Borough of Hopatcong ยท Filed July 6, 2026
15 documents produced, 2 not produced
Hopatcong Police Department operates four automated license plate reader (ALPR) cameras mounted on poles along Sussex County roads. Each camera photographs passing vehicles, reads their plates, and logs the time, location, and vehicle details such as make and color. The volume is substantial: the cameras log roughly 15,000 to 22,000 vehicles a day, and more than three million reads in 2026 alone through July 9. Despite that volume, the system generated zero real-time hotlist alerts in 2026; every one of the 864 searches performed this year was a retrospective lookup, not a proactive match.
The program has cost the Borough $37,400 in documented spending since 2023, across three billing cycles: $12,400 in Year 1, $11,000 in Year 2, and $14,000 on the most recent renewal, which runs through 2027. The per-camera price rose from $2,500 to $3,000 at renewal, and the extended data-retention fee doubled. The Borough has confirmed that no grant funding was used; this is entirely local tax money.
The Borough has also confirmed, in writing, that the Borough Council's only action on this program was approving payment to the vendor. No resolution, ordinance, or vote specifically authorizing the acquisition, installation, or operation of these cameras has been identified. The Borough further confirmed it issued no public notice of any kind, no press release, no notice, no FAQ, and no community presentation, informing residents that this camera network was being installed.
The data does not stay in Hopatcong. The cameras feed into NJ SNAP, the New Jersey Statewide Networked ALPR Program, and under a New Jersey Attorney General directive, that network gives law enforcement agencies across the state what the state's own policy describes as "unfettered access" to the collected reads. The Borough has confirmed 26 Hopatcong PD officers currently hold accounts with search access. The Borough has not named any specific outside agency that has actually queried Hopatcong's data, citing NJ AG Directive 2022-12, Section 7.1, which classifies stored ALPR data as a "criminal investigatory record" that cannot be shared outside law enforcement without a subpoena or court order. Flock Group Inc., the private company that owns the cameras outright under the contract, also holds a perpetual license to use the data captured here to train its own commercial software. Footage is set to auto-delete after 30 days unless the Borough downloads it first.
Hopatcong PD maintains an ALPR policy, an assigned coordinator, and submits the state's required annual audits. Those audits reported 2 minor violations in 2024 and 5 in 2025, with 0 significant violations and 0 citizen complaints in either year. The Borough has since confirmed the 5 violations in 2025 were each a failure to enter a case number into the system, not a confirmed case of accessing or misusing resident data. The nature of the 2024 violations is still unknown; the Borough says it is waiting on the State for that year's completed audit paperwork, more than a year and a half after the fact.
Two additional details stand out on the county permits. The exact location of each camera is redacted on all four road-opening permits; the only location detail the Borough itself has released is three GPS coordinate pairs the requestor listed when filing, for four cameras. All four camera locations have since been identified independently through FlockHopper, a community-built ALPR map, and are shown on the Camera Map; these remain community-sourced, not confirmed by the Borough. The Borough has cited specific state security exemptions for its own redaction, arguing disclosure could let the equipment be tampered with. Separately, two of the four permits flag that a camera pole had not been installed to the required break-away post specification, a safety detail rather than a privacy one.
The Borough's response left one item genuinely outstanding: internal correspondence about the purchase and installation, which the Borough says is still being collected and reviewed before release. A full list of outside agencies with access to Hopatcong's data remains an open gap, tracked in full on the Not produced tab. The specific bills-list resolutions behind the three payments have since been identified through independently obtained Council agenda packets and are shown on the Timeline, though no resolution specifically authorizing the program itself has been found.
Records concerning the Borough's Flock Safety automated license plate reader (ALPR) camera program: the vendor contract, purchase orders and invoices, installation permits, the ALPR policy and audit certifications, usage analytics, and related authorization and data-sharing records.
The original OPRA request form and its Rider A as filed with the Borough of Hopatcong, itemizing eleven categories of records sought about the Flock Safety automated license plate reader camera program.
The public records request and its rider carry no personal information and are cleared for release.
Open the document (PDF)The New Jersey Attorney General directive governing statewide ALPR data sharing. Under this directive, the NJ SNAP network provides "unfettered access into ALPR captured read data" among state, county, and local law enforcement agencies across New Jersey, meaning Hopatcong's plate reads are queryable well beyond Hopatcong PD. The Borough certifies its ALPR policy is compliant with this directive.
Breakdown of the 864 total documented searches of the stored ALPR data by stated reason: Motor Vehicle Theft/Stolen (401, 46.4 percent), Larceny/Theft (106, 12.3 percent), Hit and Run/Car Accident (80, 9.3 percent), Fleeing/Eluding (42), Vandalism (38), Welfare Check (30), Traffic Infraction (8), and Illegal Dumping/Littering (7).
Agreement with Flock Group Inc., signed by Chief Meghan McCluskey. Flock owns the cameras (title never passes to the Borough); $500-per-camera removal fee on cancellation. Footage auto-deleted on a rolling 30-day basis (7 days for Wing Replay). Borough grants Flock a perpetual license to anonymize and aggregate Agency Data to train Flock machine-learning systems. New Jersey governing law. Listed total for the initial term: $23,400.
Three billing cycles of purchase orders and invoices for the Flock Safety ALPR camera program. Year 1 (contract signed 2023-03-14): PO 23-02028, invoice INV-23810, check 48845, total $12,400 (4 cameras at $2,500 each = $10,000, one-time implementation fee $1,400, 1-year extended data retention $1,000). Year 2 (2024-2025): PO 24-01688, invoice INV-46375, check 50104, total $11,000 (4 cameras at $2,500 each plus $1,000 data retention). Renewal Year 1 (2026-2027): PO 25-01914, invoice INV-87740, check 52273, total $14,000 (per-camera price rose to $3,000, 4 x $3,000 = $12,000; data retention doubled to $500 per camera under a new "NJ - 3 Years" line, $2,000). Total documented taxpayer spend to date across all three billing cycles: $37,400.
Four Sussex County road-opening permits (Nos. 190, 191, 192, and 193 of 2023) authorizing installation of the four Flock Safety ALPR cameras in county road right-of-way. All four were issued 2023-12-15 at a $0 fee under the Sussex County ALPR ordinance adopted 2023-09-13. The specific location (county route, mile post, nearest intersection, and block/lot) is redacted by the county on all four permits. Permits No. 192 and No. 193 each carry a compliance note that the camera had not been installed per the provided break-away post detail and was to be reinstalled in accordance with it.
New Jersey Statewide Networked ALPR Program annual audit certification. Random sampling found 2 minor ALPR violations, 0 significant violations, 0 citizen complaints. Agency ALPR Coordinator Dsg. Anthony Cirri. Systems in use listed as NJ SNAP and Flock Safety.
NJ SNAP annual audit certification. Random sampling found 5 minor violations, 0 significant violations, 0 citizen complaints. Borough certifies it retains 3 years of audit and sample data and maintains an ALPR policy compliant with NJ AG Directive 2022-12.
Standard operating procedure governing local use of the ALPR cameras, effective 2023-01-24, compliant with NJ Attorney General Directive 2022-12.
Produced Flock analytics: roughly 15,000 to 22,000 vehicle reads per day; 594,582 reads over the June 16 to July 9, 2026 window; 3,185,635 reads year-to-date in 2026. 864 total searches by stated reason, top reason Motor Vehicle Theft/Stolen (401, 46.4 percent), then Larceny/Theft (106), Hit and Run/Car Accident (80), Fleeing/Eluding (42), Vandalism (38); lower-level uses include Welfare Check (30), Traffic Infraction (8), Illegal Dumping/Littering (7).
Council meeting agenda packet from the meeting held December 20, 2023.
Approved minutes of the Council meeting held December 20, 2023.
Council meeting agenda packet from the meeting held October 16, 2024.
Approved minutes of the Council meeting held October 16, 2024.
Council meeting agenda from the meeting held March 4, 2026.
Approved minutes of the Council meeting held March 4, 2026.
Every item below was requested but has no produced document on file. Some are still outstanding. For others, the agency has directly confirmed that no such record exists, which is itself a form of answer. Each card explains why the item matters and what the agency has said.
Why it matters: Shows whether elected officials publicly approved the program and on what record. The Borough has confirmed no such resolution exists: the only Council action taken was approving payment to the vendor. The specific bills-list resolutions behind those payments have since been identified through independently obtained Council agenda packets (Resolution 2023-175, adopted December 20, 2023; Resolution 2024-138, adopted October 16, 2024; and Resolution 2026-71, adopted March 4, 2026) and are shown on the Timeline. No resolution, ordinance, or motion specifically authorizing the acquisition, installation, or operation of the cameras has been found.
Why it matters: Reveals whether the cameras were paid for locally or with state or federal grant money that carries its own conditions. The Borough has confirmed no grant funding was used; the program is funded entirely with local tax dollars.
Why it matters: The reads feed NJ SNAP, so residents deserve to know exactly which agencies can query plate reads of their vehicles. The Borough has confirmed 26 Hopatcong PD officers hold search access, but has not named any specific outside agency, citing NJ AG Directive 2022-12, Section 7.1, which classifies stored ALPR data as a "criminal investigatory record" that cannot be shared outside law enforcement without a subpoena or court order. That explains the Borough's legal basis for not tracking or disclosing a list, but not whether any outside agency has actually queried Hopatcong's data. A follow-up request for the specific agency list has been filed.
Why it matters: Internal discussion shows how the decision was made and what concerns, if any, were raised. The Borough has acknowledged this request and asked for a two-week extension to complete it, citing collection by its IT provider and review by the Borough Attorney.
Why it matters: Indicates whether the Borough told residents the cameras were being installed and how they are used. The Borough has confirmed none exist: no press release, public notice, FAQ, or community presentation was ever issued about this camera program.
Source: Borough of Hopatcong, request filed July 6, 2026.