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San Marcos is one of many Texas municipalities canceling contracts with companies that provide Automatic License Plate Readers.

The readers are computer-controlled cameras attached to streetlights, highway overpasses and police cars that capture license plate numbers. Proponents of the technology say they’re a powerful law enforcement tool, but opponents say the cameras are too invasive.

San Marcos Deputy Mayor Pro Tem Alyssa Garza said their residents were concerned about privacy and trust.

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"People were very concerned around the idea of having their movements tracked without their knowledge, especially when they're not suspected of any wrongdoing," said Garza. "There were also concerns about how data could be used beyond local policing, data being shared across agencies."

Garza said they opted out of their contract with Flock Safety last year. The city of Austin will also stop using the cameras starting in June.

The Founder and CEO of Flock Safety says the allegations against his company are false. Garza said when they asked license plate reader companies about sharing data with local and federal law enforcement, they weren't satisfied with the response.

"The answers that we were provided either didn't fully answer the question," said Garza, "or it just wasn't in alignment with what we feel is a good program for our constituents, for our neighbors."

Mahroh Jahangiri, senior policy counsel with the nonprofit Local Progress, said the cameras are being used to surveil immigrants and activists across the country.

"Information can be used to target people based on their immigration status," said Jahangiri, "targeting the movements of people who are seeking any kind of health care, that might be difficult to obtain or criminalized where they live, people attending protests."