Lake County, FL Privacy & Surveillance: Security Camera Rules (2026)

Sec. 3-78(a) makes it unlawful to install any video camera, license plate reader, or other surveillance device on county-owned property, a publicly dedicated right-of-way, or a publicly dedicated easement, for the purpose of watching people who use that property, unless the Board of County Commissioners has authorized it. If an owner refuses a removal request from the County Manager, the county can take the device down without paying for it, and the owner then has to pay removal, labor and storage costs before getting it back.

Three carve-outs exist. First, a device on a right-of-way or easement that is outside the county's maintenance system, has no actual travelled road, and has never received county emergency work still needs a Right-of-Way Utilization Permit, but not board approval. Second, an HOA or POA request for video-only cameras installed on its own internal community roads for security purposes gets the same permit-only treatment, with no board vote required, so long as the devices only record video. Third, FDOT- or county-run traffic camera systems used for real-time traffic monitoring, tolling, or emergency operations need no permit at all.

Anyone who does not fit an exemption must submit to the County Manager a description of why the cameras are needed, why they cannot sit on private property instead, how many are proposed and where, and their technical capabilities, before the Board of County Commissioners will even consider the request; approval still requires a Right-of-Way Utilization Permit, and the board can charge a fee for the use of county property.