By John Vibes
Assemblyman Mike Gatto Southern of California lawmaker introduced legislation this week that would require owners of drones to get insurance and license plates, similar to the requirements for motor vehicles. The bill is called the Drone Registration/Omnibus Negligence-prevention Enactment (DRONE) Act of 2016 and would tighten the restrictions on personal drones even further than they have been already.
“If cars have license plates and insurance, drones should have the equivalent, so they can be properly identified, and owners can be held financially responsible, whenever injuries, interference, or property damage occurs,” Gatto told CBS.
The bill has technical requirements as well and would require all personal drones to be tracked by GPS and an automatic shut off to prevent them from crossing paths with airplanes.
“Hundreds of thousands of plastic and metal vehicles will be overhead in the years to come. One could imagine the auto industry balking at the idea of registration requirements at the turn-of-the-century, but the industry survived. As technology evolves, so must our laws in order to protect our citizenry. This is a sensible measure that will increase public safety and encourage responsible use of drones in California,” Gatto said.
As we reported last month, the FAA has recently begun to require owners of private drones to register with the government and pay a registration fee. To make matters worse, their personal information will be exposed in the process.
The privacy concerns surrounding drone registration has grown with the FAA’s admission that the registration information would be available to anyone with an Internet connection. This means that addresses and other sensitive personal information of drone owners would be publicly listed, creating an obvious safety hazard. The FAA says that the names and addresses would not be searchable; however, if you have the number to someone’s drone, you can easily pull up their address and other personal information.
The registration move was just the beginning of a slippery slope that will quickly bring far-reaching, local, state and federal restrictions on drone operators.
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John Vibes is an author and researcher who organizes a number of large events including the Free Your Mind Conference. He also has a publishing company where he offers a censorship free platform for both fiction and non-fiction writers. You can contact him and stay connected to his work at his Facebook page. You can purchase his books, or get your own book published at his website www.JohnVibes.com.
The disrespect of others´ rights and property by a small percentage of owners of these model Quadcopters has precipated the stringent ordinances. As a hobby aircraft modeler for over sixty years, an RC modeler for twenty and licensed pilot since 1964, the restrictions seem appropriate to me. Owners of Quadcopters who attempt to avoid identification, thus responsibility for infractions, do not deserve to operate one.
As much as I dislike the growth in invasive governmental and corporate technology is, I agree with you there has to be a system in place to hold people accountable. Of course it should not be possible to enable just anyone with an Internet connection to access the personal information of registered drone owners. That could induce the underground development of unregistered owners – much like the dynamics involved with gun registration versus illegal and unregistered possession.
“….As technology evolves, so must our laws in order to protect our citizenry….”
Riiiiiight !
It’s all just about “protecting” us.
And who is the “protector” ?
The greatest racketeer imaginable – The State.
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Only in Cal-i-for-nia, and a demowit, no less. Oh, well, they asked for it, them selves. Crap in, crap out.
This sounds a lot like the specious predictions made at the beginning of the aviation age that someday airplanes would be as common as automobiles. That hasn’t happened, there is no reason to license drones until all flying animals are so regulated.
OF COURSE “the government” has the “authority” to pass this “statute” and force compliance on their subjects, er, citizens. They have a “Responsibility to Protect” us. Until the courts say they don’t.
I love your sarcasm. Thank you.
Wouldn’t it be easier to restrict the range, or is licensing as source of revenue the preferred method?
Here come the goons to tell us that more government is the answer to random problems in the community. Registering cars has not prevented accidents. Registering doctors has not prevented accidents nor malpractice. Registering corporations, well, we see where that is going. Registering bicycles hasn’t prevented accidents or theft. I could go on and on and on and on and on and on and on and on and on and on and on and on and on and on and on and on and on and on and on and on and on and on and on and on and on and on and on and on and on and on and on and on……………………………………………………………………etc. Get the picture?
I think it’s all about taking responsibility for whatever damage you will eventually cause. An anonymous drone taking down an Airbus a380 is becoming more likely as just anyone can fly them with zero experience. We’ve already seen drones block firefighters efforts, pilots have spotted them over airports, and they’ve even been crash landed on the White house lawn. It’s really a common sense approach to what’s quickly becoming an epidemic and I’m surprised they are being so lenient on this but I expect more to come in the near future. Too many idiots ruining what could have been an enjoyable hobby.
So easily enforced.
This is SOP corruption which is standard for the outlaw state of California. Has nothing to do with airplanes and drones. Models are not drones, drones carry 600lb missiles, spy cameras that can see for miles, are controlled by satellite and GPS while a kid with tiny RC toy is of no concern at all. Instead this is about the crime cabal prohibiting any such toy from interfering with their absurd plan for Robotic Delivery of Good such as the just announced Amazon. It’s stupid, won’t work, no one is going to by a license to fly a toy in the back yard. Just another example of a corrupted individual abusing the public trust. Probably be revealing to see where he gets funding from.