Oregon License Plate Reader Laws (2026)

Oregon has a specific license plate reader statute. Sections 3 to 9 of enrolled Senate Bill 1516 (Oregon Laws 2026, chapter 77) bar a law enforcement agency from using an ALPR system or captured plate data except for listed purposes, cap most retention at 30 days, limit sharing, and put rules on vendors. The prohibition in section 4 of the enrolled bill is addressed to law enforcement agencies.

Information reviewed September 30, 2026.

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

Is there an Oregon law on license plate readers?

Yes. Enrolled SB 1516-A, listed by the legislature's tracking system as chapter 77 of the 2026 session laws, contains the ALPR rules in its sections 3 to 9. Section 4(1) reads: "Except as provided under sections 3 to 9 of this 2026 Act, a law enforcement agency may not use an automated license plate recognition system or captured license plate data."

The bill has 14 sections. Sections 1 and 2 and sections 12 and 13 deal with other subjects. Section 10 requires any plate reader bought with Organized Retail Theft Grant Program money to comply with sections 3 to 9, and section 11 amends the public records law. Section 14 is an emergency clause saying the act "takes effect on its passage." The legislature's bill history records that the Governor signed the bill on March 31, 2026, and lists March 31, 2026 as its effective date. We also did not confirm whether the ALPR sections were compiled into a chapter of the Oregon Revised Statutes, which is why we cite the session law and section numbers.

What may Oregon law enforcement use plate readers for?

Section 4(2) lists the purposes for which a law enforcement agency may use an ALPR system or captured data. Among them:

• Identifying a vehicle used to facilitate the commission of a crime or to avoid apprehension for one.
• Non-traffic violations under ORS 153.008.
• Identifying a vehicle registered to a person with an outstanding criminal arrest warrant.
• Missing or endangered persons, including Amber and Silver Alerts.
• An uninsured vehicle, an unregistered vehicle, parking facilities and secured areas.

The crime and warrant purposes reach out-of-state crimes that are substantially equivalent to Oregon crimes. They also reach federal crimes and federal judicial arrest warrants, but only where the use is "not contrary to the public policies set forth in ORS 24.500 or any law of this state restricting the use of public resources for prohibited enforcement activities, including ORS 181A.250, 181A.820 and 181A.826." The text of section 4 does not use the word immigration. Separately, two Oregon sanctuary statutes that do not mention plate readers limit using public resources for immigration enforcement, subject to exceptions they list: ORS 181A.820 bars a law enforcement agency from using agency moneys, equipment or personnel to detect or apprehend people for the purpose of enforcing federal immigration laws, and ORS 181A.826 bars using public equipment, technology or personnel to investigate, detect, apprehend, arrest, detain or hold people for immigration enforcement, which it says includes providing information to a federal agency except as ORS 181A.823 allows. Any person may sue an agency to enjoin a violation of either.

Other operating rules in section 4 include the following. A hot-list entry must state its purpose and identify the employee who added it (section 4(4)(c)). Before a traffic stop based on an alert, the officer must visually confirm the plate number, the issuing state and the vehicle characteristics (section 4(6)). An agency may also request data held by private entities for a law enforcement purpose (section 4(7)).

How long can Oregon agencies keep plate data?

Section 4(3) sets the default at 30 days. Captured data not related to a court proceeding or ongoing criminal investigation "may be retained for no more than 30 days after the captured license plate data is collected." Data related to a court proceeding or an ongoing investigation may be kept as long as evidence is kept in the normal course of the court's business. The retention limits do not apply to audit information.

Who can get access to Oregon plate data?

Section 5 governs sharing. Another Oregon law enforcement agency may query an agency's data. Access for any government entity not created under Oregon law is barred except for a law enforcement purpose, must be limited to relevant data, and "may not include unrestricted or ongoing access to captured license plate data." The search log must name the requesting entity and the cameras used. Section 5(3) carves out judicial subpoenas and other compulsory court process.

What audit and policy rules apply?

Section 4(5) requires a search log that records the user ID, the agency, the search inputs, the date and time, the case number and the law enforcement purpose. For an investigation it also records the type of crime or violation.

Section 7 requires an agency to establish and publish a policy before deploying a system. The policy must cover security, hot-list accuracy, training, retention and destruction, and audit processes. It must also include vendor contract terms providing that the agency owns the captured data, that vendor requests are directed to the agency, that data is end-to-end encrypted, that the vendor complies with the FBI's CJIS Security Policy, and that the vendor is liable for misuse.

Section 6 requires vendors under contract to give the agency a searchable monthly audit and a quarterly audit of searches run for outside agencies. The monthly audit covers installed cameras, fixed-camera locations, searches, agencies with access, users, unique vehicles, alerts and, for each search, the user, date and purpose. The agency must publish the results on its website within two days or require direct public access, redacted as provided in ORS 192.345(44)(a).

Are private companies and vendors covered?

The prohibition in section 4 is addressed to law enforcement agencies, and the sections we read otherwise regulate the vendors that work for them. Under section 9, a vendor may not "access, disclose, sell, share or otherwise use" captured data, with exceptions for technical support the agency consents to and for providing the section 6 audits. Section 8 lets vendor contracts entered before the effective date run to their end, but they cannot be extended, renewed or replaced except in compliance, and section 4 applies regardless.

We did not find in the sections we read a rule addressed to a business or homeowners association that runs its own plate reader. We did not review every other Oregon statute for one. One general privacy law may matter for companies that sell location data: since January 1, 2026, the Oregon Consumer Privacy Act bars a covered business from selling personal data that identifies a consumer's or a linked device's present or past location within 1,750 feet (ORS 646A.578). We did not confirm how it applies to plate reader data.

Can I sue over a violation?

Section 9(2) gives an individual a civil action against a vendor for an intentional or grossly negligent violation, for "economic and noneconomic damages and equitable relief," with attorney fees at the court's discretion. Any person may sue a vendor to enjoin a violation of section 9(1)(a). The text makes these the exclusive remedies for a violation of section 9(1)(a). In the enrolled text we read, we did not find a direct private action against an agency or a criminal penalty for misuse. Oregon's sanctuary statutes, ORS 181A.820(6) and 181A.826(5), separately let any person sue an agency to enjoin using its equipment or technology for federal immigration enforcement.

Can I request Oregon plate reader data as a public record?

Section 11 adds subsection (44) to ORS 192.345. Captured license plate data collected by a system deployed or used by a law enforcement agency is exempt from disclosure unless the public interest requires disclosure in the particular instance, because ORS 192.345 lists conditional exemptions. The contents of the section 6 vendor audits must be disclosed after plates and vehicle characteristics are removed. The subsection also sets conditional-disclosure rules, including a request tailored to a date and time, blurred faces, and sealed data staying sealed, and it preserves criminal discovery rights. Requesters seeking audits should ask the agency that contracts with the vendor, since the agency publishes them.

What have Oregon courts said about plate readers?

We found no Oregon appellate decision on plate reader use. Our searches of the Oregon courts site, CourtListener and Justia returned only unrelated cases about obstructed plates, so this is a statement about our search and not proof that none exists.

Which Oregon agencies have ended plate reader programs?

This list is not complete. The City of Eugene posted a notice, and our records mark the Eugene Police Department deployment as ended as of December 5, 2025. The City of Springfield announced removal of Flock cameras, and our records mark the Springfield Police Department deployment as ended as of January 21, 2026. We did not tie either decision to the statute.

How can I check my local system?

Under section 7, an agency must publish its ALPR policy, and under section 6 it must publish vendor audit results on its website. Start there, then ask the agency for its retention setting and its vendor contract terms. For the technology itself, see What are Flock cameras?.

Frequently Asked Questions

Does Oregon have a license plate reader law?

Yes. Sections 3 to 9 of enrolled SB 1516 (Oregon Laws 2026, chapter 77) bar law enforcement agencies from using ALPR systems or captured data except for listed purposes, and add retention, sharing, audit and vendor rules.

How long can Oregon police keep license plate reader data?

Data not related to a court proceeding or an ongoing criminal investigation may be kept no more than 30 days after collection under section 4(3). Data tied to a court proceeding or investigation may be kept as long as evidence is kept in the normal course of the court's business.

Can other agencies or the federal government search Oregon plate data?

Another Oregon law enforcement agency may query the data. A government entity not created under Oregon law may have access only for a law enforcement purpose, limited to relevant data and without unrestricted or ongoing access. Federal crimes and federal judicial warrants count as purposes only where the use is not contrary to the public policies in ORS 24.500 and the state laws the statute lists.

Can I get plate reader data through an Oregon public records request?

Captured plate data from an agency-deployed system is conditionally exempt under ORS 192.345(44), so it is withheld unless the public interest requires disclosure in the particular instance. The vendor audits the statute requires must be disclosed with plates and vehicle characteristics removed.

Can I sue over misuse of plate data in Oregon?

Section 9 lets an individual sue a vendor for an intentional or grossly negligent violation. We did not find a direct private lawsuit against an agency in the enrolled text. Separately, Oregon's sanctuary statutes, ORS 181A.820 and 181A.826, let any person sue an agency to stop the use of public resources for immigration enforcement.

Have Oregon courts ruled on plate readers?

We found no Oregon decision on the subject in our searches of the state courts site, CourtListener and Justia.