Florida officials react to FDOT licence plate reader removal order (Aug 31, 2026)

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Regional coverage of the Florida Department of Transportation memorandum of 31 August 2026 ordering removal of licence plate readers from state highway rights-of-way within 30 days. This outlet reports that FDOT will remove the devices itself where agencies do not comply — a point on which reporting differs (see the companion entry).

Governor Ron DeSantis, framing the privacy rationale, said that a person driving to a shop in St. Augustine is "none of the government's damn business."

Okaloosa County Sheriff Eric Aden stated that although the technology has not been ruled unconstitutional, the memorandum eliminates his agency's ability to use it — a formulation worth preserving, since it separates a legal holding from an administrative decision.

Mike Wood of the Pensacola Police Department confirmed that cameras on local and county roads remain in use, saying that as long as they are legal the department will use them. This is the concrete illustration of the order's limited scope: the state can clear its own rights-of-way and leave the large majority of the network running.