OLYMPIA, WA – Pro-choice advocates in Washington state are calling for more protections from automated license plate readers, which they said pose a threat to people seeking abortion and gender-affirming care in the state.
The cameras can be mounted on police vehicles or on buildings and are used to track vehicle locations and movements.
Ryan McDonald, communications director for Pro-Choice Washington, explained amid a wave of national abortion bans, the information could reveal where someone traveled and how long they were at a clinic, potentially building a case against them in their home state.
“When you’re receiving health care, that is an extremely private circumstance that should never be subject to public scrutiny,” McDonald contended. “That’s a decision made between the patient and the provider. And to think that these people are being surveilled in those really vulnerable situations is really scary.”
Pro-Choice Washington is backing legislation which would prohibit the use of such cameras around clinics providing protected health care services, including abortion and gender-affirming care, like Planned Parenthood.
The Washington Association of Sheriffs and Police Chiefs said in a statement the automated license plate readers, like other policing tools, are used not to erode freedoms but to protect them. Advocates said regulations are needed to protect the privacy and safety of patients and providers. The bill has passed the state Senate and is now in the House.
Gabbi Nazari, government relations director for Pro-Choice Washington, said it is not a hypothetical fear. She pointed out last year, Texas law enforcement accessed camera data in Washington as part of a nationwide search for a woman who self-administered an abortion, trying to build a case against her. The woman was not charged.
Nazari stressed it is why the bill also calls for limits on how long companies can store the data collected from the cameras. She explained advocates are pushing for a one-week limit, while other lawmakers want to extend it to 21 days.
“We have major concerns because the longer these folks have the data, the longer it can be used by bad actors in order to criminalize folks,” Nazari added.
Nazari noted some Washington cities have already shut down their camera systems because of concerns about how the information would be used. Other cities, like Seattle, have expanded their use of surveillance technologies, including automated license plate readers, in recent years.
