Alabama License Plate Reader Laws (2026)

Alabama has no full statutory scheme for license plate readers. One sentence of the Code, Code of Ala. § 41-9-621(1), names "license plate readers" and lets a state commission make rules about them, and those rules, found in Ala. Admin. Code ch. 265-X-6, carry the real detail. They bind law enforcement agencies. They do not, on their face, reach private operators such as businesses or homeowners associations.

Information reviewed September 30, 2026.

For related pages, see the Alabama entry in the state comparison, the ALPR laws hub, Are Flock cameras legal?, What are Flock cameras?, and our Alabama surveillance camera laws guide.

Is there an Alabama law on license plate readers?

Only a thin one. Section 41-9-621(1) directs the Alabama Justice Information Commission, acting through the secretary of the Alabama Law Enforcement Agency (ALEA), to operate information systems that collect criminal justice and public safety data, "including data from license plate readers, biometrics and geospatial information." It allows the Commission to adopt rules on collection, use, storage, dissemination and transmittal. (The rule chapter itself cites § 41-9-620 as its statutory authority.) It also says the information in these systems is "privileged, not public record, and subject to the same criminal penalties for misuse as provided in Sections 41-9-601 and 41-9-602." The section's history line points to Act 2019-495.

We know this is the only ALPR-specific statute because we text-searched the full Code of Alabama for "license plate," "plate reader," "plate recognition" and "LPR." The other hits were toll provisions, automated speed-enforcement sections, registration and tag provisions, and sex-offender registry vehicle information, none of which regulate plate reader collection, retention or sharing. A text search is strong evidence, not a guarantee, and this page is general information, not legal advice.

What do the Alabama rules require of police?

The rule chapter states its purpose as "to provide uniform directions to all law enforcement agencies in Alabama regarding the use of License Plate Recognition (LPR) systems and LPR data." It took effect March 17, 2022. Its main requirements are:

• Purpose limit. "A capturing agency may only collect LPR data for a criminal justice or public safety purpose." That term means legal actions by criminal justice agencies related to criminal investigations or protecting the public from criminal or natural threats.
• 24-hour transfer. A capturing agency must move data from the collection device to its own secure repository within 24 hours.
• Use and sharing. Use is limited to criminal justice or public safety purposes, with missing persons, human trafficking, and vehicle ownership, location or identity given as examples. Data may not be shared with any entity for a non-criminal-justice, non-public-safety purpose.
• No sale. "LPR data subject to this rule shall not be sold to any entity for any reason."
• Sharing with other agencies. Data may go to another criminal justice agency for a criminal justice or public safety purpose, with a dissemination log recording what was shared, the date, the receiving agency and the purpose. The rule speaks of "another criminal justice agency," and the rule's own definition limits that term to a state, county or municipal public agency. The Code's broader definition in § 41-9-590 includes federal and tribal agencies, but the rule does not adopt it and does not separately address out-of-state or federal recipients.
• Access log. Any agency that captures or uses plate data must keep a log of the person accessing it, the date and time, and the purpose.
• Written policy. Each agency must adopt and publicize a written policy before capturing or using plate data, addressing the databases used for comparison, retention, sharing with other agencies, and operator training. Vendors that maintain captured data must sign an ALEA CJIS Contractor/Vendor CJI Access Security Agreement.

How long can Alabama agencies keep plate reader data?

Plate data and the related access-log data must be "retained for no more than five years, at which time it will be destroyed or erased." The rule justifies the period by reference to 28 CFR Part 23. Records tied to an active investigation or a pending case may be kept longer, and the agency must notify ALEA to maintain them.

Five years is a ceiling, not a default. An agency may set a shorter period in its own written policy, so the retention period for a particular department is a question about that department's policy.

Who audits Alabama's plate reader rules?

ALEA's CJIS Division "will audit all capturing agencies at least once every three years." An agency found out of compliance has 90 days to comply. After that its access to ALEA LPR-related systems is suspended until it complies. Misuse is investigated like misuse of other ALEA information systems, and the CJIS Division gives the Commission an annual report each April covering audit results, agency policy compliance and misuse findings. We could not verify whether those reports are published.

The rule chapter itself sets no penalty schedule and creates no private right of action. Criminal penalties come from the cross-reference in § 41-9-621.

What penalties does Alabama attach to misuse?

Section 41-9-621(1) applies the penalties of § 41-9-601 and § 41-9-602. Section 41-9-601 covers willfully obtaining or seeking to obtain criminal offender record information under false pretenses, willfully communicating it except as the article allows, and willful falsification by agency personnel, with a fine of $5,000 to $10,000, up to five years in prison, or both. Section 41-9-602 makes knowing communication contrary to the article a misdemeanor, with a fine of $500 to $10,000, 30 days to one year in jail, or both.

Both sections are written in terms of "criminal offender record information," so how neatly they fit raw plate reads is a drafting question this page does not resolve. We describe what the sections say and what § 41-9-621 cross-references, nothing more.

Do the Alabama rules apply to private plate readers?

Not on their face. The rules define "law enforcement agency" as state, county and municipal public agencies with arrest power, and the definitions contain no category for private operators. A capturing agency may contract with a vendor, and the vendor requirement above applies to it. We found no Alabama statute that regulates plate readers run by a business, a homeowners association or an individual.

Can you get plate reader data through an open records request?

Section 41-9-621(1) declares the plate reader information in the Commission's systems "privileged, not public record." That is a statutory carve-out from the Open Records Act, Code of Ala. § 36-12-40, under which every resident may inspect public records "except as otherwise expressly provided by applicable law."

Whether the carve-out also reaches plate data held only in a local agency's own repository, as opposed to the Commission-operated systems, is not settled by any source we opened. We found no Attorney General opinion or court ruling on the point. Separately, § 23-2-174(c) removes toll-account monitoring data from Open Records Act disclosure.

Does Alabama regulate toll plate data?

Yes, in a narrow way. Under § 23-2-174(b), records identifying a specific instance of travel "shall be used only as required to ensure payment and enforcement of tolls," with one exception. State, county or municipal law enforcement may use them to compare captured plate data with Department of Revenue, Alabama Criminal Justice Information Center, NCIC and FBI missing-persons data to identify a stolen vehicle or plate, a vehicle registered to a person with an outstanding felony default or arrest warrant, or a vehicle associated with a missing person. The history line cites Act 2017-375.

What has changed or is pending in 2026?

Act 2026-374 (see the amended § 41-9-590) took effect October 1, 2026. It rewrites §§ 41-9-590, 41-9-594, 41-9-625 and 41-9-650, adds §§ 41-9-650.1 to .5, and repeals §§ 32-2-60 to 32-2-63. Section 41-9-621 carries no 2026 amendment history, and our full-text scan found no plate reader language in the amended sections. Because the definitions of "criminal justice agencies" and "criminal justice information" change, how the chapter 265-X-6 terms map onto the statute after October 1 is worth watching. That is a watch item, not a finding, and the Commission may re-adopt the rule.

We scanned the titles and summaries of the 1,638 instruments in the 2026 Regular Session, which adjourned April 9, 2026, and found no bill on plate readers. Related but different measures included SB157 on body and dash camera footage as public records, which died when the session ended. Sen. Arthur Orr has said he wants to file legislation setting warrant requirements, retention limits and consequences for misuse, and Rep. Rick Rehm has said the answer may be a complete ban or limits on how the data is held. No such bill had been filed when we checked, and a proposal is not law.

One rule contemplates a State LPR Registry. Under it, capturing agencies would submit plate number, capture date and time, location and agency identifier to ALEA CJIS within 48 hours, but the rule says the mandate "will only be required once ALEA established the State LPR Registry." We did not verify whether ALEA has done so.

What have Alabama courts said?

The main federal decision is United States v. Mapson, 96 F.4th 1323 (11th Cir. 2024), an appeal from the Northern District of Alabama. The court declined to decide whether police need a warrant to search ALPR databases, holding that the evidence was admissible under the good-faith exception because the searches predated Carpenter v. United States, and it noted that neither it nor the Alabama Supreme Court had then addressed the question. It also held that an officer could describe the plate reader reports without being qualified as an expert. We found no Alabama state appellate decision on plate readers. A CourtListener search of Alabama state appellate and federal district courts returned no results on September 29, 2026, although the Mapson opinion records that the district court had ruled on the plate reader evidence at both trials. That is a limit of the search, not proof that none exists, because unpublished memoranda and trial-level rulings are thinly indexed. We did not review Alabama constitutional privacy law as applied to plate readers, Attorney General opinions, ALEA policy documents or the state records-retention schedule.

Where are plate readers reported in Alabama?

This list is not complete. A September 2026 WAFF report is headlined that the Huntsville City Council rejected an amendment targeting automatic Flock camera renewals. Our records mark the Huntsville Police Department deployment as active as of September 24, 2026.

How can I check my local system?

Start with who operates it. If it is a police department, the chapter 265-X-6 rules apply, so you can ask for the agency's written policy on comparison databases, retention, sharing and training, which the rule requires it to adopt and publicize. If it is a business or a homeowners association, the Alabama rules we found do not address it, and the operator's own policy and contract terms are the place to look. For the technology itself, see What are Flock cameras?.

A separate 2011 immigration law, Code of Ala. § 31-13-5, never mentions plate readers. Subsection (a) bars state and local agencies from adopting "a policy or practice that limits or restricts the enforcement of federal immigration laws by limiting communication between its officers and federal immigration officials in violation of 8 U.S.C. § 1373 or 8 U.S.C. § 1644," and an agency the Attorney General finds in violation loses eligibility for state funds until the violation has ceased and the Attorney General has so certified. Subsection (b) requires state officials and agencies, "to the full extent permitted by law," to support the enforcement of federal law against unlawful entry, presence or residence, and under subsection (d), if a court finds that an official or agency head adopted or implemented a policy or practice in violation of 8 U.S.C. § 1373 or § 1644, the court orders a civil penalty of $1,000 to $5,000 for each day the policy remained in effect after the action was filed. The information that 8 U.S.C. § 1373 protects is information "regarding the citizenship or immigration status" of a person, and the Alabama section's own information clause, subsection (c), covers information "relating to the immigration status" of a person. Neither mentions plate data. This page did not research whether any court or Attorney General opinion has applied the section to plate reader data.

Frequently Asked Questions

Does Alabama have a license plate reader law?

Only a thin statute plus detailed rules. Code of Ala. § 41-9-621(1) names license plate reader data and authorizes rules, and Ala. Admin. Code ch. 265-X-6 sets the requirements for law enforcement agencies.

How long can Alabama police keep license plate reader data?

No more than five years, then it must be destroyed or erased. Records tied to an active investigation or pending case may be kept longer, and the agency must notify ALEA. An agency can adopt a shorter period in its own policy.

Can Alabama police sell plate reader data?

No. The rule says LPR data shall not be sold to any entity for any reason, and sharing is limited to other criminal justice agencies for criminal justice or public safety purposes, with a dissemination log.

Do the Alabama plate reader rules apply to private businesses or HOAs?

Not on their face. The rules regulate law enforcement agencies, and we found no Alabama statute regulating private plate reader operators.

Are Alabama plate reader records public?

Section 41-9-621(1) declares plate reader information in the Commission's systems privileged and not public record. Whether that covers data held only in a local agency repository is not settled by the sources we opened.

Does Act 2026-374 change the plate reader rules?

It changed surrounding sections of the Code on October 1, 2026, including definitions, but did not amend Code of Ala. § 41-9-621. The Commission may re-adopt the rule, so it is worth checking whether it has.