One of 37 Flock cameras in located across the City of Watsonville. (Amaya Edwards —Santa Cruz Local/CatchLight Local file)

Editor’s note: this story has been updated from a previous version that incorrectly stated that out of state law enforcement agencies accessed Watsonville Police Flock data directly — they did not.

WATSONVILLE >> Amid recent scrutiny of license plate cameras across Santa Cruz County and the nation, the Watsonville City Council on Tuesday is set to discuss the city’s contract with license plate camera company Flock Safety.

Watsonville Police operates 37 Flock cameras, the most in the county, which leaders have credited with locating stolen vehicles, finding suspects of violent crimes and solving hit-and-run investigations.

Advocates with local group Get the Flock Out are pushing the city to end its contract, in part because in 2025 Flock allowed out-of-state law enforcement agencies to access the license plate scans of some California agencies, not including Watsonville Police.

“We don’t share with any federal agencies, the main one being ICE,” a public information officer with the department said on Tuesday.

But in some cases, California agencies made searches of Watsonville’s data on behalf of federal immigration enforcement. Flock has since removed the ability of California agencies to share data nationwide.

The Santa Cruz City Council voted to end the city’s contract with Flock in January.

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