Did the University of Arizona spend over $800,000 on surveillance cameras accessible by federal law enforcement?

In February 2025, the University of Arizona approved an $870,000, five-year contract with Flock Safety to install 62 automated license plate reader cameras across campus, according to records obtained by Tucson Spotlight. 

The on-campus license plate readers are part of Flock’s community safety network, which connects local, state and federal law enforcement agencies through a shared database of license plate information. The University of Arizona Police Department says that external agencies cannot access its camera data without departmental approval or a court order. But civil liberties organizations like the ACLU warn that Flock’s system enables broad surveillance, citing cases where it was used to track individuals seeking health care, assist immigration investigations and tie license plates to personal identities through data brokers.