The State of Drones: State Authority to Regulate Drones
Title
The State of Drones: State Authority to Regulate Drones
Description
This article argues that there are significant areas in which both state and local governments have the authority to act to control those who fly drones, and that these actors cannot escape state and local regulation simply by using a drone to engage in their actions. It notes that the generally prevailing view at the time the article was written was that state and local governments were without significant authority to regulate any activity related to Unmanned Aerial Vehicles/Systems (UAV/UAS—aka, drones) because federal law preempted such regulation and argues that this perception was too narrow.
The article begins by looking carefully at federal law related to preemption of authority over flight and airplanes and concludes that, while state and local governments may be preempted from directly regulating drone flights and drone designs, they are unlikely to be prohibited from regulating a variety of activities that may be engaged in with or without a drone, and thus can capture within their authority significant activities that many believed to be outside of their control. The article supports the authority of states to regulate a variety of drone-related activities, while also providing a road-map for states and local governments to be more involved with drone developments and management than had previously been viewed as possible. The article identifies certain areas -- such as the traditional acts of state and local governments to provide economic incentives to businesses -- that are clearly within state and local authority in most cases. The article also discusses Government use of drones as a potential operating arena for local and state control, as well as traditional state regulation of activities such as property use (through mechanisms such as zoning law).
The article concludes that local and state authority is still robust even when regulations may affect drones and their operation, and states and local governments should not abdicate this authority simply because some believe their authority to be more widely preempted.
The article begins by looking carefully at federal law related to preemption of authority over flight and airplanes and concludes that, while state and local governments may be preempted from directly regulating drone flights and drone designs, they are unlikely to be prohibited from regulating a variety of activities that may be engaged in with or without a drone, and thus can capture within their authority significant activities that many believed to be outside of their control. The article supports the authority of states to regulate a variety of drone-related activities, while also providing a road-map for states and local governments to be more involved with drone developments and management than had previously been viewed as possible. The article identifies certain areas -- such as the traditional acts of state and local governments to provide economic incentives to businesses -- that are clearly within state and local authority in most cases. The article also discusses Government use of drones as a potential operating arena for local and state control, as well as traditional state regulation of activities such as property use (through mechanisms such as zoning law).
The article concludes that local and state authority is still robust even when regulations may affect drones and their operation, and states and local governments should not abdicate this authority simply because some believe their authority to be more widely preempted.
Creator
Publisher
Albany Government Law Review
Date
2015
Format
PDF
Language
English
Bibliographic Citation
Robert A. Heverly, The State of Drones: State Authority to Regulate Drones, 8 ALB. GOV'T L. REV. 29 (2015).
Files
Collection
Citation
Robert A. Heverly, “The State of Drones: State Authority to Regulate Drones,” Albany Law Faculty Scholarship, accessed May 6, 2024, https://albanylaw.omeka.net/items/show/223.