HB210 Alabama 2016 Session

Summary

Primary Sponsor

Laura HallRepresentative

Democrat

Session

Regular Session 2016

Title

License plate scanners, use by state agencies, political subdivisions prohibited on public highways, exceptions, confidentiality and destruction of information collected

Summary

HB210 would prohibit state agencies and subdivisions from using license plate scanners on public highways, with limited exceptions and privacy protections.

What This Bill Does

If enacted, the bill would bar most state and local agencies from using license plate scanners on public highways. It would allow limited uses by the Department of Transportation, counties, and municipalities for planning, parking enforcement, and certain regulatory enforcement of commercial vehicles, and it preserves a school bus violation exception for boards of education. Collected data would be confidential, not a public record, and kept for up to one year before being destroyed.

Who It Affects

• State agencies and subdivisions (including the Department of Transportation, the Alabama Law Enforcement Agency, counties, and municipalities) would be restricted to narrow, privacy-protective uses of license plate scanners on public highways.
• Vehicle owners, drivers, and the general public would gain privacy protections, as collected data would be confidential, not publicly disclosed, and destroyed within one year; data could not be used to prosecute individuals without proper warrants or allowed exceptions.

Key Provisions

• Defines license plate scanner and state agency.
• Prohibits use of license plate scanners on public highways by state agencies or subdivisions, with limited exceptions for DOT, counties, and municipalities.
• Allows DOT or ALEA to use scanners to enforce safety, licensing, registration, weight, height, or other commercial vehicle rules; allows planning data collection with anonymity and limits on use as evidence.
• Allows a county or city board of education to use electronic devices to detect school bus violations.
• Keeps collected information confidential, not a public record, and requires destruction after no more than one year.
• Effective date: becomes law on the first day of the third month after passage and approval.

AI-generated summary using openai/gpt-5-nano on Feb 24, 2026. May contain errors — refer to the official bill text for accuracy.

Subjects

Surveillance