1798.90.52(a) for the periods January 1, 2021 until the date of processing this request.

Items A5-A7 are not necessary if your agency provides the information requested in items A1-A4. We feel that items A1-A4 are more focused and would require less labor from your agency to produce.

Part B - Information Related to Numbers of “Detections” (plate scans) and “Hits” (plate scans that matched to a hotlist)
B1. The aggregate number of "detections" collected during 2023.

B2. The aggregate number of “hits” during 2023.

B3. The aggregate number of "detections" from January 1, 2024 until the date this request is processed. If your agency has a retention period shorter than 1 year, please provide whatever data is available based on your retention period. For example, most Flock Safety systems may not have this data beyond 30 days.

B4. The aggregate number of “hits” from January 1, 2024 until the date this request is processed. If your agency has a retention period shorter than 1 year, please provide whatever data is available based on your retention period.

The information requested in items B1-B4 is readily available through the ALPR software you use. For example, with Vigilant Solutions/Motorola Solutions, this data can be exported easily using the Hit Ratio Report function. With Flock Safety, this information is available through the transparency portal function. Other software, such as BOSS, has similar functionality. As noted above, this information exists within your system and can be easily exported with existing software.

Please note that more than 80 California law enforcement agencies have provided the information requested in Parts A1-A4 and B1-B4 in previous years. For your reference we have included a table (attached) with the names of the agencies that have historically provided these records.

CPRA requires you to undertake reasonable efforts to locate responsive records and to work in good faith with requesters to respond to their request. See CYAC v. City of National City, 220 Cal.App.4th 1385, 1430 (2013). Thus under the CPRA you are obligated to conduct a reasonable search and cannot deny a request merely because it might generate a large volume of records.

We ask that you please respond to this request within 10 days either by providing all the requested records or by providing a written response setting forth the legal authority on which you rely in withholding or redacting any document, as well as stating when documents will be made available. Should you choose to withhold or reject this request, we ask that you provide an explanation of why your agency is responding differently compared to the many others that have complied with our request.

We also request that any records maintained in an electronic format be provided in that same format (such as a PDF, CSV or XLS file), to avoid copying costs.

However, should you be unable to do so, EFF will reimburse you for the direct costs of copying these records (if you elect to charge for copying) plus postage. If you anticipate that these costs will exceed $25.00, or that the time needed to copy the records will delay their release, please contact me so that I can arrange to inspect the documents or decide which documents I wish to have copied. Please also provide an invoice and a cost breakdown of the fee estimate. If the fees are less than $25.00, please copy and send the records and invoice as soon as possible, and we will promptly pay the required costs.

Thank you for your consideration of this request. If you have any questions or concerns, or if I can provide any clarification that will help identify responsive documents or focus this request, please do not hesitate to contact me at ALPR@eff.org.

Sincerely,

Jennifer Pinsof
Staff Attorney
Electronic Frontier Foundation

Attachments:

https://cdn.muckrock.com/outbound_composer_attachments/jpinsof/131963/table.pdf
Upload documents directly: https://www.muckrock.com/
The CPRA obligates a public agency, within 10 days of receipt of a request, to determine whether the request seeks copies of disclosable public records and to notify the person making the request of the determination and the reasons therefore (Cal. Gov. Code § 6253(c).)  This letter satisfies the City’s requirement to respond to you within ten (10) days to notify you whether the records will be disclosed (Gov. Code § 6253(c).)
Pursuant to Government Code Section 6253(c), the Livermore Police Department requires a 14 day extension of time to respond due to:

The need for consultation, which shall be conducted with all practicable speed, with another agency having substantial interest in the determination of the request or among two or more components of the agency having substantial subject matter
Accordingly, the Livermore Police Department will formally respond to your request no later than February 28, 2024.
If you have any questions, please contact me.
Sincerely,
Carolyn Pettigrew
Records Clerk
Police Department
925-371-4900

--- Please respond above this line ---

RE: PUBLIC RECORDS REQUEST of February 04, 2024, Reference # P000336-020424.
Dear Jennifer Pinsof,

The Livermore Police Department received the following request from you on February 04, 2024.
You requested the following: Dear Custodian of Records:

This letter constitutes a request under the California Public Records Act ("CPRA") from the Electronic Frontier Foundation, submitted with the assistance of MuckRock News.
We request the following records related to Automated License Plate Readers ("ALPRs") and your law enforcement agency ("Agency").

Part A - Information related to ALPR data sharing.
A1. The names of agencies and organizations with which the Agency shares ALPR data;
A2. The names of agencies and organizations from which the Agency receives ALPR data;
A3. The names of agencies and organizations with which the Agency shares “hot list” information;
A4. The names of agencies and organizations from which the Agency receives “hot list” information.

The information requested in items A1-A4 is readily available for extraction through the ALPR software you use. For example, with Vigilant Solutions/Motorola Solutions, this data can be exported easily using the Data Sharing Report function. With Flock Safety, this information is available through the transparency portal function. Other software, such as BOSS, has similar functionality.

Most agencies have encountered little difficulty in providing this information (see below). In a small number of cases, an agency has interpreted items A1-A4 as requesting the creation of a record that does not exist. We disagree: this data is maintained by your software, can be exported through software your agency has already purchased, and is therefore subject to CPRA.

However, should you disagree, you may alternatively produce the following records:

A5. All agreements, memoranda of understanding, requests, or other certifying documents that external agencies have signed to comply with Sec 1798.90.52(b) for accessing your agency's ALPR data. These documents are also often required under the "Releasing ALPR Data" subsection of a California law enforcement agency's SB 34 policy.

A6. All agreements, memoranda of understanding, requests, or other certifying documents that your agency has signed pursuant to Sec 1798.90.52(b) to access other agencies' ALPR data.

A7. All "records of access" required by Sec. 1798.90.52(a) for the periods January 1, 2021 until the date of processing this request.

Items A5-A7 are not necessary if your agency provides the information requested in items A1-A4. We feel that items A1-A4 are more focused and would require less labor from your agency to produce.

Part B - Information Related to Numbers of “Detections” (plate scans) and “Hits” (plate scans that matched to a hotlist)
B1. The aggregate number of "detections" collected during 2023.

B2. The aggregate number of “hits” during 2023.

B3. The aggregate number of "detections" from January 1, 2024 until the date this request is processed. If your agency has a retention period shorter than 1 year, please provide whatever data is available based on your retention period. For example, most Flock Safety systems may not have this data beyond 30 days.

B4. The aggregate number of “hits” from January 1, 2024 until the date this request is processed. If your agency has a retention period shorter than 1 year, please provide whatever data is available based on your retention period.

The information requested in items B1-B4 is readily available through the ALPR software you use. For example, with Vigilant Solutions/Motorola Solutions, this data can be exported easily using the Hit Ratio Report function. With Flock Safety, this information is available through the transparency portal function. Other software, such as BOSS, has similar functionality. As noted above, this information exists within your system and can be easily exported with existing software.

Please note that more than 80 California law enforcement agencies have provided the information requested in Parts A1-A4 and B1-B4 in previous years. For your reference we have included a table (attached) with the names of the agencies that have historically provided these records.

CPRA requires you to undertake reasonable efforts to locate responsive records and to work in good faith with requesters to respond to their request. See CYAC v. City of National City, 220 Cal.App.4th 1385, 1430 (2013). Thus under the CPRA you are obligated to conduct a reasonable search and cannot deny a request merely because it might generate a large volume of records.

We ask that you please respond to this request within 10 days either by providing all the requested records or by providing a written response setting forth the legal authority on which you rely in withholding or redacting any document, as well as stating when documents will be made available. Should you choose to withhold or reject this request, we ask that you provide an explanation of why your agency is responding differently compared to the many others that have complied with our request.

We also request that any records maintained in an electronic format be provided in that same format (such as a PDF, CSV or XLS file), to avoid copying costs.

However, should you be unable to do so, EFF will reimburse you for the direct costs of copying these records (if you elect to charge for copying) plus postage. If you anticipate that these costs will exceed $25.00, or that the time needed to copy the records will delay their release, please contact me so that I can arrange to inspect the documents or decide which documents I wish to have copied. Please also provide an invoice and a cost breakdown of the fee estimate. If the fees are less than $25.00, please copy and send the records and invoice as soon as possible, and we will promptly pay the required costs.

Thank you for your consideration of this request. If you have any questions or concerns, or if I can provide any clarification that will help identify responsive documents or focus this request, please do not hesitate to contact me at ALPR@eff.org.

Sincerely,

Jennifer Pinsof
Staff Attorney
Electronic Frontier Foundation

Attachments:

https://cdn.muckrock.com/outbound_composer_attachments/jpinsof/131963/table.pdf
Upload documents directly: https://www.muckrock.com/
Responsive records are available on the Records Request Portal. Select the link below to view your request. Police Public Records Request - P000336-020424
For A1-A4: I have attached the Vigilant report.  For Flock, there is not a report in the system that I can generate to provide this information.
For B1-B4: I have attached the Vigilant report for detections/hits for 2023 and 2024(up to today).  For Flock, they only have detections/hits for the past 30 days.  I have attached those reports.
If you have any questions or need additional information, please feel free to contact me at 925-371-4900.

Sincerely,

Carolyn Pettigrew
Records Clerk
Police Department
925-371-4900