Mountlake Terrace Needs to Put Its Values on the Record
Olympia did it. We can too. What happens next with Flock is still up to us.
Hi neighbors,
On June 5, the Mountlake Terrace City Council voted 5 to 2 to approve a contract with Flock Safety despite significant public pushback.
At the June 12 work session community concern was once again clear.
Then came the June 26 meeting—and the issue wasn’t mentioned at all.
That silence was disappointing. This is a critical moment to shape how these tools are used, audited, and governed. If community trust and civil liberties matter, the time to act is now.
Several council members have reached out privately to me and to others in the community. They are listening and looking for ways to improve the process. That gives me hope.
Olympia: Leading with a Public Commitment
Like Mountlake Terrace, Olympia has already adopted Flock. But instead of retreating into technical justifications or vague promises, their city leaders chose clarity.
Earlier this month, Olympia sent a clear public message to its community:
“Illegal immigrant, legal immigrant, native-born American, what those challenged and those detained by ICE seem to have in common is that they are all people of color.”
“While ICE may come into our community to hunt our residents, those residents should know they are valued and welcomed members of our community whom we will do what we legally can to protect.”
“We are also taking the opportunity to engage the community and our community members who are living under the threat of being detained by ICE. The Constitution protects all of us and ensures our right to assemble, to have counsel, to not be subjected to unreasonable search and seizure, to due process, and more.”
In other words, Olympia acknowledged public concern and responded with a bold affirmation of values.
Mountlake Terrace still has the opportunity to do the same.
Flock’s Growing Business Network
While most people know Flock as a law enforcement vendor, the company is rapidly building out a private-sector surveillance network, too. EFF reports:
Just this week, Flock launched its Business Network, facilitating unregulated data sharing amongst its private sector security clients. "For years, our law enforcement customers have used the power of a shared network to identify threats, connect cases, and reduce crime. Now, we're extending that same network effect to the private sector," Flock Safety's CEO announced.
Their business products are now marketed to shopping centers, big-box stores, and HOA neighborhoods. Businesses are encouraged to share vehicle data with police and with one another, forming what the Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF) calls a “surveillance social network.”
Just recently, new Flock cameras were installed at a Home Depot in Bothell, aimed directly at the location where day laborers gather to look for work.
While the installation was led by the business, Flock’s private and public camera networks are increasingly connected—so that footage may still be accessible to police or federal agencies through shared platforms.
Now imagine this replicated across every Home Depot or Lowe’s in the country, all through private contracts, with no public oversight, no community notice, and no clear limits on how footage can be used.
This is not speculative. It’s already happening.
The Federal Floodgates May Be About to Open
The U.S. Senate is now considering a bill that would provide $175 billion in immigration-related funding—a massive increase aimed at expanding raids, surveillance, and detention across the country.
🔗 Read more from Migrant Insider
We already know Flock has contracted with the federal government. We know that federal agents have accessed Flock systems, including through partnerships with local agencies. And we know that under Mountlake Terrace’s own contract, Flock can share our data with anyone they choose—without notice, justification, or public disclosure.
If this bill passes, can we honestly say we trust Flock not to cash in?
Can we really believe that a company already helping ICE track vehicles and building a nationwide surveillance network wouldn’t use data from Mountlake Terrace next—tapping into footage collected on our streets and shared across jurisdictions?
If we don’t set clear boundaries now—if we don’t close the door—we’re leaving it wide open.
We may not be able to stop what’s happening at the national level. But we can still choose how we participate. Or whether we participate at all.
Where We Go From Here
We can’t undo the June 5 vote. But we can still shape what happens next.
Here’s what Mountlake Terrace can do now:
Affirm our values publicly, as Olympia did
Require public review of all MOUs before any data is shared
Re-establish a Community Policing Advisory Board to audit usage and report to the public
Commit to public audit reports on how the system is being used, shared, and what’s being accessed
The cameras haven’t been installed.
The MOUs aren’t finalized.
The oversight isn’t defined.
There’s still time to do this right.
Let’s not pretend the stakes are small—or that this isn’t part of something bigger.
The only question is whether we’ll meet the moment.
Until next time,
Dustin