CITY OF SEATTLE

ORDINANCE __________________

COUNCIL BILL __________________

AN ORDINANCE relating to surveillance technology implementation; authorizing approval of uses and accepting the 2024 surveillance impact report and 2024 executive overview for the Seattle Police Department’s use of Closed-Circuit Television Camera Systems; amending Ordinance 126955, which adopted the 2024 budget; and lifting a proviso.

WHEREAS, Section 14.18.020 of the Seattle Municipal Code (SMC), enacted by Ordinance 125376 and last amended by Ordinance 125679, requires City Council approval of a surveillance impact report (SIR) related to uses of surveillance technology; and

WHEREAS, SMC 14.18.020 applies to the proposed Closed-Circuit Television Camera Systems technology to be used by the Seattle Police Department (SPD); and

WHEREAS, the Seattle Police Department conducted policy rule review and community review as part of the development of the Closed-Circuit Television Camera Systems SIR; and

WHEREAS, SMC 14.18.080, enacted by Ordinance 125679, also requires review of the Closed-Circuit Television Camera Systems SIR by the Community Surveillance Working Group, composed of relevant stakeholders, and a statement from the Chief Technology Officer in response to the Working Group’s recommendations; and

WHEREAS, development of the Closed-Circuit Television Camera Systems SIR and review by the Working Group have been completed; and

WHEREAS, the City of Seattle is exploring new technologies to help deter and detect criminal activity in specific locations where gun violence, human trafficking, and persistent felony crime is concentrated; and

WHEREAS, the City of Seattle is committed to preserving protected free speech and expression throughout the deployment of surveillance technology, and the Council supports the development of an omnibus surveillance technology policy addressing technologies including Closed-Circuit Television Systems; and

WHEREAS, the Technology Assisted Crime Prevention Pilot Project is a new public safety program that will combine a Closed-Circuit Television (CCTV) System with Real-Time Crime Center (RTCC) software together in one view; and

WHEREAS, the CCTV cameras will only monitor public places like the street, sidewalk, and other public areas and signs will be posted identifying their presence; and

WHEREAS, Real-Time Crime Center (RTCC) software provides a centralized location for real-time information and analysis; integrates dispatch, camera, officer location, 911 calls, records management, and other information into one single view; and

WHEREAS, the group of new technologies is one component to an overall One Seattle Safety Framework and will help the City’s public safety response to aid victims, hold accountable those responsible for gun violence, alert real-time crime center staff to a serious criminal event, see multiple streams of information overlaid on a map view, and convey that information to officers who are responding in the field; and

WHEREAS, the Office of the Inspector General for Public Safety and SPD will collaborate to retain academic subject matter experts to develop and manage an implementation and outcome evaluation of the pilot project; and

WHEREAS, the police department will create a public-facing dashboard that will update frequently and report on the uses of the technologies; and

WHEREAS, at the end of the pilot project, a determination will be made about continuing the project, making changes to the project design, discontinuing the project, or moving the technology to another location where gun violence, human trafficking, or persistent felony crime is concentrated; NOW, THEREFORE,

BE IT ORDAINED BY THE CITY OF SEATTLE AS FOLLOWS:

Section 1. Pursuant to Ordinances 125376 and 125679, the City Council approves use of the Seattle Police Department’s Closed-Circuit Television Camera Systems. The City Council accepts the 2024 Surveillance Impact Report (SIR) for this technology, attached to this ordinance as Attachment 1, and the Executive Overview for the same technology, attached to this ordinance as Attachment 2.

Section 2. The Seattle Police Department shall, as part of the Technology Assisted Crime Prevention Pilot project, provide a report to the Public Safety Committee or its successor on the evaluation assessments that will be conducted at the end of 2025 and at the end of 2026 as detailed in the Surveillance Impact Report.

Section 3. The Council requests that the Seattle Police Department (SPD) include in any contract with a vendor for the implementation of Real-Time Crime Center software technology terms: 1) a requirement that the vendor immediately notify SPD if the vendor receives a warrant or subpoena seeking SPD Real-Time Crime Center data for any purpose, including purposes related to reproductive healthcare or gender-affirming medical services; and 2) a requirement that the vendor retain legal counsel to challenge any such warrant or subpoena and advise of outcome or existence of warrant after expiration. SPD shall notify the Council upon receipt of information related to a vendor warrant or subpoena described in this section. SPD shall provide the Council with a copy of the Real-Time Crime Center software vendor contract once executed but no later than December 31, 2024.

  Section 4. The Seattle Police Department shall not disclose Closed-Circuit Television Camera data in response to a records request made under the Public Records Act (chapter 42.56 RCW), or otherwise publicly disclose Closed-Circuit Television Camera data, in a manner inconsistent with SPD protocols governing redactions, including protections for victims of crime, minors, and health care facilities, unless required to do so by court order or applicable law. The Seattle Police Department's legal counsel shall promptly notify the City Council’s legislative legal counsel of any such court order or applicable law.

Section 5. The Seattle Police Department shall, as part of the planned outcome evaluation of the Closed-Circuit Television Camera Systems pilot project, conduct a study reporting on the appropriateness, feasibility, and cost of additional potential future Closed-Circuit Television Camera deployments in areas of the city beyond those in the current pilot project, including but not limited to the Alki and Harbor Avenue areas of West Seattle. This study shall also evaluate the potential use of Closed-Circuit Television Cameras for a range of public safety concerns beyond those specific crimes identified in the SIR for purposes of the pilot project, including but not limited to unlawful racing and related community safety challenges.

Section 6. The Seattle Police Department shall report to the Public Safety Committee or successor committee, by December 31 of each year beginning in 2025, the number of subpoenas, warrants, and public disclosure requests for Closed-Circuit Television Camera data received during that year, the status of these data requests or orders, and the number and originating jurisdictions of these requests or orders from outside of Washington State, to the extent the relevant jurisdiction can be determined.

Section 7. The restrictions imposed by the following budget proviso, which limits spending on the following item, are removed because the conditions set forth in the proviso have been satisfied and they are no longer restrictions for any purpose.

Section 8. This ordinance shall take effect as provided by Seattle Municipal Code Sections 1.04.020 and 1.04.070.

Passed by the City Council the ________ day of _________________________, 2024, and signed by me in open session in authentication of its passage this ________ day of _________________________, 2024.

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President ____________ of the City Council

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Bruce A. Harrell, Mayor

Filed by me this ________ day of _________________________, 2024.

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Scheereen Dedman, City Clerk

(Seal)