Current Colorado law restricts K-12 schools from contracting with any vendor for facial recognition services unless the contract was in place before Aug. 10, 2022 — or relates to a widely available consumer product such as a smartphone, according to an article in Colorado Chalkbeat. Now state lawmakers want to extend the prohibition in schools and place protections on its use in about 12 districts where the technology is allowed to be used.
Senate Bill 143 renews a debate about whether facial recognition technology provides effective security or it’s a violation of student privacy.
“We’re trying to find the balance between letting them use the technology, but also protecting students’ biometric data,” Rep. Lindsey Daugherty says.
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Amendments to the bill detail when the technology can be turned on, such as in an emergency or by the request of law enforcement.
Technology has been used to find students who have left the school building or gone missing. Advocates say the software can reduce the time to identify a person from hours to minutes, keep away someone who isn’t supposed to be on campus, and is not meant to profile students.
Many groups support the continued ban due to student privacy concerns. “Facial recognition poses real risks to privacy,” says Anaya Robinson, the ACLU of Colorado’s senior policy strategist. The technology “can easily toe the line between constitutional use and unconstitutional use,” she believes.
The Colorado Education Association, the state’s largest teacher’s union, supports the prohibition because the technology could create an environment where teachers perceive schools are spying on them or are unfairly targeting certain students.
“For all its potential benefits, this technology can come equipped with vast potential for abuse,” says one member.
More modifications to the bill are expected. Further amendments are planned for districts that currently use the facial recognition technology after feedback from leaders.
Chalkbeat Colorado
