Iowa City IA
License-plate cameras reported in and around Iowa City, IA, local decisions with a source for every item, and what you can do. We haven't independently verified these reports. Something wrong or missing? Tell us.
Snapshot · 2026-10-12
30
reported cameras within 4 mi of the city center
Active ALPR nodes on OpenStreetMap, from our daily snapshot. Radius sized to the city's land area.
Population
76,710
U.S. Census Bureau, Vintage 2024 estimate.
Per 10,000 residents
3.9
A rough ratio: the camera radius doesn't match city limits, and cameras near the center can sit in neighboring towns.
Trend: our daily history for Iowa City, IA starts 2026-10-12. A chart appears after the second daily snapshot.
Live map & nearest cameras
Documented actions
Feb 2026 · CONTRACT CANCELED
Reported by DeFlock The USA Cancellation Tracker: Iowa City removed Flock license plate readers and terminated its contract with the surveillance company.
Nearby communities that acted
As reported by DeFlock The USA Cancellation Tracker.
Contract, renewal & spending
- Vendor contract on file
- Unknown
- Renewal date
- Unknown
- Spending
- Unknown
We haven't reviewed a primary source (contract, invoice, or council record) for these. A records request is the way to get them, and we'll add what you send us.
Iowa ALPR law
§ 321P.4
The operator of an automatic registration plate reader or any associated data storage device shall permanently delete from the plate reader and storage device, as applicable, every image of a vehicle registration plate captured by the plate reader, and any other accompanying data, no later than 30 days after the image was captured. Prior to deletion, data may be copied by law enforcement if relevant to an ongoing criminal case or investigation. A person who violates the retention and storage law is guilty of a simple misdemeanor.
Summary quoted from NCSL, Automated License Plate Readers: State Statutes, updated September 28, 2026. Not legal advice; read the statute.
What you can do in Iowa City
- Request the records from your local police department or sheriff: contracts, policies, sharing lists, audit logs. (Prefilled for Iowa.)
- Check upcoming council or commission agendas for ALPR or Flock items, then prepare a public comment (prefilled for Iowa City).
- Track a drive from Iowa City to see how many reported cameras your commute passes.
- Fix the map: report missing cameras, or use "Report a fix" on a wrong pin.
Look it up elsewhere
Other independent projects hold records we don't. We link to them rather than copy their data.
EFF Atlas of Surveillance ↗
Agency-level records of surveillance tech near Iowa City, IA. Search runs on EFF's site.
Have I Been Flocked? ↗
Search published Flock audit logs (who searched, and why) by plate or agency.
Eyes On Flock ↗
Aggregated data from agencies’ public Flock transparency portals. Look for agencies in Iowa.
DeFlock map ↗
The crowdsourced camera map our counts come from. Add or fix cameras here.
Nearby city files
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20 reported within 3 mi · 5 mi away
Cedar Rapids, IA
80 reported within 6 mi · 23 mi away
Davenport, IA
47 reported within 6 mi · 48 mi away
Moline, IL
32 reported within 3 mi · 55 mi away
Sterling, IL
18 reported within 3 mi · 95 mi away
Indianola, IA
9 reported within 3 mi · 107 mi away
Ankeny, IA
15 reported within 4 mi · 107 mi away
Des Moines, IA
21 reported within 6 mi · 107 mi away