Search ▸ Communication to the City Council
a compilation of the Surveillance technology Impact Reports tabled by the City Council on February 24, 2020
SURVEILLANCE TECHNOLOGY IMPACT REPORT
(Revising STIR No. 49 Submitted December 9, 2019)
Department:
School Department
Division or Unit
(if applicable):
Safety & Security, Transportation (buses)
Submitted by:
James MaloneyDiane Fisk Johnson, Financial Manager Transportation
Date:
12/9/192/24/20
Surveillance
Technology:
Bus video recorders on individual buses
1. Describe how the proposed Surveillance Technology will work, including how it will
collect Surveillance Data.
x
Cameras are installed on all school buses, including buses for special education
students, along with a posted notice that video recording is taking place.
x
The cameras on the school buses allow usthe school department to review any
incidents that take place, after the event is over. The cameras allow usthe department
to determine the source of any behavioral outburstsissues on the bus, many of which
take place out of the line of sight of the bus driver.
x
Images and audio are recorded to a box, and the images & audio are retrieved
manually by the Transportation Director when investigating an incident.
2. What is the purpose of the Surveillance Technology?
x
Supporting the safety of all students and staff on bus transportation by addressing
disruptive behavior appropriately.
x
These cameras provide footage of any behavioral issues that may occur on school
buses. The footage helps CPS staff and parents clarify what actually happened during
an incident and supplements any report from a student or bus driver.
3. Where will the Surveillance Technology be deployed? When?
x
All school buses have carried these on board cameras since their original installation
in FY13.
76
4. What privacy impact will the Surveillance Technology have?
x
The data from these cameras is not maintained, but is over-recorded at monthly
intervals. Without physically retrieving the imaginingimaging data from the bus, it is
not accessible to anyone.
x
For all students riding the busses their images and voices are recorded and saved to
the device located on each bus.
x
The recordings are secure and only accessed by the CPS Transportation Director in
the event of an event investigation. At that time the recordings may be reviewed by
select CPS Administrators. In some cases, parents can view the footage, but only of
their child. All other students are blurred.
x
All data, unless otherwise archived, is overwritten every 30 days.
5. What are the fiscal costs of the Surveillance Technology, including initial costs,
ongoing maintenance and personnel costs, and source of funds?
x
The initial cost of the SEON camera system was $47,190 when it was installed in the
spring of 2013.
x
There have been ongoing maintenance expenditures for moving equipment to newer
buses, and adding cameras as needed.
o
FY14 $4,955
o
FY16 $12,500
x
It is not possible to determine the personnel costs of using this equipment. The
Transportation Director must board a bus after an incident and download the images
in order to proceed with an investigation, but it is difficult to quantify the time
involved.
x
Both equipment and personnel were funded from the School Department General
Fund.
77