Legislation that would set guidelines for the retention of data acquired by law enforcement agencies through the use of automated license plate readers had its first hearing in the Transportation Committee on Wednesday. This controversial bill would allow law enforcement to retain the data for 90 days, after which point it would be erased. Police claim they need to retain the data in order to effectively investigate crime, while privacy advocates say there should be no retention of data. Minnesota currently has no guidelines in place regarding license plate readers, and this legislation is seen as a way to balance privacy concerns with those of police investigations. The bill was laid over to allow further discussion. (S.F. 86)
