Police Scanner Laws in Michigan (2026): Is It Legal?

The law in Michigan

Michigan does not restrict general ownership or mobile use of police scanners, so most residents may own and use a scanner, including in a vehicle. However, Michigan Compiled Laws section 750.508 imposes two restrictions: (1) a person convicted of one or more felonies during the preceding 5 years may not carry or possess a radio receiving set that receives police frequencies, punishable by up to 1 year imprisonment or a $1,000 fine, with an exemption for licensed amateur radio operators; and (2) no one may carry such a receiver in the commission or attempted commission of a crime, with penalties ranging from misdemeanor to felony depending on the underlying offense. The statute expressly does not apply to radar detectors. Verify current statutory text at the Michigan Legislature website (MCL 750.508).

Enforcement reality

No enforcement history. Scanner use is fully protected.

What you can monitor in Michigan

With a police scanner in Michigan, you can legally listen to any unencrypted public safety channel, including:

• Fire department dispatch and operations
• EMS and ambulance communications
• NOAA weather alerts and emergency broadcasts
• Unencrypted police channels (where available)

In practice, of the 2,317 talkgroups catalogued across Michigan in our database, 1,709 are recorded as being in the clear and 575 as encrypted.

The radio systems most often recorded in Michigan are Michigan's Public Safety Communications System (MPSCS), ComSource Michigan DMR, Suburban Mobility Authority for Regional Transportation (SMART), Downriver Mutual Aid (Project 25) Radio System, Lansing Public Services.

Before buying a scanner, check whether your local agencies in Michigan have encrypted their communications. If they have, your scanner won't be able to receive their transmissions regardless of legal status.

What's already encrypted in Michigan

Scanner use being legal in Michigan does not mean everything is listenable. Our database currently tracks 160 agencies in Michigan that encrypt at least some radio traffic, across 36 counties. Of those, 40 encrypt all monitored channels rather than only a few.

The encryption most commonly recorded in Michigan is P25 ADP (75 agencies), P25 DES-OFB (40 agencies), and P25 AES-256 (40 agencies).

15 of these 160 records have been verified against RadioReference system data; the remainder are unverified and may be out of date. Encryption status changes without notice — confirm the current status of any specific agency on RadioReference before relying on it.

Frequently asked questions