Future grants administered by the Texas Comptroller of Public Accounts cannot pay for automated license plate readers or related vehicle-identification services, according to an Oct. 13 agency release.
For local agencies planning to seek that funding, the change limits what a future award could buy. The comptroller says it will put the restriction in relevant grant solicitations and agreements.
New Braunfels police have reported grant-funded license plate reader purchases, but the available records do not establish that those awards came through the comptroller’s office or that existing cameras must be removed. In a Sept. 30 city workshop, Police Chief Osvaldo Flores reported awards for the department’s automated license plate reader program across several fiscal years. That local account shows why the funding question matters here; it does not identify the administrator of each award.
The comptroller says the order covers purchases, contracts, extensions and renewals paid for with its future grants. It describes covered products broadly, including cameras, software, subscriptions and data platforms that turn plate or other vehicle images into computer-readable data. The next useful check is a relevant grant solicitation or agreement: residents can inspect the comptroller’s announcement for the stated scope, then compare it with any future local award to see whether this restriction applies.