Texas $1 Insurance Fee Funds Massive Flock Camera Network Across State

Texas’s 2023 $1 auto-insurance fee to curb catalytic converter theft has funded a rapid Flock-camera expansion, with the Motor Vehicle Crime Prevention Authority directing at least $30 million to install thousands of cameras and awarding 95 grants to support about 2,000 Flock cameras, plus a $15.9 million DPS contract to add nearly 1,200 more (and another $3 million for 583 additional cameras). Abbott paused local grants for Flock projects, while critics warn of privacy intrusions and warrantless surveillance and lawmakers consider guardrails or bans. Estimates of total Texas Flock cameras vary widely, from several thousand to about 13,000 statewide.