CITY OF SEATTLE
ORDINANCE __________________
COUNCIL BILL __________________
title
AN ORDINANCE relating to surveillance technology implementation; authorizing approval of uses and accepting the 2025 updated surveillance impact report and 2025 executive overview for the Seattle Police Department's use of Closed-Circuit Television Camera Systems.
body
WHEREAS, on October 8, 2024, the City Council passed Ordinance 127110, adopting the original Surveillance Impact Report (SIR) for Closed-Circuit Television Camera Systems (CCTV); and
WHEREAS, the purpose of the CCTV camera program is to prevent crime, collect evidence related to serious and/or violent criminal activity, hold offenders accountable, and in conjunction with the Real-Time Crime Center, provide visual information to analysts in real-time that can assist officers in responding to calls; and
WHEREAS, subsection 14.18.020.F of the Seattle Municipal Code (SMC), which section was enacted by Ordinance 125376 and last amended by Ordinance 125679, states that "[a]ny material update to an SIR, such as to change the purpose or manner in which a surveillance technology may be used, shall be by ordinance"; and
WHERAS, the CCTV pilot deployment areas authorized in the 2024 SIR were Aurora Avenue North, Belltown, and the Downtown Commercial Core; and
WHEREAS, the City Council increased the budget by $200,000 General Fund (2025), with an endorsement for $16,000 General Fund (2026), to expand the Closed-Circuit Television pilot on Aurora to extend the pilot site further south to 85th Street and further north to 145th Street; and
WHERAS, the majority of the cameras have been deployed in the Chinatown-International District, Aurora Avenue North, and Downtown Core; and
WHEREAS, the material update adds the Stadium District, Garfield High School, and the Capitol Hill Nightlife District to the list of eligible CCTV deployment areas and clarifies the retention policy to 30 days after date of recording, or until determined tha...
Click here for full text