Texas License Plate Reader Laws (2026)

Texas has no general license plate reader statute. The plate-specific limits we found are confined to toll roads: Transportation Code § 372.051 restricts what a toll project entity may do with information derived from a license plate. Outside tolls, what governs a Texas plate reader is mostly generic public-records law, city ordinances such as Austin's, agency policy and the federal Fourth Amendment, on which a published Fifth Circuit decision from March 2026 held that using a small, fixed-camera license plate reader system was not a search.

Information reviewed October 1, 2026.

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

Does Texas have a license plate reader law?

Not a general one. We opened the full text of Transportation Code chapters 201, 228, 370, 372, 472, 502, 504, 521, 550, 601, 707, 730 and 1006; Government Code chapters 411, 418, 421, 552, 2054 and 2059; Code of Criminal Procedure chapters 2B and 18B; Penal Code chapter 39; Occupations Code chapters 1701 and 1702; Local Government Code chapters 143 and 351; and Business & Commerce Code chapter 541. We phrase-searched them for license plate reader, license plate recognition, automated license plate, plate reader, location data and geolocation.

The plate-related hits were Transportation Code §§ 228.058, 372.051 and 370.177(i), all tied to toll roads, and the plate-number rules for video recordings in Gov't Code § 552.130(f) and Transp. Code § 730.007(h). One Transportation Code chapter (549) returned a 404 when we tried to open it, so it was not searched.

We did not run a full-text search of every bill from the 89th Legislature, so an enacted bill touching plate data could exist that we did not find.

What do the toll road statutes say?

Transportation Code § 228.058 lets TxDOT use automated enforcement technology, including automatic vehicle license plate identification photography, to collect tolls and enforce toll violations. The imaging is limited to vehicle classification, plate number and state of registration. The section states: "This section does not authorize the use of automated enforcement technology for any other purpose."

Section 372.051(a) says a toll project entity "may not use motor vehicle registration or other information derived from a license plate on a vehicle using a toll project" (including information from § 228.058 technology) except for two purposes: toll collection or enforcement, and "law enforcement purposes on request by a law enforcement agency." Subsection (b) requires agreements with out-of-state toll entities to carry the same limit. The section was reenacted and redesignated in 2009 (S.B. 1969 and H.B. 3139, effective September 1, 2009), and its source note shows no later amendment.

Section 370.177(i) provides that in a prosecution for toll nonpayment, proof may include evidence obtained by the automated enforcement technology described in § 228.058(a) and (b).

Separately, electronic toll collection customer account information, including trip data, is confidential and not subject to disclosure under the Public Information Act (Transp. Code §§ 228.057(e) and 366.179(d)), as is information collected for toll-nonpayment enforcement under § 370.177, including trip data (§ 370.177(m)). These sections govern toll data. We found nothing in them that regulates a roadside plate reader run by a city police department or a private operator.

Can the public get plate reader records in Texas?

Two provisions speak to plate numbers in video. Gov't Code § 552.130(f) says the license plate number of a motor vehicle captured visually or audibly in a video recording obtained or maintained by a law enforcement agency is not confidential under that section or Transportation Code chapter 730, and may be included in a video disclosed under § 552.021. Transportation Code § 730.007(h) lets a law enforcement agency release such a video in response to a public information request and says the agency is not required to redact plate numbers. Other exceptions may still be asserted.

Both provisions concern video recordings. Neither mentions plate reader reads, hot lists or databases, so we do not read them as opening or closing plate reader data.

The general law enforcement exception, Gov't Code § 552.108(a)(1), covers information whose release "would interfere with the detection, investigation, or prosecution of crime." It is not specific to plate readers. We did not find an Attorney General ruling on plate reader data, but our search of the ruling database did not succeed, so that is not proof that none exists.

Do Texas privacy and criminal laws reach plate data?

• Texas Data Privacy and Security Act. Bus. & Com. Code § 541.002(b)(1) says the chapter "does not apply to" a state agency or a political subdivision of the state. It therefore does not apply to police departments or other state agencies and political subdivisions themselves. We did not analyze whether it reaches private-sector plate or location processing.
• Location-information warrants. Code of Criminal Procedure art. 18B.001(9-b) defines location information as data created by or accessible to a communications provider, so it addresses communication devices and providers rather than roadside plate cameras. We found no court holding on that point.
• Misuse of official information. Penal Code § 39.06(b) makes it an offense for a public servant, with intent to obtain a benefit or to harm or defraud another, to disclose or use information "for a nongovernmental purpose" that he has access to by means of his office and that has not been made public. Subsection (d) limits "information that has not been made public" to information the public does not generally have access to and that is prohibited from disclosure under Chapter 552, Government Code. The offense is a third-degree felony under subsection (e), or higher when it produces a net pecuniary gain (subsection (g)). We found no ruling applying it to plate data, so we cannot say how it would apply to plate reader misuse.

We found no Texas provision that addresses sharing plate reader data with federal immigration authorities by name. Government Code chapter 752 (S.B. 4, 2017) bars a city, county or other local entity from adopting a policy that prohibits or materially limits the enforcement of immigration laws, or that prohibits or materially limits its peace officers from assisting or cooperating with a federal immigration officer as reasonable or necessary. It does not mention plate data, and we found no ruling on whether a local limit on sharing plate reader data with immigration authorities would violate it. The only interstate-sharing rule our searches found is the toll-specific out-of-state agreement requirement in § 372.051(b).

How are Texas plate readers funded?

Transportation Code § 1006.151(b) requires Motor Vehicle Crime Prevention Authority grants to be used to help increase the recovery rate of stolen motor vehicles and related outcomes. The statute contains no plate reader wording. We did not open an Authority grant document, so this page does not state how much grant money has gone to plate readers. One official record shows the link: Dallas's 2025 Flock contract lists an "MVCPA FY25 SB224 Catalytic Converter Grant Fund" as a funding source. The Texas Tribune reported on August 28, 2026 that Gov. Greg Abbott ordered state agencies to stop funding Flock cameras, and reported on September 17, 2026 that TxDOT, at his direction, stopped issuing permits for plate readers on state rights-of-way, without affecting cameras already installed. We found no written order or TxDOT directive, so these are reported executive actions, not statutes.

What have Texas courts said?

The most important decision is federal. In United States v. Porter, No. 25-60163 (5th Cir. March 17, 2026), a published appeal from the Southern District of Mississippi, the Fifth Circuit held that use of a license plate reader system was not a Fourth Amendment search, so no warrant was required, and that the stop was supported by reasonable suspicion. The court rested that conclusion on the limits of the system before it, which gave only periodic location hits from about ten fixed cameras in Gautier, Mississippi, and which it found much more limited than cell-site location or geofence data. Texas is within the Fifth Circuit. Porter addressed the Fourth Amendment, not Texas statutes.

We found no Texas state-court ruling on plate reader lawfulness. About two dozen Texas appellate opinions mention plate readers in a CourtListener phrase search. We opened three and none decided an ALPR question: in Griffin (No. 04-24-00414-CR, April 22, 2026) a plate reader was used to review travel history and the issue was preemption of a smuggling statute; in Taylor (No. 02-25-00121-CR, April 16, 2026) a plate reader search was cited in a warrant affidavit and the issue was not ALPR; and in Nguyen (No. 03-23-00301-CR, June 27, 2025) toll road plate reader data corroborated evidence in a murder case. This search is not proof that no such opinion exists.

What local rules and deployments exist?

The list below is not complete and records only what the linked sources show.

• Austin. Ordinance No. 20260423-029, passed April 23, 2026 and effective May 4, 2026, adds City Code chapter 2-19, Surveillance Technology. Its definition includes automated license plate readers. Under § 2-19-3, City departments must obtain approval of the city council before accepting funds for surveillance technology outside the annual budget process, acquiring new surveillance technology, using it for a not-previously-approved purpose, or agreeing with an outside third party to acquire, share or use it or its information. The chapter also requires a privacy impact assessment (§ 2-19-4), prohibits facial recognition (except per policy or state or federal requirements), artificial intelligence and machine learning tools (except per City policy) and vendor data collection for the vendor's own interests (§ 2-19-9), and requires an annual surveillance report within 120 days after the fiscal year ends (§ 2-19-10). KUT reported on June 4, 2025 on the end of Austin Police Department's plate reader program, which is the source for listing that program as ended.
• Houston. Houston City Council's August 16, 2022 agenda is the record for listing the Houston Police Department as approved.
• Dallas. A Dallas legislation record dated May 28, 2025 is the record for listing the Dallas Police Department as approved.
• El Paso. El Paso Inc. reported on September 18, 2026 that the city council voted unanimously to remove 150 Flock cameras within 90 days and to bar new, renewed or extended plate reader contracts.
• Plano. NBC DFW reported on September 21, 2026 that Plano disabled its Flock cameras.

We did not read the Dallas or Houston records beyond identifying them as approvals, and we do not describe their terms.

Is Texas changing the law?

Two 2025 bills are on record; neither is law. The official Texas Legislature Online history shows that H.B. 961 (Harrison), which would require a warrant or court order and limit use to violent crime, and H.B. 2083 (Bucy), which would set 48-hour retention, bar sharing with private parties and the federal government, and create a private right of action, were referred to the House Homeland Security, Public Safety & Veterans' Affairs committee and were still listed "In committee" when we checked on October 1, 2026, which means they died in committee when the 2025 regular session ended.

There is no regular session in 2026. The next regular session is the 90th Legislature in January 2027. Local rules and agency decisions in Texas have been changing quickly, so check a current source for your city.

How can I check my local system?

Ask the operator for its written policy, retention setting and contract. In a city with a surveillance ordinance like Austin's, look for the council approval and the annual surveillance report. On toll roads, § 372.051 limits what the toll entity may do with plate-derived information. Because § 552.130(f) and § 730.007(h) address video recordings, a request for plate reader reads may draw a different exception, such as § 552.108(a)(1). For the technology itself, see What are Flock cameras?.

Last updated: October 1, 2026. This page reflects the statutes and records described above as we reviewed them; it is general legal information, not legal advice.

Frequently Asked Questions

Is it legal to use a license plate reader in Texas?

We found no Texas statute that prohibits or generally authorizes plate readers. The statutes we found limit use of plate-derived information on toll roads, and a published Fifth Circuit decision held that use of a small, fixed-camera license plate reader system was not a Fourth Amendment search.

How long can Texas police keep license plate reader data?

We found no Texas statute setting a general retention period for police plate reader data. Retention is set by agency policy and vendor contracts, and by the terms of a city ordinance where one applies.

Can toll road plate data be used for law enforcement in Texas?

Transp. Code § 372.051 allows a toll project entity to use plate-derived information for toll collection or enforcement and for law enforcement purposes on request by a law enforcement agency, and no other purpose.

Are Texas plate numbers in police video public?

Gov't Code § 552.130(f) says a plate number captured in a law enforcement video recording is not confidential under that section or Transportation Code chapter 730, and Transp. Code § 730.007(h) lets the agency release such a video without redacting plate numbers. Other exceptions may still be asserted, and these provisions do not address plate reader databases.

Did Texas pass a plate reader bill in 2025?

We found none. H.B. 961 and H.B. 2083 were referred to committee and died there when the 2025 regular session ended.

Does Austin regulate license plate readers?

Austin Ordinance No. 20260423-029, effective May 4, 2026, requires city council approval for surveillance technology, a definition that includes automated license plate readers.