Chico, California police department shared license-plate data with ICE and Border Patrol for two years in violation of state law

On July 25, 2026, ChicoSol News reported that the Chico, California Police Department had been sharing automated license-plate-reader (ALPR) data with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement field offices, U.S. Border Patrol sectors, and more than 80 out-of-state law enforcement agencies since February 28, 2024, under a memorandum of understanding the department entered with a vendor-run data-sharing network. California's SB 34 restricts ALPR data sharing to in-state agencies, and SB 54, the California Values Act, separately bars local law enforcement from assisting federal immigration enforcement; ChicoSol's public-records request found records current as of July 7, 2026 showing 20 federal agencies and more than 80 out-of-state agencies with standing access to Chico's camera network, including ICE Enforcement and Removal Operations, ICE Homeland Security Investigations, and Border Patrol.

Chico Police Chief Billy Aldridge told ChicoSol the sharing was never intended to assist immigration enforcement and said the department shut off outside access once it learned of the arrangement, calling it an oversight from when the system was set up nearly two years earlier. City Council member Addison Winslow said he had previously been given incorrect information about the program and that "nobody really seemed to know" the data was reaching agencies barred by state law. ACLU of Northern California senior staff attorney Nick Hidalgo said the stated law-enforcement purpose does not change the legal violation, since SB 34 "is crystal clear" that California agencies cannot share ALPR data with any out-of-state or federal law enforcement agency, including for criminal investigations.

Updates

2026-07-28 — City opened internal review of ALPR data-sharing MOUs [4]

Chico's city attorney's and city manager's offices, alongside the police department, opened a formal internal investigation into how the department's ALPR data-sharing agreements were signed and used. Interim City Manager Erik Gustafson said the results would be shared publicly once available. Chico PD had not, as of this development, responded to requests to document that outside data sharing had actually stopped.

2026-08-07 — California AG declined to confirm Chico PD investigation status [3]

The California Attorney General's office would not confirm or deny whether it was investigating Chico PD. ACLU of Northern California senior staff attorney Nick Hidalgo said the department's voluntary shutdown of outside access could reduce the odds of an enforcement lawsuit; Attorney General Rob Bonta has previously sued only one California city, El Cajon, over ALPR data-sharing violations, after it repeatedly refused to stop the practice. Chico PD said it has begun a full audit of its data-sharing history and is reviewing its policies.

2026-08-12 — Review findings expected before Chico City Council in September [5]

City Councilmember Addison Winslow said the internal review was expected to be complete by early September and presented to the City Council at one of its September meetings (Sept. 1 or Sept. 15), after which the council would decide what to do with the department's 27 license-plate-reader cameras. Access to the ALPR data remained restricted to California law enforcement agencies pending the review.