With drone use taking off, Legislature moves to regulate

Their use proliferating among professional and recreational users alike, Minnesota’s drone operators could face stricter regulation under a bill approved, as amended, Tuesday by the House Transportation Policy and Finance Committee.

Referred to the House Government Operations and Elections Policy Committee, HF3517 proposes to step up state oversight of the unmanned airborne devices by limiting where they can be flown and requiring commercial drone operators to register with the state and pay an annual fee for the first time.

“What we’re trying to do here is bring some stability to (drones’) use,” said Rep. Jim Newberger (R-Becker), the bill’s sponsor.

A companion, SF3312 sponsored by Sen. Ann Rest (DFL-New Hope), awaits action by the Senate Transportation and Public Safety Committee.

With use of the technology exploding across the country — for everything from surveying land, to shooting photos and videos from a birds-eye view, to operating for fun — safety concerns have grown, too. All operators of drones have been required to register with the Federal Aviation Administration since last December, and in that time more than 400,000 have signed up, said Cassandra Isackson, director of MnDOT’s Office of Aeronautics Services.

Under current law, commercial operators must register with MnDOT and pay a one-time fee; those operators would pay a $25 annual fee under the bill.

Rep. Mark Anderson (R-Lake Shore), a professional pilot, said he viewed the bill and its proposed annual fee as a bid to cash in on an increasing number of drone pilots.

“I look at this entire bill as redundant for one thing: revenue,” he said.

In addition to the annual fee for commercial operators, the legislation would make it a misdemeanor to operate drones in certain ways, including:

• without the aircraft owner’s consent;
• within one mile — knowingly — of a helicopter being operated by a law enforcement agency, fire department or emergency medical service provider;
• with a willful disregard for safety;
• while carrying banned explosives;
• launching or landing on property without the property owner’s consent; and,
• interfering with manned aircraft.

Under the bill, a second or subsequent violation would be considered a gross misdemeanor.