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Deep Into State Legislative Sessions: AUVSI’s Advocacy Wins Across the Country
Core to AUVSI’s mission is to foster a viable and sustainable industry for uncrewed systems is advocating for balanced regulations and policies at every level of government. Uncrewed systems, including drones and automated vehicles (AV), are already beginning to improve lives and augment the human workforce, and they hold immeasurable promise to usher in a new era of innovation. AUVSI works to deliver on that vision through proactive legislative and regulatory advocacy with local, state, and tribal officials.
2022 has already been a busy year in state legislative sessions around the country, and the AUVSI Advocacy team has engaged on over 100 pieces of legislation and will continue to take advantage of opportunities to reach out to lawmakers.
As attention on uncrewed systems increases among the public and regulators nationwide, AUVSI will support the passage of bills that do not arbitrarily single out these technologies, unnecessarily limit testing and operations, or place roadblocks in the way of innovation. AUVSI champions legislation and regulations that allow for the safe, responsible, and lawful use of drones and AVs. We stand ready to partner with peer industry groups, regulators, and the public to achieve these goals.
2022 State Legislation Highlights
Drone-related bills AUVSI successfully opposed:
- MS HB 259 would have created misleading, negative public perception about the use of drones and other autonomous systems.
- MS HB 1383 would have set additional registration requirements that are not necessary because FAA registration regulations already exist, including the Remote ID rule and The Recreational UAS Safety Test (TRUST).
- MS HB 411 would have set broad, ambiguous language that could unintentionally limit the safe, lawful use of drones.
- WY HB 128 aimed to create criminal trespass if a drone operator flew 200 feet or lower over private land of another person without authorization or consent from the landowner.
- MO HB 1619 has been successfully changed to add exceptions for commercial drone operations that take images of persons or property.
Drone-related bills AUVSI supports:
- Companion bills NY A 1085 and NY S 3602, requiring registration of general aviation aircraft in the state and does not apply to drones. This heightened registration requirement would have been a detriment to the drone industry in NY.
AV bills AUVSI supports:
- WV H 4787, OK HB 3317, and PA S 965, which would create each state's first testing and deployment protocol.
Get Involved With AUVSI's Chapters and Grassroots Advocacy Network
AUVSI’s state- and region-based chapters and grassroots advocates have been instrumental in these efforts. Advocacy at an informed constituency level is a powerful tool in working with state legislators because it lends itself to direct education and providing industry-supported recommendations.
Alongside engaged chapter leaders, AUVSI’s recently-launched Grassroots Advocacy Network convenes individuals who are willing to volunteer their time and expertise to push forward legislative priorities.
Throughout the remainder of 2022 state legislative sessions, AUVSI will continue to heavily engage on relevant bills and regulations. We look forward to supporting legislation built on stakeholder consensus, and will partner with industry stakeholders, chapters, and grassroots advocates to achieve that goal.
Contact Mike Smitsky at msmitsky@auvsi.org to learn how you can get involved with AUVSI’s state-level air advocacy initiatives, Scott Shtofman at sshtofman@auvsi.org to engage with a chapter near you, and Jackie Beckwith at jbeckwith@auvsi.org to get involved with AV advocacy.
