Legislation written to fix Idaho drone laws

IDAHO FALLS – A public safety advocacy organization is putting forth a bill for this legislative session that would make it easier for public safety groups – and, potentially, businesses – to use drones and other unmanned aerial systems (UAS) in Idaho.

The organization is the Idaho Public Safety UAS Council and is based here.

Attendees of the Idaho UAS Situational Awareness Workshop, sponsored by the Pacific NorthWest Economic Region (PNWER) Center for Regional Disaster Resilience, held in June at the Riverside Hotel in Garden City, had said that Idaho laws made it hard for them to run their businesses. Some reported losing business because of such laws. This legislation is an attempt to deal with the issue.

“The main intent of the amendment is to allow for the improved utilization of UAS technology for use in traffic accident documentation and reconstruction purposes,” said David Barker, administrator for the Idaho Public Safety UAS Council, in an email message. “Other issues that may be resolved in the process are simply a bonus.”

Conflicting laws

Current Idaho statute requires a warrant first be issued for law enforcement to use UAS for traffic accidents or other purposes in public areas, which flies in the face of standing case law that defines such areas as “without an expectation of privacy,” Barker said. Not only does this take time, but judges are questioning why warrants are being applied for case law that clearly states one is not required, he said.

“Basically, we want to allow first responders to better utilize the technology for the benefit of their citizenry, without the need to clog the courts with unnecessary and contradictory warrant requests,” Barker said.

The initial amendment was drafted by Idaho Falls assistant attorney Michael Kirkham, who has been involved with the Idaho Falls Police Department’s UAS program since its inception and who has worked with Barker to obtain UAS warrants on several occasions, he said.

Doesn’t cover everything

That said, the amendment doesn’t address two other major issues, Barker said. First, it doesn’t address Idaho’s so-called Ag Gag law, which is intended to prevent spying in agricultural businesses but has been found to be unconstitutional.

Second, one part of Idaho’s Section 21-213 drone legislation prohibits photographing an individual without consent for the purposes of publishing the photograph. A similar provision in Texas law is being challenged by several Texas press organizations as a violation of the First Amendment, intended to prevent journalists from using drones to help report news.

“These issues are not addressed in this amendment on the belief that doing so would be too much to handle in one amendment to get a consensus,” Barker said.

While some attendees of last June’s session had encouraged Idaho to petition the Federal Aviation Administration to control UAVs in its own airspace, the organization is not planning to address that issue, Barker said.

“We believe the National Airspace System needs to continue to be managed by a single regulatory entity, to avoid creating a patchwork of rules and regulations that could vary from location to location,” he said.

The legislation is expected to be co-sponsored by Rep. Doug Ricks (R-Rexburg) and House Chairman Joe Palmer (R-Meridian), the organization said.

“While there are still a number of steps in the process, we have been assured that the amendment will be given a committee hearing, something the 2018 amendment proposal did not get,” the organization wrote to its membership.

Gov. Brad Little announced a budget of $75,000 for a state drone office intended to coordinate 90 programs across Idaho state agencies in his State of the State message on Jan. 6.

Idaho has spawned a number of businesses involving drones and other forms of UAS, including Black Sage Technologies and Pitch Aeronautics. In addition, the University of Idaho is developing a UAS that is intended to help search for life on the surface of Titan, one of Saturn’s moons.