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HomeMy WebLinkAboutStaff Report 15032 (2) City of Palo Alto (ID # 15032) City Council Staff Report Meeting Date: 12/19/2022 Report Type: INFORMATION REPORTS City of Palo Alto Page 1 Title: Surveillance Technology Report for Fiscal Years 2021 and 2022 From: City Manager Lead Department: City Manager Recommendation This is an informational report about the City’s use of surveillance technology in Palo Alto through Fiscal Year 2022, and no City Council action is required. Background In September 2018, Council adopted the Surveillance and Privacy Protection Ordinance establishing criteria and procedures for protection of personal privacy when considering the acquisition and use of surveillance technologies by the City1. Codified in the Municipal Code at Chapter 2.3, Part 6A, the ordinance also outlines ongoing monitoring and annual reporting of such technologies. Annual reporting should include the following information: 1. A description of how each Council-approved surveillance technology was used, including whether it captured images, sound, or information regarding members of the public who are not suspected of engaging in unlawful conduct; 2. Whether and how often data acquired through the use of the surveillance technology was shared with outside entities, the name of any recipient entity, the types of data disclosed, and the reason for the disclosure; 3. A summary of any community complaints or concerns about the surveillance technology; 4. Non-privileged and non- confidential information regarding the results of any internal audits, information about violations of the surveillance use policy, and any actions taken in response; 5. Whether the surveillance technology has been effective at achieving its identified purpose; 1 City Council 9/10/2018, CMR #8834, https://www.cityofpaloalto.org/files/assets/public/agendas-minutes- reports/reports/city-manager-reports-cmrs/year-archive/2018/8834.pdf?t=63216.52 26 Packet Pg. 313 City of Palo Alto Page 2 6. The number and nature of Public Records Act requests relating to the surveillance technology; 7. Annual costs for the surveillance technology and for compliance with this surveillance and privacy protection ordinance, including personnel and other ongoing costs, and sources of funding; and 8. Other relevant information as determined by the City Manager. This report covers fiscal years 2021 and 2022. Discussion Pursuant to the approved ordinance, the following departmental activities are summarized in the body of this report. POLICE eCitation devices. On March 14, 2022, Council approved the acquisition of handheld electronic citation devices with Optical Character Recognition (OCR) technology for the purposes of traffic violation enforcement by police officers2. When in use, the cameras capture license plate images that are processed through OCR analysis to call up the vehicle make, and model information used to issue citation violations. The technology improves accuracy of information as well as eliminating the need for manual entry into the Records Management System (RMS). Acquired using COPS grant funding, the contract cost is $78,826. The devices are currently not in operation but are referenced in this report since they were acquired during the reporting period. Implementation of eCitation devices in the field are targeted for 2023. PUBLIC WORKS California Ave Parking Garage and Highway 101 Pedestrian/bicycle Bridge Construction Web Cameras. In September 2020, Council approved the purchase of construction cameras for use at the California Parking Garage and Highway 101 pedestrian/bicycle overpass construction projects3. The purpose of the webcams was to document day-to-day construction progress of the garage and overpass projects. However, the cameras also had the potential to capture images of non-employees or its contractors, making it subject to the Ordinance. The garage camera was position on top of the building at 385 Sherman Avenue with a wide view of the construction site at 350 Sherman Ave. The total cost of the camera was $1,500, paid using bond funds sold for the project. The overpass camera was attached to a streetlight pole on East 2 City Council 3/14/2022, Agenda Item #9, PDF Page 113, https://www.cityofpaloalto.org/files/assets/public/agendas-minutes-reports/agendas-minutes/city-council- agendas-minutes/2022/20220314/20220314pccsm-amended-final-revised-ppt.pdf 3 City Council 9/21/2020, CMR #11359, https://www.cityofpaloalto.org/files/assets/public/agendas-minutes- reports/reports/city-manager-reports-cmrs/year-archive/2020-2/id-11359.pdf 26 Packet Pg. 314 City of Palo Alto Page 3 Bayshore Road, north of the Highway 101 with a wide view of the construction site. The total Highway 101 web cam contract cost was $22,059 and was funded by the General Fund. The Highway 101 pedestrian /bicycle overpass camera feed was available to the public on the City’s website, https://www.cityofpaloalto.org/Departments/Public-Works/Engineering- Services/Engineering-Projects/Highway-101-Pedestrian-Bike-Bridge-Project. The garage camera feed was not made public but a link to the webcam feed was shared with the adjacent property owner due to concerns about construction disruption. Both cameras were taken down at the conclusion of construction. There were no registered complaints or violations reported, nor were there any Public Records Act (PRA) requests associated with the use of the surveillance technology. The cameras were effective at achieving its purpose of showing a time-lapse construction of the project and captured key milestones that kept stakeholders up to date on the project progress. TRANSPORTATION Automatic License Plate Recognition (ALPR). In February 2021, Council approved the use of license plate recognition technology to be used for parking enforcement and permit management4. ALPR technology captures images of license plates to identify vehicle information and track parking time. During the reporting period, there have been no formal complaints filed, violations of its use, nor PRA requests. In assessing its effectiveness, ALPR has been successful in supporting City Residential Preferential Parking programs, providing both enforcement and permit management efficiencies. Future use of ALPR will include use in public garages and lots such as California Avenue garage, as well as other Downtown garages where Parking Guidance System (provides real-time car parking information such as vehicle and slot counts) is planned for deployment. The total annual contract cost is $132,000 paid using Residential Preferential Parking (RPP) funds. Traffic Data Collection Cameras. In April 2021, Council approved the use of video technology for traffic data collection5. The low-resolution video is used to collect bicycle, pedestrian, parking occupancy and vehicular turning movement counts. Data collected is used to inform appropriate traffic control measures or roadway improvements, signal timings, pedestrian, and bicycle roadway improvements. It does not collect or retain audio, visual, location, nor other personally identifiable information of people or vehicles. During the reporting period, no data was shared with outside entities, nor were there any technology use violations. In response to public concerns about the use of the technology, visible and clear information was posted at the location of each camera that clearly identified 4 City Council 2/22/2021, CMR #11492, https://www.cityofpaloalto.org/files/assets/public/agendas-minutes- reports/reports/city-manager-reports-cmrs/year-archive/2021/id-11492.pdf 5 City Council 4/5/2021, CMR #11985, https://www.cityofpaloalto.org/files/assets/public/agendas-minutes- reports/reports/city-manager-reports-cmrs/year-archive/2021/id-11985.pdf 26 Packet Pg. 315 City of Palo Alto Page 4 its use, recording period, service provider name and phone number. The use of the cameras was successful at achieving its intended purpose and provided important and accurate data that otherwise would have been expensive to collect manually. Annual costs associated with the use of the cameras was $200,000, paid by Capital Improvement Program and the General Fund. Stakeholder Engagement Presenting this information to the public, parallel to its transmittal to the City Council, ensures that stakeholders throughout the community remain appraised of the City’s ongoing acquisition and work in surveillance technologies and privacy protections. Environmental Review This informational report is not a project under the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA). 26 Packet Pg. 316