Seriously though, why would the .gov feel so strongly about this if it wasn't to round out their database of who might own guns in this country? Nobody's buying the bullshit about caring that guns are getting smuggled into Mexico. And why might they want such a database?
Well, that excuse might have some legitimacy up front (I mean from an LE standpoint, obviously not WRT privacy) but rest assured it will be used to "side smear" everyone and everything into databases; making all that crap you see on those docudrama TV shows a reality; you can find out where someone's been just by querying a database in the right way. Part of the problem (by design, of course) is there are no civil rights protections or limitations on the surveillance. For example there's currently no law that says "if ALPR is being used on the side of the road any data that doesn't involve an active violation, warrant or AMBER alert on the vehicle should be scrubbed within 30 seconds".
Well, that excuse might have some legitimacy up front (I mean from an LE standpoint, obviously not WRT privacy) but rest assured it will be used to "side smear" everyone and everything into databases; making all that crap you see on those docudrama TV shows a reality; you can find out where someone's been just by querying a database in the right way.
It's already here. It is common for private customers to buy access to ALPR data, including insurance companies and repo agencies. The biggest databases are Digital Recognition Network and Vigilant Solutions, they store a photo of the vehicle, plate, and a GPS and time marker, and available to subscribers worldwide. Both lobby strongly for the expansion of ALPR and against limits on data retention.