RALEIGH, N.C. (WRMT) – On Thursday, Nov. 9, Gov. Roy Cooper signed Senate Bill 409 into law allowing for license plate readers on roads owned by the North Carolina Department of Transportation (NCDOT).
In that bill, part five of Session Law 2023-151, “Pilot Program to Authorize Automatic License Plate Readers in State Rights-of-Way,” gives NCDOT the authorization to enter into agreements with the State Bureau of Investigation to install automatic license plate readers.
On Jan. 1, the pilot program is expected to become effective. On July 1, 2025, any agreements entered into under it will expire.
According to the law, any data obtained by the readers “shall be obtained, accessed, preserved, or disclosed only for law enforcement purposes,” however data “shall not be used for the enforcement of traffic violations.”
Under the definition of the law, the readers would be for law enforcement purposes for which data can be obtained to:
- “Locating a missing or endangered person.
- Locating a lost or stolen vehicle.
- Actions related to criminal investigations, arrests, prosecutions, post-conviction confinement, or supervision.
- Apprehending an individual with an outstanding felony warrant.”
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