Dievendorf, Fellow Lawmakers Call on MDOT to Keep Surveillance Technology Off Michigan Roads

LANSING, Mich., July 27, 2026 — Members of the Michigan Legislature sent a letter to the Michigan Department of Transportation (MDOT) urging them not to participate in the Master Maintenance Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with Customs and Border Patrol. Under the MOU, surveillance equipment, including automatic license plate readers (ALPRs), could be placed on Michigan state transportation infrastructure. 

“We have seen this administration expand its surveillance practices at an alarming rate,” said State Rep. Emily Dievendorf (D-Lansing). “All of this comes with serious risks to one’s personal privacy, and having this data in the hands of federal agencies like Customs and Border Patrol and ICE raises further concerns about what these technologies and the data they collect mean for some of the most vulnerable in our communities.”

Numerous civil liberty organizations have raised both first and fourth amendment concerns about these surveillance systems. The letter also details issues with misidentification and an overreliance leading to unnecessary traffic stops and mistaken detentions.

“We cannot allow mass surveillance to be the norm on our streets,” said State Rep. Erin Byrnes (D-Dearborn). “Privacy is a right, not a privilege, and these surveillance technologies risk seriously infringing that right. We are urging MDOT to reverse their decision and terminate the MOU to protect the privacy of Michiganders.” 

Specifically, the letter requests that MDOT: 

1. Exercise its authority to terminate the MOU governing federal law enforcement surveillance equipment on state trunkline rights-of-way;
2. Decline to enter into any future agreements authorizing the installation of ALPR cameras or similar automated surveillance systems on MDOT-controlled infrastructure;
3. Conduct a comprehensive public review of any existing surveillance technology deployments on state transportation property;
4. Provide transparency regarding data collection, retention, sharing practices and agency access associated with any existing surveillance systems; and
5. Work with legislators, civil rights organizations, local governments and affected communities to develop privacy-protective standards before any future surveillance technologies are authorized on state-owned infrastructure.

“We are highly concerned about the cameras operated by CBP, and deeply disappointed that state authorities showed such little regard for the constitutional rights of Michigan residents by approving this request,” said Christine Sauvé, the Policy, Engagement, and Communications Manager for the Michigan Immigrant Rights Center. “While the potential harm to immigrant communities is alarming, both citizens and noncitizens could be affected. Michiganders going about their business may not realize federal agents are surveilling them. Reports in other states indicate that the majority of stops affect people with lawful presence or citizenship simply going about their day, when they are inappropriately stopped by law enforcement. With cameras now placed alongside busy Michigan highways the impact could be far reaching. This kind of widespread surveillance does not make our communities safer but it does raise the serious possibility of unlawful searches and constitutional violations. We urge state officials to protect the rights of all Michiganders by cancelling permission for these cameras on state land.”

“Public safety will always be a top concern, and that is why we often work with local law enforcement, who know their communities best, to ensure surveillance technology is only utilized in specific circumstances,” Dievendorf added. “This is entirely different.Tracking the movements of millions of Michiganders who have done nothing wrong does not sound like a free country to me. It sounds like a surveillance state in which the government gets to know the intimate details of your daily life. Privacy should never be the price of security and that is why we are calling on MDOT to listen to communities and civil liberties leaders across Michigan when we say, we don’t want these dangerous surveillance systems on our roads.”

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