Today I will talk about what most incorrectly call drones when talking about civilians flying their quadcopters. What they are remotely controlled vehicles that may or may not carry a camera; the people flying them are not out to spy on you.
From an article in Forbes, September 21st, “The City of Newton, Massachusetts, like many state and local governments, thought it could regulate drone flights in the airspace over its city limits. It passed a law this past December that sought to ban unmanned aircraft flights below 400 feet, to ban flights over private and public property without the landowner’s permission, and to require local registration of drones. A federal judge in Massachusetts ruled today that the City of Newton was wrong: It does not have that authority because it is pre-empted by the federal government.”
So that means that your local or state government does not have the right to regulate what you do with your drone and only the Federal Aviation Administration does. Since the ruling was in the Massachusetts, it does not apply to anywhere else technically. But most Federal judges do use the verdicts of other Federal Districts in weighing what their own judgments will be. Until the Supreme Court actually rules this is not the law for all of the United States. Please note that I am not a lawyer and if I misinterpreted or misstated anything about the ruling or how it applies, please forgive me.
In an even earlier Federal Court ruling, “Federal rules requiring owners to register recreational drones with the government are illegal, and only Congress can fix them, a federal appeals court has ruled.
The Federal Aviation Administration issued rules in October 2015 requiring registration of drones — or “unmanned aerial vehicles” (UAVs) in governmentese — weighing more than a half-pound. The rules took effect in January 2016.
The half-pound threshold is light enough to cover many of the small remote-controlled drones you can buy at the department store, and John Taylor of Washington, D.C., sued in February 2016, arguing that another provision of federal law bars the government from regulating model aircraft.
In a ruling dated Friday, a three-judge panel of the U.S. Court of Appeals for Washington agreed. “The 2012 FAA Modernization and Reform Act provides that the FAA ‘may not promulgate any rule or regulation regarding a model aircraft,’ yet the FAA’s 2015 Registration Rule is a ‘rule or regulation regarding a model aircraft,'” Judge Brett M. Kavanaugh wrote for the court (PDF).”
So while the FAA has the authority to issue rules, they are will have to get Congress to change the 2012 FAA Modernization and Reform Act to do so. Please remember that you still must follow the rules that the FAA is allowed to enforce.
For the good of all of recreational flyers do not fly near an aircraft or over people or endanger anyone or sell photos/videos. If you do the former, the FAA will come down upon you like a ton of bricks, so be forewarned!
So go out and enjoy yourselves flying your drones (quadcopters).
That is my opinion- Jumpin Jersey Mike
