KINGSTON – Ulster County Executive Jen Metzger has issued an executive order prohibiting all departments and employees under her authority from purchasing, contracting for, or deploying Flock cameras or and similar AI-assisted surveillance technologies.
The county presently does not use those technologies.
This is the latest development in a movement where municipalities in the Hudson Valley and around the nation are cancelling their Flock contracts for license plate readers or surveillance cameras.
The Ulster County order also bars county departments from allowing vendors or contractors to use those technologies on the county’s behalf.
Metzger cited “significant privacy, security, and civil liberties concerns,” as well as a lack of oversight in the AI industry.
Sheriff Juan Figueroa is supporting the county executive’s decision. “Protecting public safety while upholding the privacy and civil liberties of our residents is essential, and the executive order provides an important framework for both.”
The sheriff plans to issue his own statement outlining his department’s approach to surveillance technologies to ensure transparency and clarity moving forward.
Metzger said there are no regulatory guardrails in the development of AI by those private companies to safeguard security and safety. “This executive order ensures that Ulster County does not adopt surveillance tools that have the potential to erode privacy or expose residents to misuse or their personal information,” she said.
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