Amy Acton, a Democratic candidate for Ohio governor, wants to ban the license plate reader cameras Liberty Township approved earlier this year.

Acton, the state's former director of public health, called for a statewide ban on Flock cameras in a Sept. 8 post on X, citing "reports of misuse" of the automated surveillance technology. WLWT reported Saturday that her Republican opponent, businessman Vivek Ramaswamy, has raised similar concerns about potential abuse but has not called for an outright ban.

Liberty Township approved 10 solar-powered Flock cameras for locations on the township's outskirts earlier this year at a cost of about $30,000 per year, paid through the township's contract with the Butler County Sheriff's Office, WCPO reported. In West Chester, Flock cameras helped track suspects in a multi-state burglary ring, leading to arrests, according to a separate WLWT report.

Flock cameras are automated license plate readers that capture a vehicle's plate, make and model, then store the data in a cloud-based system accessible to subscribing law enforcement agencies.

Lt. Michael Nutt, who oversees the Liberty Township substation, said in February that officers must log a reason every time they access the database. "… That's all it can do," Nutt said of the cameras at the time, describing them as a tool for finding vehicles tied to crimes.

Butler County Police Chiefs Association President Patrick Carr, also Trenton's police chief, defended the technology in August. Carr said Flock captures only a still photo of a vehicle and plate and that images are accessed only for specific investigations, Fox 19 reported.

But the cameras face growing opposition across the region. Hamilton County Sheriff Charmaine McGuffey paused all 75 of her office's Flock cameras on Sept. 3, citing concerns about data access and sharing, WLWT reported. That network cost roughly $225,000 a year. McGuffey called it a pause, not a cancellation, and said no deputies in her department had misused the system.

Liberty Township's cameras, funded through Butler County, are not part of the Hamilton County network and were not affected by McGuffey's decision.

The issue has also reached the Ohio Statehouse. Rep. Levi Dean, a Xenia Republican, drafted a bill that would require police to obtain a warrant before accessing Flock data. Sen. Al Cutrona, a Canfield Republican, filed a separate bill focused on data-use rules that would make improper access a fourth-degree felony, StateNews.org reported. Lawmakers are not expected to take up either bill until after the Nov. 3 election.

Acton posted that she would "work across the aisle to ban their use statewide." Ramaswamy, at a July campaign event, warned against a "Chinese-style surveillance state" but favored regulation over a blanket prohibition, WLWT reported. At least 23 jurisdictions nationwide have canceled Flock contracts or rejected the technology as of August, according to an ABC News report. In Greater Cincinnati, Oxford ended its Flock program.

West Chester Township and Liberty Township officials have not publicly commented on the proposed ban.