ST. LOUIS—Missouri Gov. Mike Kehoe on Thursday issued new recommendations aimed at preventing abuse of license plate cameras amid nationwide scrutiny of the technology.

A 10-page guide on "best practices" includes guidelines to restrict use to "legitimate law enforcement" purposes, strengthening accountability for individuals with access to the camera data, and conducting monthly reviews of the system.

The recommendations are aimed at reining in use of the technology while law enforcement groups, including the Missouri Police Chiefs Association and the Missouri Association of Prosecuting Attorneys, work on legislation to codify the policies into law.

High-profile stories of misuse have generated controversy nationwide. In Florida, the state Department of Transportations has ordered the cameras off all state roads, and locally, police employees in Brentwood and St. Charles County have been accused of misusing license plate databases.

"Automatic license plate readers have proven to be an incredibly effective crime-fighting tool at a time when many law enforcement agencies are experiencing very significant officer shortages," Kehoe, a Republican, said in a written statement. "However, comprehensive legislation must be enacted to guarantee ALPRs are only used for legitimate law enforcement purposes, privacy is protected, and there are very serious consequences for those that break the rules regarding any ALPR restrictions that are adopted."

The recommendations expand on Kehoe's Sept. 16 executive order that placed limits on the technology, including narrowing data storage to a maximum of 30 days and barring the use of facial recognition technology. The order and new guidelines are aimed at state agencies and local law enforcement departments that receive state funding.

The guide issued Tuesday was developed from a two-week review that involved local and national law enforcement associations, said Missouri Department of Public Safety Director Mark James.

Many local departments, including the Missouri State Highway Patrol, have already adopted "very significant guardrails" for the camera technology, which have provided "pivotal leads" in investigations ranging from child abductions to homicides, he said.

Among other recommendations, the guide released Tuesday calls for police to:

• Require every search be tied to an authorized law enforcement use and be traceable back to the employee who performed the search.
• Require each person with access to camera data have their own assigned account and refrain from sharing their credentials with other employees.
• Identify one person to serve as a camera administrator with responsibility over department access to the system, trainings, and oversight of data sharing and retention.
• Require officers to independently verify information obtained through the camera system before taking any enforcement action.
• Establish a process to fix cameras that misread license plates or cause errors with data.
• Establish a process for investigating complaints of misuse.
• Preserve records of internal audit logs so they can be reviewed by the Missouri Department of Public Safety.

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