Bad drone legislation in the US

[Vic Moss]

Attention US drone owners (r/c too!).

Utah's Senator Lee is at it again with his "Drone Integration and Zoning Act" bill.

DSP Alliance and other organizations were informed of this yesterday. Kenji and I are working with some other organizations to put together a unified approach to make sure this bill doesn't become law once it's submitted.

Stay tuned.

More info: Lee’s Dangerous and Destructive Draft Legislation – Drone Service Providers Alliance (admin approved link)

 

[Severian]

Yikes!

 

[Crash-a-lot]

Next election--vote him out.

 

[brett8883]

Full text here.

https://www.lee.senate.gov/public/_cache/files/a5dd4109-0dcf-44be-8489-cf755634a5bd/diza-117th.pdf

It’s bad.

 

[Thomas B]

Write your senator. Now!
Everyone. Not just Utah.
Looks like the proposed bill has yet to receive a number.
This bill should fail if left in current form as it is full of contradictions.
There is no need to change the current airspace designations
Congress has already granted FAA control of the skies. Perhaps the good senator should let the experts do their job as they are authorized already.

 

[GregS]

Typical government; they want absolute control of everything!
As for voting them out, voting doesn't seem to work anymore.
DJI and all other drone manufactures need to get involved with this too.
The public also needs to be educated about drone usage.
I winter over on the Gulf Coast (USA) and was told by Police this is a no fly area for drones. $500 fine. Reports of drones flying along Condo balconies. I talked to a Condo Mgr and he said they all use drones with infrared to check for heat leaks. Ya think maybe THAT was what they saw flying along the balconies??? I asked the Police if they would fine me for having a set of binoculars? I can certainly get a better close-up view with them! He had no comment.

 

[Red Dwarf]

It is embarrassing for me to admit that I live in UT with the dung that this man shovels out. I wrote to him the last (recently) time he proposed this same crap. Please everyone in the drone community, write your senators and let them know that some of us earn our income as licensed drone pilots. Let them know how rules like this would negatively impact the drone service industry as well as the recreational/hobbyist drone pilot.

This man is a thorn in my side. I have invested lots of money and time into becoming a certified Part 107 Pilot and acquiring the equipment and other things that go along with starting a drone service business. It is getting harder for me to not want to go up to this man face to face and be quite angry and confrontational with him. Alas, I will not behave that way but instead, write to him once again. AND, Thanks to DSPA, all of us have some backing that might pound some sense into this Senator.

BIG SHOUT OUT and THANK YOU to Vic and Kenji !!!

 

[Vic Moss]

Typical government; they want absolute control of everything!
As for voting them out, voting doesn't seem to work anymore.
DJI and all other drone manufactures need to get involved with this too.
The public also needs to be educated about drone usage.
I winter over on the Gulf Coast (USA) and was told by Police this is a no fly area for drones. $500 fine. Reports of drones flying along Condo balconies. I talked to a Condo Mgr and he said they all use drones with infrared to check for heat leaks. Ya think maybe THAT was what they saw flying along the balconies??? I asked the Police if they would fine me for having a set of binoculars? I can certainly get a better close-up view with them! He had no comment.

DJI is involved. Can't share why yet...

 

[tlswift58]

Write your senator. Now!
Everyone. Not just Utah.
Looks like the proposed bill has yet to receive a number.
This bill should fail if left in current form as it is full of contradictions.
There is no need to change the current airspace designations
Congress has already granted FAA control of the skies. Perhaps the good senator should let the experts do their job as they are authorized already.

Thinking any government official - esp the morons in DC - have any kind of clue is just plain absurd. If you read some of the "bills / laws" they do put forward and PASS - you would want a REFUND on all that money they spent in college and law school - since most are "supposedly" lawyers.

Utah seems to have a penchant for electing STUPID senators - look at Mittski.

I'll have to try and read this bill, as it really sounds BAD.

 

[Vic Moss]

It is embarrassing for me to admit that I live in UT with the dung that this man shovels out. I wrote to him the last (recently) time he proposed this same crap. Please everyone in the drone community, write your senators and let them know that some of us earn our income as licensed drone pilots. Let them know how rules like this would negatively impact the drone service industry as well as the recreational/hobbyist drone pilot.

This man is a thorn in my side. I have invested lots of money and time into becoming a certified Part 107 Pilot and acquiring the equipment and other things that go along with starting a drone service business. It is getting harder for me to not want to go up to this man face to face and be quite angry and confrontational with him. Alas, I will not behave that way but instead, write to him once again. AND, Thanks to DSPA, all of us have some backing that might pound some sense into this Senator.

BIG SHOUT OUT and THANK YOU to Vic and Kenji !!!

Unfortunately, Senator Lee's mind will not be changed. He will continue to tilt at this windmill until he leaves office. There is a conglomerate of local entities is SLC that want local control of the NAS for Urban Air Mobility. They are the driving force behind his actions. And they control is puppet strings on this subject.

Our focus will be on getting to the others on the transportation committee to kill it in committee. If that doesn't work, we'll make sure to formulate a plan for everyone to contact their Congress Critters to kill this on the floor. We have meetings scheduled already this week.

Thanks for the shoutout!

 

[Vic Moss]

Write your senator. Now!
Everyone. Not just Utah.
Looks like the proposed bill has yet to receive a number.
This bill should fail if left in current form as it is full of contradictions.
There is no need to change the current airspace designations
Congress has already granted FAA control of the skies. Perhaps the good senator should let the experts do their job as they are authorized already.

Slightly premature (it hasn't been introduced) but letting our elected officials know we're watching isn't a bad idea.

 

[tlswift58]

It is embarrassing for me to admit that I live in UT with the dung that this man shovels out. I wrote to him the last (recently) time he proposed this same crap. Please everyone in the drone community, write your senators and let them know that some of us earn our income as licensed drone pilots. Let them know how rules like this would negatively impact the drone service industry as well as the recreational/hobbyist drone pilot.

This man is a thorn in my side. I have invested lots of money and time into becoming a certified Part 107 Pilot and acquiring the equipment and other things that go along with starting a drone service business. It is getting harder for me to not want to go up to this man face to face and be quite angry and confrontational with him. Alas, I will not behave that way but instead, write to him once again. AND, Thanks to DSPA, all of us have some backing that might pound some sense into this Senator.

BIG SHOUT OUT and THANK YOU to Vic and Kenji !!!

If you're prior attempts at writing to the morons are like mine - you're wasting your time. Seriously doubt the "congress people" ever see these emails, letters, phone calls - as their huge staffs play go between and then they send back a "form letter" that is total BS.

We have a couple of same type clowns in North Carolina. Thankfully one is retiring at end of his current stint in 2022. He'd not be re-elected unless we have some more of even worse people running in other parties.

Yet, WE ALL NEED to email (pretty easy to do), write a letter and send snail-mail registered (costs more, but makes them sign for the letter), or phone them. If enough people do this - then maybe we can send this bill back where it belongs - File 13 / trash can.

 

[Chip]

Thinking any government official - esp the morons in DC - have any kind of clue is just plain absurd.

Are you referring to the FAA or everyone in government generally?

 

[Chip]

We have a couple of same type clowns in North Carolina. Thankfully one is retiring at end of his current stint in 2022. He'd not be re-elected unless we have some more of even worse people running in other parties.

North Carolina law makes it illegal to launch or recover a UAS from either private or state property without the consent of the property's owner (N.C. G.S. 15A-300.2). NC law also makes it illegal to use an unmanned aircraft system to take or distribute images of a person or their home without their consent (N.C. G.S. 15A-300.1 and N.C. G.S. 14-401.25) or to fly a UAS over any state or federal prison, (N.C. G.S. 15A-300.3).

Just curious what you think of those state laws and whether they impact your drone flying much?

 

[Vic Moss]

North Carolina law makes it illegal to launch or recover a UAS from either private or state property without the consent of the property's owner (N.C. G.S. 15A-300.2).

This is actually a good law as far as UAS laws go. It's not Federally Preempted. It's strictly a land use law.

NC law also makes it illegal to use an unmanned aircraft system to take or distribute images of a person or their home without their consent (N.C. G.S. 15A-300.1 and N.C. G.S. 14-401.25)

These are both First Amendment issues. Nor do they define "surveillance". These are both too vague to stand up in court to a challenge.

or to fly a UAS over any state or federal prison, (N.C. G.S. 15A-300.3).

Local control of the airspace is also Federally Preempted.

Just curious what you think of those state laws and whether they impact your drone flying much?

They wouldn't affect me, but I'd fly just to prove that I can. And I'd challenge the law if cited.

 

[tlswift58]

Are you referring to the FAA or everyone in government generally?

More so in general. Yet, we drone folks od know and see how there are many rules that are 100% absurd, but they exist.

From recent articles / reports - we are seeing some movement towards reality from the FAA and loosening up some of those restrictions step by step. THAT'S POSITIVE!

And on the other hand, we have Utah Senator Mike Lee trying to force a federal bill to RESTRICT our rights as both recreational and commercial drone pilots. I'm no lawyer and I tried reading that crap he wrote; but got exhausted after the first few pages of it. A link was posted for it here in the forums - so everyone should read it. I have already emailed my 2 senators from NC to politely go to Senator Lee and tell him to remove the bill from any further action.

 

[anotherlab]

I wrote to both of my Senators when this first popped up. Lee is not going to let go of this.

 

[The Flashman]

Next election--vote him out.

TOTALLY agree with you here, THIS (our Vote) IS!!!! the one thing we DO have left to TRY and keep some common sense and over ride these CRAZY regulations.

 

[Crash-a-lot]

TOTALLY agree with you here, THIS (our Vote) IS!!!! the one thing we DO have left to TRY and keep some common sense and over ride these CRAZY regulations.

There is a saying "You can't cure stupidity but you can vote it out of office".

 

[iaincaradoc]

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