Booker and Hoven legislation will allow sUAS industry to soar.

Today the Small UAV Coalition commends Senators Cory Booker (D-NJ) and John Hoeven (R-ND) for introducing the Commercial UAS Modernization Act, which would create a safe and efficient way for small unmanned aerial systems (UAS) to be operated in the United States for commercial purposes.

Small UAS have been safely used around the world for many years, in industries like agriculture, oil and gas, real estate, emergency response, and movie production.  For example, farmers in Japan have used small UAS to increase the yield of their crops since the 1990s.  Recently, humanitarian organizations deployed small UAS in Nepal to survey damage and locate missing persons after the earthquake.  The Commercial UAS Modernization Act would allow operators in the United States to take advantage of this technology now, instead of waiting one year or longer for the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) to publish its final rule.

The Coalition also welcomes a provision in the bill that would create a Deputy Associate Administrator within the FAA to oversee UAS research and development, develop a UAV registration system, and authorize operations beyond the parameters of the FAA’s proposed rule.  The creation of this position will increase the FAA’s ability to efficiently manage this industry, and will streamline existing bureaucratic hurdles.

The Small UAV Coalition thanks Senators Hoeven and Booker for their leadership on UAS issues and their commitment to innovation in the United States.  We look forward to working with the Senators to further improve the bill, in order to fully realize the economic benefits of small UAS.

The Small UAV Coalition is the nation’s leading advocate for the commercial, civil, recreational, and philanthropic use of small unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs), or drones.  For more information on the Small UAV Coalition, please visitwww.smalluavcoalition.org, contact press@smalluavcoalition.org, or follow @smallUAVs on Twitter.