SUBSCRIBE TO OUR FREE NEWSLETTER
Daily news & progressive opinion—funded by the people, not the corporations—delivered straight to your inbox.
5
#000000
#FFFFFF
5
#000000
#FFFFFF
Facial recognition software scans and analyzes a woman's facial features. (Photo: izusek/Getty Images)
Maine Sets Example With 'Country's Strongest' Facial Recognition Ban
"Democracy is stronger and communities are safer when we have clear rules and accountability for how governments use new and emerging technologies."
Jun 30, 2021
Civil liberties advocates on Wednesday cheered as Maine enacted what that state's ACLU chapter called "the country's strongest statewide facial recognition law."
"I hope that Maine can provide an example to other states that want to rein in the government's ability to use facial recognition and other invasive biometric technologies."
--Maine Rep. Grayson Lookner, sponsor
The new law--which sailed unanimously through both chambers of the state Legislature and was passed without any action from Democratic Gov. Janet Mills--bans the use of facial recognition technology by most state agencies and for the purpose of surveillance.
The legislation contains exceptions for the investigation of serious crime; the identification of deceased, missing, or endangered persons; and other limited purposes.
When the law goes into effect this October, it will prohibit the use of facial surveillance in schools. It will also ban direct access to facial recognition technology by law enforcement officials, who will have to request such access via the FBI and Maine Bureau of Motor Vehicles in the narrow purview permitted by the legislation.
"Maine is at the forefront of a national movement to preserve civil rights and liberties in the digital age," said Alison Beyea, executive director at the ACLU of Maine, which helped craft the legislation.
" Democracy is stronger and communities are safer when we have clear rules and accountability for how governments use new and emerging technologies," added Beyea.
The bill's sponsor, state Rep. Grayson Lookner--a Portland Democrat--called the new law "a huge victory for privacy rights and civil liberties in Maine."
"It's also a victory for bipartisanship and cooperation," Lookner added. "I hope that Maine can provide an example to other states that want to rein in the government's ability to use facial recognition and other invasive biometric technologies."
The ACLU of Maine said the state's new law "stands in sharp contrast to the only other statewide approach to regulating face recognition in the United States, a law passed in Washington state in 2020."
"That law, which was backed by Microsoft, authorizes police across the state to use facial recognition technology to conduct mass surveillance of people's public movements, habits, and associations," the group added.
Starting with San Francisco in 2019, more than a dozen U.S. municipalities from Portland, Oregon to Portland, Maine have also passed facial recognition bans.
There are no federal rules restricting law enforcement use of facial recognition.
An Urgent Message From Our Co-Founder
Dear Common Dreams reader, It’s been nearly 30 years since I co-founded Common Dreams with my late wife, Lina Newhouser. We had the radical notion that journalism should serve the public good, not corporate profits. It was clear to us from the outset what it would take to build such a project. No paid advertisements. No corporate sponsors. No millionaire publisher telling us what to think or do. Many people said we wouldn't last a year, but we proved those doubters wrong. Together with a tremendous team of journalists and dedicated staff, we built an independent media outlet free from the constraints of profits and corporate control. Our mission has always been simple: To inform. To inspire. To ignite change for the common good. Building Common Dreams was not easy. Our survival was never guaranteed. When you take on the most powerful forces—Wall Street greed, fossil fuel industry destruction, Big Tech lobbyists, and uber-rich oligarchs who have spent billions upon billions rigging the economy and democracy in their favor—the only bulwark you have is supporters who believe in your work. But here’s the urgent message from me today. It's never been this bad out there. And it's never been this hard to keep us going. At the very moment Common Dreams is most needed, the threats we face are intensifying. We need your support now more than ever. We don't accept corporate advertising and never will. We don't have a paywall because we don't think people should be blocked from critical news based on their ability to pay. Everything we do is funded by the donations of readers like you. When everyone does the little they can afford, we are strong. But if that support retreats or dries up, so do we. Will you donate now to make sure Common Dreams not only survives but thrives? —Craig Brown, Co-founder |
Our work is licensed under Creative Commons (CC BY-NC-ND 3.0). Feel free to republish and share widely.
Civil liberties advocates on Wednesday cheered as Maine enacted what that state's ACLU chapter called "the country's strongest statewide facial recognition law."
"I hope that Maine can provide an example to other states that want to rein in the government's ability to use facial recognition and other invasive biometric technologies."
--Maine Rep. Grayson Lookner, sponsor
The new law--which sailed unanimously through both chambers of the state Legislature and was passed without any action from Democratic Gov. Janet Mills--bans the use of facial recognition technology by most state agencies and for the purpose of surveillance.
The legislation contains exceptions for the investigation of serious crime; the identification of deceased, missing, or endangered persons; and other limited purposes.
When the law goes into effect this October, it will prohibit the use of facial surveillance in schools. It will also ban direct access to facial recognition technology by law enforcement officials, who will have to request such access via the FBI and Maine Bureau of Motor Vehicles in the narrow purview permitted by the legislation.
"Maine is at the forefront of a national movement to preserve civil rights and liberties in the digital age," said Alison Beyea, executive director at the ACLU of Maine, which helped craft the legislation.
" Democracy is stronger and communities are safer when we have clear rules and accountability for how governments use new and emerging technologies," added Beyea.
The bill's sponsor, state Rep. Grayson Lookner--a Portland Democrat--called the new law "a huge victory for privacy rights and civil liberties in Maine."
"It's also a victory for bipartisanship and cooperation," Lookner added. "I hope that Maine can provide an example to other states that want to rein in the government's ability to use facial recognition and other invasive biometric technologies."
The ACLU of Maine said the state's new law "stands in sharp contrast to the only other statewide approach to regulating face recognition in the United States, a law passed in Washington state in 2020."
"That law, which was backed by Microsoft, authorizes police across the state to use facial recognition technology to conduct mass surveillance of people's public movements, habits, and associations," the group added.
Starting with San Francisco in 2019, more than a dozen U.S. municipalities from Portland, Oregon to Portland, Maine have also passed facial recognition bans.
There are no federal rules restricting law enforcement use of facial recognition.
Civil liberties advocates on Wednesday cheered as Maine enacted what that state's ACLU chapter called "the country's strongest statewide facial recognition law."
"I hope that Maine can provide an example to other states that want to rein in the government's ability to use facial recognition and other invasive biometric technologies."
--Maine Rep. Grayson Lookner, sponsor
The new law--which sailed unanimously through both chambers of the state Legislature and was passed without any action from Democratic Gov. Janet Mills--bans the use of facial recognition technology by most state agencies and for the purpose of surveillance.
The legislation contains exceptions for the investigation of serious crime; the identification of deceased, missing, or endangered persons; and other limited purposes.
When the law goes into effect this October, it will prohibit the use of facial surveillance in schools. It will also ban direct access to facial recognition technology by law enforcement officials, who will have to request such access via the FBI and Maine Bureau of Motor Vehicles in the narrow purview permitted by the legislation.
"Maine is at the forefront of a national movement to preserve civil rights and liberties in the digital age," said Alison Beyea, executive director at the ACLU of Maine, which helped craft the legislation.
" Democracy is stronger and communities are safer when we have clear rules and accountability for how governments use new and emerging technologies," added Beyea.
The bill's sponsor, state Rep. Grayson Lookner--a Portland Democrat--called the new law "a huge victory for privacy rights and civil liberties in Maine."
"It's also a victory for bipartisanship and cooperation," Lookner added. "I hope that Maine can provide an example to other states that want to rein in the government's ability to use facial recognition and other invasive biometric technologies."
The ACLU of Maine said the state's new law "stands in sharp contrast to the only other statewide approach to regulating face recognition in the United States, a law passed in Washington state in 2020."
"That law, which was backed by Microsoft, authorizes police across the state to use facial recognition technology to conduct mass surveillance of people's public movements, habits, and associations," the group added.
Starting with San Francisco in 2019, more than a dozen U.S. municipalities from Portland, Oregon to Portland, Maine have also passed facial recognition bans.
There are no federal rules restricting law enforcement use of facial recognition.
We've had enough. The 1% own and operate the corporate media. They are doing everything they can to defend the status quo, squash dissent and protect the wealthy and the powerful. The Common Dreams media model is different. We cover the news that matters to the 99%. Our mission? To inform. To inspire. To ignite change for the common good. How? Nonprofit. Independent. Reader-supported. Free to read. Free to republish. Free to share. With no advertising. No paywalls. No selling of your data. Thousands of small donations fund our newsroom and allow us to continue publishing. Can you chip in? We can't do it without you. Thank you.