Connecticut

Connecticut ALPR law

SB 397 (2026)

Public agencies and private vendors may operate ALPR systems only for specified purposes including weigh station duties, vehicle monitoring, access control, traffic analytics, parking enforcement, state facility security, and motor vehicle tax compliance. Law enforcement agencies may use such systems to compare data with specified databases or when an officer determines data may be relevant to a specific active investigation with reasonable suspicion, assist in apprehending individuals with outstanding warrants, locating missing or endangered individuals, or recovering stolen vehicles. Data must be deleted after 21 days unless retained pursuant to warrant or court order, for highway usage fee collection within 30 days, as evidence in active criminal investigations or prosecutions with supervisory approval and documentation, or as de-identified aggregated data for traffic analytics. Public agencies are prohibited from using ALPR data to monitor individuals based on membership in a protected class; identifying individuals engaged in First Amendment protected activities; investigating immigration violations or assisting immigration enforcement; investigating or prosecuting individuals who sought, received, or provided specific health care services; collecting data from fixed systems near reproductive or sexual health facilities or nonprofit organizations serving immigrant communities without POST Council authorization; sharing data except with Connecticut public agencies, law enforcement agencies from New York, Rhode Island, or Massachusetts with written declarations of compliance, other agencies with judicially issued probable cause warrants or Federal Terrorist Screening Database matches, or vehicle owners upon joint request; participating in data-sharing systems without written compliance declarations; or permitting real-time bulk or automatic access to data without documented case-specific requests. Exempts data from public records laws. Public agency contracts with private vendors must prohibit vendors from selling data, sharing or transferring data without prior express written authorization, allowing unauthorized access except pursuant to warrant or court order. Contracts must include consent to personal jurisdiction in Connecticut. Authorizes attorney general and aggrieved individuals to bring civil suits against private vendors for violations. Law enforcement officers who knowingly access, use, or disseminate data with malicious intent for purposes outside this section's provisions are subject to disciplinary action including suspension, cancellation, or revocation of certification by the POST Council. Law enforcement agencies suspecting prohibited use by another state or federal agency must notify the POST Council, which determines whether prohibited use occurred and directs Connecticut agencies to discontinue data sharing with violating agencies. Not later than Dec. 1, 2026, the POST Council shall adopt a model policy governing law enforcement agency acquisition and use of ALPR systems and data. Agencies must adopt and implement the policy by Jan. 1, 2027. The policy must develop standards for hotlist use, provide data retention limits, establish data access and sharing requirements, provide supervisory responsibility structure, establish training requirements, establish audit and logging requirements with quarterly audits, establish public transparency standards including annual statistical reports, establish distance requirements, and contain provisions concerning contracting with private vendors. Law enforcement agencies must adopt a policy that meets or exceeds the model of policy standards. The POST Council, in consultation with the Commissioner of Emergency Services and Public Protection and the Institute for Municipal and Regional Policy at The University of Connecticut, must develop and promulgate a standardized reporting form by Jan. 1, 2027.

Summary quoted from NCSL, Automated License Plate Readers: State Statutes, updated September 28, 2026. Not legal advice; read the statute.