Lawrence, MA Privacy & Surveillance: Facial Recognition Ban (2026)

Section 9.25.020.E.1(e) of the Lawrence Code defines surveillance technology to include biometric surveillance technology, including facial, voice, iris, and gait-recognition software and databases. That places facial recognition inside the same approval gate that Chapter 9.25 sets for every other listed technology: Section 9.25.030.A requires a municipal entity to obtain city council approval, after a mandatory, properly noticed public hearing, before seeking funds for facial-recognition software, acquiring or borrowing it, using it for a purpose not previously approved, or entering an agreement to share facial-recognition data with an outside agency. The chapter does not use the word ban; it is a permission-and-oversight structure, not a prohibition, so facial recognition can be deployed in Lawrence if the council approves the required paperwork.

That paperwork is substantial. Under Section 9.25.040, the requesting department must publicly release a surveillance impact report describing how the facial-recognition system works, its proposed purpose, and any disparate civil-rights impact, plus a surveillance use policy fixing authorized uses, a data retention period with a written justification for its length, and rules for sharing facial-recognition data with other governmental entities consistent with 28 C.F.R. Part 23. Section 9.25.100.B additionally bars any municipal employee from using facial-recognition technology in a manner that is discriminatory or viewpoint-based, backed by disciplinary proceedings for violations, and Section 9.25.100.C adds whistleblower protection for employees who report misuse. Section 9.25.090 requires an annual public report analyzing any discriminatory or disparate impact the technology had on the public that year.