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California Bill Would Dramatically Limit Commercial Drones

Posted by Soulskill on from the won't-somebody-think-of-the-drones dept.

An anonymous reader writes: California's Senate Bill 142 would prohibit drones from flying under 350 feet over any property without express permission from the property's owner. The bill passed the California Assembly easily. Tech advocates have been battling privacy advocates to influence the inevitable regulation of private and commercial drones. Industry groups say this restriction will kill drone delivery services before they even begin. The legislation would also drastically diminish the usefulness of camera-centric drones like the ones being rolled out by GoPro. If passed, the bill could influence how other states regulate drones. The article notes that 156 different drone-related bills have been considered in 46 different states this year alone, and the FAA will issue nationwide rules in September.

3 of 192 comments (clear)

  1. Exceeds state authority by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Informative

    All airspace within the U.S. is under control of the FAA. Although the FAA allows some unlicensed use of low altitude airspace (for model aircraft, rockets, and the like), anything that's not sitting on the ground is under their regulatory authority. The supremacy clause of the constitution spells out that, in the event of a conflict between federal and state law, federal law takes priority.

    1. Re:Exceeds state authority by gavron · · Score: 3, Informative

      Very true. No idea why you're modded down to 0... you're correct.

      Only the FAA has jurisdiction. The California State government can pass as
      many measure as it takes for them to be blue in the face, but they have no
      force of law and a simple hearing removed to US District Court would
      resolve that in a heartbeat.

      However, politicians posturing and appearing to "do something" is what it
      really is... and that's nothing new.

      Ehud Gavron
      FAA commercial helicopter pilot

  2. Re:Not unconstitutional by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 2, Informative

    Even tho bullets/stones "fly thru the air" they are not regulated under the authority of the FAA. Only AIRCRAFT are regulated (per below) and bullets/stones do not qualify as aircraft..but all drones do (hobby or commercial). The Feds are responsible (soley) for ensuring that AIRCRAFT do not cause harm to property or individuals on the ground. If CA wants to regulate using a "remote control" device by an ground-based operator perhaps they could get away with that...but they could not regulate fully automated drones (as Amazon is proposing)...that is the sole purview of the FAA.

    (2) The (FAA) Administrator shall prescribe air traffic regulations on the flight of aircraft (including regulations on safe altitudes) for—
    (A) navigating, protecting, and identifying aircraft;
    (B) protecting individuals and property on the ground;
    (C) using the navigable airspace efficiently; and
    (D) preventing collision between aircraft, between aircraft and land or water vehicles, and between aircraft and airborne objects.