wing scrutiny over automated license plate readers. Municipalities across the state have installed hundreds of the devices, prompting residents to question how the technology is used and who can access the data.

Connecticut has rapidly become the state with the most ALPR cameras per capita in New England , according to DeFlock , which tracks ALPR installations. Municipalities and businesses across the state have installed nearly 800 ALPRs to date.

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Gov. Ned Lamont recently called for a 30-day pause on new automated license plate readers while state officials develop guidance on data retention and sharing. That pause does not specifically include cameras mounted on school buses.

Connecticut lawmakers have established penalties for passing a school bus at several hundred dollars per offense. In 2011, the state allowed local police and school districts to install cameras on buses to record incidents and to use that evidence against motorists accused of illegally passing a bus. It set the fine for a first-time violation - regardless of whether it was caught on camera - at $450.

In 2024, lawmakers updated the statute to give municipalities the power to authorize video monitoring system via ordinance, and it set the fine for first-time violations caught on camera at $250. The fine for violations caught by officers in-person is still $450.

BusPatrol said its cameras are different from continuously operating license plate readers like those operated by the company Flock Safety because they only activate when a bus is stopped with its warning lights and the stop arm is engaged. The company said the footage is retained only as long as needed for law enforcement review or required by law, and is then deleted once a citation is resolved.