Records & FOIA
Have I been searched?
Honest answer up front: no public tool can show every time a camera photographed your car. What public tools can show is whether your plate appears in search audit logs released through FOIA requests and transparency portals — records that are incomplete, delayed, and often redacted. Mountain Home does not appear to publish a live Flock Transparency Portal (unlike, for example, Fort Smith, Arkansas), and nobody outside Flock and the agency can rebuild Flock's live capture database. Here's what you can actually do.
Check national FOIA-released search logs
Community tool · Primary
Have I Been Flocked?
Enter a plate and see whether it appears in the 240M+ published Flock search audit rows released through FOIA nationwide. This is a search-log check, not a record of every photo taken of your car. We deep-link out — we don't collect or store plates for this check.
Check your plate at haveibeenflocked.comMountain Home FOIA — request the audits yourself
The Flock audits below are records MHPD can export. Arkansas' FOIA generally requires a response within three working days, applies to Arkansas residents, and media fees may apply for long audio/video pulls. Need help with wording? Email support@deflockmountainhomearkansas.com.
- Mountain Home Police — Freedom of Information page
- City of Mountain Home — FOI request form
- Email the records custodian directly: records@mtnhomepolice.com
Build your own records request
Answer the questions and the letter writes itself. Nothing you type leaves this browser: download it as a PDF, open it in your own email app, or print it and hand it in. Agency details checked 2026-09-22. This is information, not legal advice.
October 20, 2026 FOIA Unit, Mountain Home Police Department 720 South Hickory Street, Mountain Home, AR 72653 Re: Request for public records under the Arkansas Freedom of Information Act, Ark. Code Ann. § 25-19-101 et seq. Dear Records Custodian, I am a citizen of Arkansas. Under the Arkansas Freedom of Information Act I request copies of the following public records held by the Mountain Home Police Department: 1. The Flock Safety Organization Audit, Network Audit and Event Log exports (CSV from Flock Insights) for the last 12 months, including every search: date and time, user, reason given, plate or vehicle description searched, and the networks queried. 2. All contracts, purchase orders, quotes, invoices, renewal notices and grant documents for automated license plate reader (ALPR) systems, including Flock Safety and Avigilon, with term, cost and renewal dates. 3. All data-sharing agreements, memoranda of understanding and mutual-aid arrangements for ALPR data; the list of every Flock network, agency and organization the agency shares its data with, and every network it can search. Please provide electronic copies where they exist, in their original format (CSV or spreadsheet for exports, PDF for documents). If any part of a record is withheld, please release the rest and cite the specific exemption relied on for each withheld part, as § 25-19-105 requires. If fulfilling this request will cost more than $25, please tell me the estimate before doing the work. As provided by § 25-19-105(e), please respond within three working days. Thank you for your help.
Add your name, address and email, pick at least one record type, and tick the citizen box to enable the buttons.
- Keep the PDF and note the date and time you sent it (below).
- The custodian has three working days to respond once the request is received.
- If part is withheld, they must cite the exemption. If refused or ignored, the Arkansas Attorney General's office and circuit court are the next steps.
Or copy the standard audit letter
Dear Records Custodian, Under the Arkansas Freedom of Information Act (Ark. Code Ann. § 25-19-101 et seq.), I request copies of the following records held by the Mountain Home Police Department / City of Mountain Home regarding automated license plate reader (ALPR) systems, including but not limited to Flock Safety: 1. The Flock Safety Organization Audit (CSV export from Flock Insights) for [date range — e.g., the last 12 months, or all available]. 2. The Flock Safety Network Audit (CSV) for the same period. 3. The Flock Safety Event Log (CSV) for the same period. 4. A list of all Flock networks shared with MHPD, and all networks MHPD shares its data out to. 5. The current ALPR/Flock contract, use policies, configured retention settings, and whether a Flock Transparency Portal is enabled. 6. All contracts, quotes, invoices, and renewal notices for ALPR systems, with term and renewal dates. 7. All data-sharing agreements with other agencies. I prefer these records in machine-readable CSV/spreadsheet format. If a redacted portal export exists, please do not redirect me solely to it if the full audits exist. I am an Arkansas resident. Please advise if any portion is withheld and cite the exemption. Please respond within three working days as provided by law. Sincerely, [Your name, address, email]
Demand local transparency
Fort Smith publishes a Flock Transparency Portal today; Texarkana once published its audit logs openly. Local reporting, including the Mountain Home Observer, has called for MHPD to do the same. Ask City Council and MHPD to enable a public Transparency Portal and publish Organization and Network audits on a regular schedule.
Local ledger
Mountain Home audit logs we obtain will be listed here for download and search. None yet — if you've received a FOIA release you're willing to share, send it to support@deflockmountainhomearkansas.com. We will never ask you to submit your license plate to this site.
Briefs you can hand out
- Mountain Home ALPR data control brief (PDF)Council-ready summary of who controls the data and what to ask.
- "Nothing to hide" surveillance comparison (PDF)Printable one-pager for neighbors, meetings, and tabling.
What to ask for
- Every contract, quote, invoice, and renewal notice for automated license plate readers, including vendor name and term dates.
- The current ALPR policy, including who may run a search, what justification is required, and who audits it.
- A log of ALPR searches for the last 12 months, including date, requesting user, agency, and stated reason (redacted as required).
- Any data-sharing agreements with other agencies, states, or federal partners.
- The retention schedule actually configured in the system, and any exceptions in force.
- The number and location of each device operated or accessed by the agency.
What Arkansas law already says
Official record · Ark. Code § 12-12-1804
Arkansas sets a general retention cap of roughly 150 days for license plate reader data, with exceptions when data is tied to an active investigation. Government entities may not sell, trade, or exchange captured plate data, and data that is evidence of an offense may be shared with law enforcement. None of that stops a city from deciding it does not want the cameras at all.
Official record · Act 668 of 2025 (SB446)
Enacted in April 2025, Act 668 expanded permitted private use of automated license plate readers by private landowners, leaseholders, and commercial businesses. This is why ownership of the locally mapped pins is a genuine open question rather than a formality: a roadside device is not automatically a government device, and the answer changes which records request applies.
Where to send it
Official forms
- City of Mountain Home FOIA request form — the official form for the City and Police Department.
- Baxter County Sheriff records instructions (FAQ) — how the Sheriff's Office handles records requests.
- Arkansas Attorney General — Opinions & FOIA — state guidance and opinions if a request is refused.
Mountain Home public accountability hub
The two briefs above are hosted on the Mountain Home public accountability hub, which keeps the deeper evidence desk. Deflock Mountain Home handles the organizing side: getting neighbors into the room when these contracts come up.
Open the accountability hub