Bill Text: NJ A5483 | 2026-2027 | Regular Session | Introduced
Bill Title: Prohibits private use and regulates government use of automated license plate readers.
Sponsorship: Partisan Bill (Democrat 1)
Status: (Introduced) 2026-09-14 - Introduced, Referred to Assembly Public Safety and Preparedness Committee [A5483 Detail]
Download: New_Jersey-2026-A5483-Introduced.html
Sponsored by:
Assemblyman DAVID BAILEY, JR.
District 3 (Cumberland, Gloucester and Salem)
SYNOPSIS
Prohibits private use and regulates government use of automated license plate readers.
CURRENT VERSION OF TEXT
As introduced.
An Act concerning private and governmental use of automated license plate readers and supplementing Title 52 of the Revised Statutes.
Be It Enacted by the Senate and General Assembly of the State of New Jersey:
1. As used in this act:
"ALPR data" means the raw data and derived data obtained by an automated license plate reader.
"ALPR vendor" means a private individual or business, and any subcontractor or other third party engaged by the private individual or business, that sells or contracts to provide an automated license plate reader or a service related to producing, installing, maintaining, or operating an automated license plate reader or ALPR data.
"Artificial intelligence analytics" means the process by which artificial intelligence processes and analyzes data. This term includes, but is not limited to, machine learning, natural language processing, and data mining techniques to interpret data and make predictions or recommendations.
"Automated license plate reader (ALPR)" means an electronic device that photographs or scans the license plate of a motor vehicle and uses artificial intelligence analytics to identify the license plate; compares it with information contained in a database, including a database maintained by a law enforcement agency; and generates derived ALPR data. This term shall include both an electronic device installed at a stationary location in the State and a mobile device affixed to a police vehicle that can operate while the vehicle is in motion. The term shall not include an automated license plate reader owned or operated by the federal government.
"Derived data" means any new information created by an automated license plate reader by applying artificial intelligence analytics to the raw data.
"Law enforcement officer" means a person whose public duties include the power to act as an officer for the detection, apprehension, arrest, and conviction of offenders.
"Local law enforcement officer" means a law enforcement officer employed by a county or municipality in this State.
"Out-of-State government entity" means a department, division, bureau, commission, board, political subdivision, or any other authority of another state or the federal government.
"Raw data" means the scan of a license plate or photograph obtained by an automated license plate reader that has not been processed, analyzed, interpreted, or summarized in any way.
"Secured area" means an area, enclosed by clear boundaries, to which access is limited, that is not open to the public, and where entry is only obtainable through specific controlled-access points.
"Serious crime" means any crime included in subsection d. of section 2 of P.L.1997, c.117 (C.2C:43-7.2) and any substantially similar crime under the laws of another state or the United States.
"State government entity" means a department, division, bureau, commission, board, political subdivision, or any other authority of this State.
2. An automated license plate reader may only be installed, used, or accessed and ALPR data may only be used, accessed, or shared as provided for in sections 3 and 4 of this act and as provided for in any guidelines or directives issued by the Attorney General pursuant to section 7 of this act.
a. Unless otherwise provided for in section 3 or 4 of this act, each private or public individual or entity shall immediately:
(1) remove and cease use of any installed automated license plate reader; and
(2) permanently delete any stored ALPR data.
b. Nothing in this section shall be construed to prohibit anyone from retaining ALPR data connected to an ongoing judicial process or as required to comply with discovery pursuant to Rules of Court.
c. The Attorney General shall have the authority to institute a civil action for injunctive relief to require a private entity or individual to remove any automated license plate reader violating this act and to enjoin a private entity or individual from using or accessing an automated license plate reader or using, accessing, or sharing ALPR data in violation of this act.
3. a. A State government entity may only install an automated license plate reader, and an officer, employee, agent, contractor, or other individual authorized to act by a State government entity may only use or access an automated license plate reader or ALPR data, to:
(1) regulate the use of a parking facility;
(2) control access to a secured area; or
(3) collect an electronic toll.
b. (1) In addition to the use or access authorized by subsection a. of this section, the Division of State Police in the Department of Law and Public Safety and a local law enforcement agency may install an automated license plate reader, and a member of the State Police or local law enforcement officer may use or access an automated license plate reader or ALPR data, to determine whether a license plate number, or partial license plate number, matches a license plate number included on a "be on the lookout," or BOLO, list maintained solely for use in conjunction with the division's or the agency's automated license plate readers.
(2) A BOLO list solely used in conjunction with an automated license plate reader shall only include a license plate number, or a partial license plate number, of a vehicle when the vehicle, or any person reasonably believed to be associated with the vehicle, is material to an investigation into, or a judicial process concerning, whether the vehicle:
(a) is unregistered or uninsured;
(b) is being operated in violation of the inspection requirements set forth in chapter 8 of Title 39 of the Revised Statutes or the rules and regulations implemented by the Chief Administrator of the Motor Vehicle Commission in the Department of Transportation;
(c) is associated with a missing person including, but not limited to, an individual identified in an Amber Alert, issued pursuant to P.L.2002, c.129 (C.52:17B-194.1 et seq.); an individual identified in a Silver Alert, issued pursuant to P.L.2009, c.167 (C.52:17B-194.4 et seq.); an individual identified in an MVP Emergency Alert, issued pursuant to P.L.2015, c.184 (C.52:17B-194.9 et seq.); or a suspect identified in a Blue Alert, issued pursuant to P.L.2019, c.369 (C.52:17B-194.12 et seq.);
(d) was stolen pursuant to section 1 of P.L.2023, c. 101 (C.2C:20-10.1); or
(e) was involved in or is relevant to an investigation into a serious crime, including whether the vehicle is registered to a person for whom there is an outstanding arrest warrant.
A BOLO list solely used in conjunction with an automated license plate reader shall be updated as frequently as possible. A BOLO list used in conjunction with an automated license plate reader affixed to a police vehicle shall be updated, at a minimum, at the start of each State Police member's or local law enforcement officer's shift. A BOLO list used in conjunction with an automated license plate reader installed at a stationary location shall be updated at least daily.
(3) The division or a local law enforcement agency shall not intentionally target use of an automated license plate reader towards a population based on race, creed, color, national origin, ancestry, age, marital status, affectional or sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, familial status, disability, nationality, sex, or because of service, or liability for service, in the Armed Forces of the United States when enforcing the provisions of this subsection, except for subparagraph (c) of paragraph (2) of this subsection.
c. ALPR data may only be shared with an out-of-State government entity or individual pursuant to a judicial warrant supported by probable cause, or another valid court order, that identifies the specific data being requested. Only the Attorney General may share ALPR data after receiving a warrant or court order from an out-of-State government entity or individual.
(1) An out-of-State government entity that obtains ALPR data pursuant to this subsection shall not share the information with anyone outside of the government entity. Any individual who obtains ALPR data pursuant to this subsection shall not share the information except as required or permitted during a judicial process. Nothing in this subsection shall be construed to prohibit an out-of-State government entity or individual from sharing ALPR data as required to comply with any judicial process or discovery pursuant to Rules of Court or substantially similar rules under the laws of another state or the United States.
(2) Nothing in this subsection shall be construed to require the Attorney General to disclose ALPR data if doing so would jeopardize an ongoing criminal investigation.
(3) An ALPR vendor shall not share or sell ALPR data.
d. ALPR data shall not be a public record and shall be exempt from disclosure pursuant to P.L.1963, c.73 (C.47:1A-1 et seq.), commonly known as the open public records act, except for:
(1) the access, shared data, and retention logs required pursuant to paragraph (3) of subsection b. of section 4 of this act. Before sharing any information pursuant to a valid request under P.L.1963, c.73 (C.47:1A-1 et seq.), the license plate information and any other information that could be used to identify a specific vehicle, such as a photograph of the vehicle or the make, model, or color of a vehicle, shall be redacted from the access, shared data, and retention logs and any other documents shared pursuant to the request; and
(2) information regarding a vehicle personally owned or leased by the requestor. A requestor may only be an individual and may not be a business, corporation, or any other entity. The requestor shall, as part of the request for information, affirm through a notarized, sworn statement:
(a) that the requestor is the sole owner or lessor of the vehicle and no other individual drives the vehicle more than 10 percent of the time; or
(b) the identity of each owner or lessor of the vehicle is applicable, the identity of each individual who drives the vehicle more than 10 percent of the time if applicable, and that no individual identified in the sworn statement is subject to an outstanding restraining order or protection order involving any other individual included on the sworn statement. Each owner, lessor, and driver identified on the request shall also sign the request.
e. A State government entity may contract with an ALPR vendor for the installation of an automated license plate reader pursuant to subsection a. or b. of this section. Any ALPR data generated by an automated license plate reader installed by an ALPR vendor under contract with a State government entity shall solely be the property of the State government entity.
4. a. (1) Each State government entity may implement and maintain an ALPR data management system or contract with an ALPR vendor for the creation and maintenance of a system.
(2) An ALPR vendor may only use or access ALPR data to fulfill the requirements of the vendor's contract with the State government entity.
(3) The Attorney General shall implement and maintain a Statewide ALPR data management system to centrally store ALPR data collected in the State. The system shall permit an authorized individual in a State government entity to access or search, for a purpose identified in subsection a. or b. of section 3 of this act, through ALPR data collected by another State government entity and shall provide a platform for the Attorney General to share ALPR data pursuant to subsection c. of section 3 of this act.
b. Each ALPR data management system in the State operated pursuant to subsection a. of this section, including any system operated by an ALPR vendor under contract with a State government entity, shall:
(1) prohibit access to and use of an automated license plate reader or ALPR data unless the individual has been authorized by a State government entity to use or access automated license plate readers or ALPR data;
(2) never store the live feed generated by an automated license plate reader;
(3) maintain an immutable access log that records each time, and the identity of, any individual who accesses or queries ALPR data. The Statewide ALPR data management system established pursuant to paragraph (3) of subsection a. of this section shall also maintain an immutable retention log that records any time ALPR data is retained beyond the two day retention limit provided for in paragraph (4) of this subsection, the reason for the retention pursuant to subsection c. of this section, the identity of the individual who made the request to retain the data, and the date the data was permanently deleted. The Statewide system shall also maintain an immutable shared data log that records each time ALPR data is shared, who shared the data, and with whom the data was shared. The Attorney General shall maintain a record of each warrant and court order submitted by an out-of-State entity or individual requesting ALPR data; and
(4) automatically and permanently delete ALPR data within two days of the date of collection except as provided for in subsection c. of this section. Nothing in this paragraph or subsection c. of this section shall be construed to prohibit a State or an out-of-State government entity from retaining ALPR data as required to comply with discovery pursuant to Rules of Court, or substantially similar rules under the laws of another state or the United States, or a judicial process.
c. ALPR data may be retained on the Statewide ALPR data management system established pursuant to paragraph (3) of subsection a. of this section:
(1) upon request from the division or a local law enforcement agency identifying specific ALPR data as evidence of any unlawful conduct enumerated in paragraph (2) of subsection b. of section 3 of this act;
(2) upon request from a State government entity identifying specific ALPR data as necessary to retain for collection of an electronic toll pursuant to paragraph (3) of subsection a. of section 3 of this act;
(3) pursuant to a judicial warrant supported by probable cause or another valid court order;
(4) upon receipt of a notarized and sworn preservation request from a State government entity, an out-of-State government entity, or a defendant in a criminal case that identifies the specific automated license plate reader or the license plate number to which the preservation request is related; identifies the date and timeframe to which the retention request applies; and includes language stating the entity or defendant will submit a request to retain the identified data to a court of competent jurisdiction within seven days of the preservation request being notarized.
(a) A court of competent jurisdiction may grant a request from a State government entity, an out-of-State government entity, or a criminal defendant to retain data if the entity or defendant offers specific and articulable facts establishing probable cause that the requested ALPR data is relevant and material to an ongoing serious crime or missing person investigation or judicial proceeding.
(b) The State government entity, out-of-State government entity, or defendant in a criminal case shall, within 24 hours, notify the Attorney General if:
(i) the entity or defendant fails to submit a request to retain the identified ALPR data to a court within seven days of the preservation request being notarized; or
(ii) a court of competent jurisdiction denies the entity's or defendant's request to retain the identified ALPR data.
(c) The Attorney General shall immediately and permanently delete any data retained pursuant to a preservation request upon receipt of notice from a State government entity, out-of-State government entity, or defendant in a criminal case pursuant to subparagraph (b) of this paragraph.
d. (1) Each State government entity that installs an automated license plate reader or permits access to or use of an automated license plate reader or ALPR data pursuant to subsection 3 of this act shall adopt a policy, consistent with this act and any guidelines or directives implemented by the Attorney General pursuant to section 7 of this act, prohibiting the collection of ALPR data outside of the scope of this act; governing installation of automated license plate readers; governing use of and access to automated license plate readers and ALPR data; prohibiting the sharing of ALPR data; and protecting the security of ALPR data.
(2) Each State government entity shall conspicuously post the policy adopted pursuant to paragraph (1) of this subsection on the entity's Internet website.
5. a. The head of each State government entity that uses or accesses ALPR data shall conduct an annual audit of the entity's use of automated license plate readers and ALPR data.
b. During the annual audit, each State government entity that operates an automated license plate reader or uses and accesses ALPR data shall, at minimum, assess or determine:
(1) the number of license plates scanned;
(2) the access log required pursuant to paragraph (3) of subsection b. of section 4 of this act;
(3) whether the entity has complied with the requirements of this act and any guidelines or directives issued by the Attorney General pursuant to section 7 of this act; and
(4) whether there were any changes made to the entity's policy, implemented pursuant to subsection d. of section 4 of this act, that impacts privacy interests of individuals in the State.
c. In addition to what is provided for in subsection b. of this section, the Superintendent of State Police and the chief of police or other executive head of each local law enforcement agency that operates an automated license plate reader or permits officers to use and access ALPR data shall, at minimum, determine the following during the annual audit:
(1) the number of license plate numbers, or partial license plate numbers, included on a "be on the lookout," or BOLO, list maintained solely for use in conjunction with an automated license plate reader; and
(2) the number of matches generated by a BOLO list maintained solely for use in conjunction with an automated license plate reader and the number of BOLO matches that resulted in an arrest or prosecution.
d. In addition to what is provided for in subsection b. of this act, the Attorney General shall assess during the annual audit the shared data log and retention log required pursuant to paragraph (3) of subsection b. of section 4 of this act to determine, at minimum, the number of times:
(1) ALPR data was shared:
(a) with an out-of-State government entity;
(b) pursuant to a judicial warrant or other court order; and
(c) with an ALPR data management system maintained by a State government entity and an ALPR vendor;
(2) an officer, employee, agent, contractor, or other individual authorized to act by a State government entity accessed ALPR data on the Statewide ALPR data management system that was collected by another State government entity;
(3) a preservation request was received pursuant to paragraph (4) of subsection c. of section 4 of this act;
(4) ALPR data was preserved pursuant to paragraph (4) of subsection c. of section 4 of this act, broken down by the number of times ALPR data was retained for a State government entity, an out-of-State government entity, and a defendant in a criminal case; and
(5) a court of competent jurisdiction granted a request from a State government entity, an out-of-State government entity, or a criminal defendant to retain data pursuant to subparagraph (a) of paragraph (4) of subsection c. of section 4 of this act.
e. The head of each State government entity shall conspicuously post the annual audit results on the entity's Internet website.
f. The head of each State government entity shall annually report the results of each annual audit to the Attorney General. The Attorney General shall submit the results of each annual audit, and a summary of the results, to the Legislature pursuant to section 2 of P.L.1991, c.164 (C.52:14-19.1).
6. Any ALPR data obtained by a State government entity in violation of this act, and any evidence derived from the ALPR data obtained in violation of this act, shall not be admissible by a State or an out-of-State government entity in any criminal, civil, administrative, or legislative proceeding in this State. Nothing in this section shall be construed to prohibit any party other than a State or an out-of-State government entity from using ALPR data collected in violation of this act in a criminal, a civil, an administrative, or a legislative proceeding.
7. The Attorney General may, in consultation with the Superintendent of State Police, issue guidelines or directives as necessary to implement this act.
8. This act shall take effect on the first day of the seventh month next following the date of enactment.
STATEMENT
This bill prohibits private use and regulates governmental use of automated license plate readers in New Jersey. Under the bill, "automated license plate reader" means an electronic device that photographs or scans the license plate of a motor vehicle and uses artificial intelligence analytics to identify the license plate; compares it with information contained in a database; and generates derived ALPR data, which includes any data captured or generated by an automated license plate reader.
A private individual or entity, other than an ALPR vendor, is prohibited from installing, using, or accessing an automated license plate reader and from using, accessing, or sharing ALPR data under the bill. "ALPR vendor" means a private individual or business, and any subcontractor or other third party engaged by the private individual or business, that sells or contracts to provide an automated license plate reader or a service related to producing, installing, maintaining, or operating an automated license plate reader or ALPR data. The bill requires private individuals and entities to remove and cease use of any installed automated license plate reader and permanently delete any stored ALPR data. The Attorney General may institute a civil action for injunctive relief to enforce the bill's provisions that regulate private installation and use of automated license plate readers.
The bill also regulates the installation of automated license plate readers and the use of, access to, and sharing of ALPR data by government entities. A State government entity may only install an automated license plate reader and permit for the use of or access to an automated license plate reader or ALPR data to regulate the use of a parking facility, control access to a secured area, or collect an electronic toll. The Division of State Police in the Department of Law and Public Safety and a local law enforcement agency may, in addition, install an automated license plate reader and permit for the use of or access to an automated license plate reader or ALPR data in conjunction with a "be on the lookout," or BOLO, list maintained solely for use with a law enforcement operated automated license plate reader. The bill prohibits a law enforcement agency from installing or using an automated license plate reader that would target certain areas based on certain protected classes.
A BOLO list solely used in conjunction with an automated license plate reader may only include the license plate number, or partial license plate number, of a vehicle if the vehicle, or any person reasonably believed to be associated with the vehicle, is material to an investigation into whether the vehicle:
1) is unregistered or uninsured;
2) is being operated in violation of State inspection requirements;
3) is associated with a missing person;
4) was stolen; or
5) is related to or was involved in a serious crime, which includes any crime under the No Early Release Act (NERA) and substantially similar crimes under the laws of another state or the United States.
Only the Attorney General may share ALPR data, and the Attorney General may only share ALPR with an out-of-State government entity, which includes the federal government and the governments of other states, or an individual pursuant to a judicial warrant supported by probable cause or another valid court order that specifically identifies the data being requested.
The bill exempts ALPR data from the disclosure requirements of the open public records act unless certain criteria are met. Additionally, the bill permits a government entity to contract with an ALPR vendor for the installation of an automated license plate reader but specifies that any ALPR data collected is the government's property.
Each State government entity is permitted to maintain an ALPR data management system or contract with an ALPR vendor for the creation and maintenance of a system. The Attorney General is required to implement and maintain a Statewide ALPR data management system to centrally store ALPR data collected in the State, facilitate sharing of ALPR data between State government entities, and from which the Attorney General may share ALPR data with out-of-State government entities or individuals. The bill establishes various requirements with which each ALPR data management system is required to comply. The bill also establishes that ALPR data is required to be deleted within two days of the date of collection unless certain criteria and processes are completed to retain the data.
Under the bill, the head of each State government entity is required to conduct an annual audit of the entity's use and access to automated license plate readers and ALPR data. The bill establishes minimum criteria that each State government entity is required to assess during the annual audit. Each government entity is also required to post the audit results on its Internet website and submit the results to the Attorney General. The Attorney General then submits each annual audit, including its own, and a summary of the annual audits to the Legislature.
Any ALPR data obtained by a State government entity in violation of this act, and any evidence derived from that ALPR data, shall not be admissible by a State or an out-of-State government entity in any criminal, civil, administrative, or legislative proceeding in this State. However, any party other than a government entity may introduce ALPR data collected in violation of this act in a criminal, a civil, an administrative, or a legislative proceeding.
