II 

Calendar No. 676 

117TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION S. 4687 

[Report No. 117–277] 

To enhance the authority granted to the Department of Homeland Security 

and Department of Justice with respect to unmanned aircraft systems 

and unmanned aircraft, and for other purposes. 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

JULY 28, 2022 

Mr. PETERS (for himself, Mr. JOHNSON, Ms. SINEMA, Ms. HASSAN, Mr. 

PORTMAN, Mr. KELLY, and Mr. HOEVEN) introduced the following bill; 

which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs 

DECEMBER 19, 2022 

Reported by Mr. PETERS, with an amendment 

[Strike out all after the enacting clause and insert the part printed in italic] 

A BILL 

To enhance the authority granted to the Department of 

Homeland Security and Department of Justice with respect to unmanned aircraft systems and unmanned aircraft, and for other purposes. 

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 


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1 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

2 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Safeguarding the 

3 Homeland from the Threats Posed by Unmanned Aircraft 

4 Systems Act of 2022’’. 

5 SEC. 2. DEPARTMENT OF HOMELAND SECURITY UN6 MANNED AIRCRAFT SYSTEM DETECTION AND 

7 MITIGATION ENFORCEMENT AUTHORITY. 

8 Subtitle A of title II of the Homeland Security Act 

9 of 2002 (6 U.S.C. 121 et seq.) is amended by striking 

10 section 210G (6 U.S.C. 124n) and inserting the following: 

11 ‘‘SEC. 210G. PROTECTION OF CERTAIN FACILITIES AND AS12 SETS FROM UNMANNED AIRCRAFT. 

13 ‘‘(a) DEFINITIONS.—In this section: 

14 ‘‘(1) The term ‘air navigation facility’ has the 

15 meaning given the term in section 40102(a)(4) of 

16 title 49, United States Code. 

17 ‘‘(2) The term ‘airport’ has the meaning given 

18 the term in section 47102(2) of title 49, United 

19 Sates Code. 

20 ‘‘(3) The term ‘appropriate committees of Con21 gress’ means— 

22 ‘‘(A) the Committee on Homeland Security 

23 and Governmental Affairs, the Committee on 

24 Commerce, Science, and Transportation, and 

25 the Committee on the Judiciary of the Senate; 

26 and 


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1 ‘‘(B) the Committee on Homeland Secu2 rity, the Committee on Transportation and In3 frastructure, the Committee on Energy and 

4 Commerce, and the Committee on the Judiciary 

5 of the House of Representatives. 

6 ‘‘(4) The term ‘budget’, with respect to a fiscal 

7 year, means the budget for that fiscal year that is 

8 submitted to Congress by the President under sec9 tion 1105(a) of title 31, United States Code. 

10 ‘‘(5) The term ‘covered facility or asset’ means 

11 any facility or asset that— 

12 ‘‘(A) is identified as high-risk and a poten13 tial target for unlawful unmanned aircraft or 

14 unmanned aircraft system activity by the Sec15 retary or the Attorney General, or by the chief 

16 executive of the jurisdiction in which a State, 

17 local, Tribal, or territorial law enforcement 

18 agency designated pursuant to subsection (d)(2) 

19 operates after review and approval of the Sec20 retary or the Attorney General, in coordination 

21 with the Secretary of Transportation with re22 spect to potentially impacted airspace, through 

23 a risk-based assessment for purposes of this 

24 section (except that in the case of the missions 

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1 paragraph (C), such missions shall be presumed 

2 to be for the protection of a facility or asset 

3 that is assessed to be high-risk and a potential 

4 target for unlawful unmanned aircraft or un5 manned aircraft system activity); 

6 ‘‘(B) is located in the United States; and 

7 ‘‘(C) directly relates to 1 or more— 

8 ‘‘(i) missions authorized to be per9 formed by the Department, consistent with 

10 governing statutes, regulations, and orders 

11 issued by the Secretary, pertaining to— 

12 ‘‘(I) security or protection func13 tions of the U.S. Customs and Border 

14 Protection, including securing or pro15 tecting facilities, aircraft, and vessels, 

16 whether moored or underway; 

17 ‘‘(II) United States Secret Serv18 ice protection operations pursuant to 

19 sections 3056(a) and 3056A(a) of title 

20 18, United States Code, and the Pres21 idential Protection Assistance Act of 

22 1976 (18 U.S.C. 3056 note); 

23 ‘‘(III) protection of facilities pur24 suant to section 1315(a) of title 40, 

25 United States Code; or 


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1 ‘‘(IV) transportation security 

2 functions of the Transportation Secu3 rity Administration; 

4 ‘‘(ii) missions authorized to be per5 formed by the Department of Justice, con6 sistent with governing statutes, regula7 tions, and orders issued by the Attorney 

8 General, pertaining to— 

9 ‘‘(I) personal protection oper10 ations by— 

11 ‘‘(aa) the Federal Bureau of 

12 Investigation as specified in sec13 tion 533 of title 28, United 

14 States Code; or 

15 ‘‘(bb) the United States 

16 Marshals Service as specified in 

17 section 566 of title 28, United 

18 States Code; 

19 ‘‘(II) protection of penal, deten20 tion, and correctional facilities and 

21 operations conducted by the Federal 

22 Bureau of Prisons and prisoner oper23 ations and transport conducted by the 

24 United States Marshals Service; 


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1 ‘‘(III) protection of the buildings 

2 and grounds leased, owned, or oper3 ated by or for the Department of Jus4 tice, and the provision of security for 

5 Federal courts, as specified in section 

6 566 of title 28, United States Code; 

7 or 

8 ‘‘(IV) protection of an airport or 

9 air navigation facility; 

10 ‘‘(iii) missions authorized to be per11 formed by the Department or the Depart12 ment of Justice, acting together or sepa13 rately, consistent with governing statutes, 

14 regulations, and orders issued by the Sec15 retary or the Attorney General, respec16 tively, pertaining to— 

17 ‘‘(I) protection of a National 

18 Special Security Event and Special 

19 Event Assessment Rating event; 

20 ‘‘(II) the provision of support to 

21 a State, local, Tribal, or territorial law 

22 enforcement agency, upon request of 

23 the chief executive officer of the State 

24 or territory, to ensure protection of 

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1 erings, that is limited to a specified 

2 duration and location, within available 

3 resources, and without delegating any 

4 authority under this section to State, 

5 local, Tribal, or territorial law en6 forcement; 

7 ‘‘(III) protection of an active 

8 Federal law enforcement investigation, 

9 emergency response, or security func10 tion, that is limited to a specified du11 ration and location; or 

12 ‘‘(IV) the provision of security or 

13 protection support to critical infra14 structure owners or operators, for 

15 static critical infrastructure facilities 

16 and assets upon the request of the 

17 owner or operator; 

18 ‘‘(iv) missions authorized to be per19 formed by the United States Coast Guard, 

20 including those described in clause (iii) as 

21 directed by the Secretary, and as further 

22 set forth in section 528 of title 14, United 

23 States Code, and consistent with governing 

24 statutes, regulations, and orders issued by 


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1 the Secretary of the Department in which 

2 the Coast Guard is operating; and 

3 ‘‘(v) responsibilities of State, local, 

4 Tribal, and territorial law enforcement 

5 agencies designated pursuant to subsection 

6 (d)(2) pertaining to— 

7 ‘‘(I) protection of National Spe8 cial Security Event and Special Event 

9 Assessment Rating events or other 

10 mass gatherings in the jurisdiction of 

11 the State, local, Tribal, or territorial 

12 law enforcement agency; 

13 ‘‘(II) protection of critical infra14 structure assessed by the Secretary as 

15 high-risk for unmanned aircraft sys16 tems or unmanned aircraft attack or 

17 disruption, including airports in the 

18 jurisdiction of the State, local, Tribal, 

19 or territorial law enforcement agency; 

20 or 

21 ‘‘(III) protection of sensitive gov22 ernment buildings, assets, or facilities 

23 in the jurisdiction of the State, local, 

24 Tribal, or territorial law enforcement 

25 agency. 


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1 ‘‘(6) The term ‘critical infrastructure’ has the 

2 meaning given the term in section 1016(e) of the 

3 Critical Infrastructure Protection Act of 2001 (42 

4 U.S.C. 5195c(e)). 

5 ‘‘(7) The terms ‘electronic communication’, 

6 ‘intercept’, ‘oral communication’, and ‘wire commu7 nication’ have the meanings given those terms in 

8 section 2510 of title 18, United States Code. 

9 ‘‘(8) The term ‘homeland security or justice 

10 budget materials’, with respect to a fiscal year, 

11 means the materials submitted to Congress by the 

12 Secretary and the Attorney General in support of 

13 the budget for that fiscal year. 

14 ‘‘(9)(A) The term ‘personnel’ means— 

15 ‘‘(i) an officer, employee, or contractor of 

16 the Department or the Department of Justice, 

17 who is authorized to perform duties that include 

18 safety, security, or protection of personnel, fa19 cilities, or assets; or 

20 ‘‘(ii) an employee who— 

21 ‘‘(I) is authorized to perform law en22 forcement and security functions on behalf 

23 of a State, local, Tribal, or territorial law 

24 enforcement agency designated under sub25 section (d)(2); and 


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1 ‘‘(II) is trained and certified to per2 form those duties, including training spe3 cific to countering unmanned aircraft 

4 threats and mitigating risks in the national 

5 airspace. 

6 ‘‘(B) To qualify for use of the authorities de7 scribed in subsection (b) or (c), respectively, a con8 tractor conducting operations described in those sub9 sections must— 

10 ‘‘(i) be directly contracted by the Depart11 ment or the Department of Justice; 

12 ‘‘(ii) operate at a government-owned or 

13 government-leased facility or asset; 

14 ‘‘(iii) not conduct inherently governmental 

15 functions; and 

16 ‘‘(iv) be trained and certified by the De17 partment or the Department of Justice to meet 

18 the established guidance and regulations of the 

19 Department or the Department of Justice, re20 spectively. 

21 ‘‘(C) For purposes of subsection (c)(1), the 

22 term ‘personnel’ includes any officer, employee, or 

23 contractor who is authorized to perform duties that 

24 include the safety, security, or protection of people, 

25 facilities, or assets, of— 


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1 ‘‘(i) a State, local, Tribal, or territorial law 

2 enforcement agency; and 

3 ‘‘(ii) an owner or operator of an airport or 

4 critical infrastructure. 

5 ‘‘(10) The term ‘risk-based assessment’ means 

6 an evaluation of threat information specific to a cov7 ered facility or asset and, with respect to potential 

8 impacts on the safety and efficiency of the national 

9 airspace system and the needs of law enforcement 

10 and national security at each covered facility or 

11 asset identified by the Secretary or the Attorney 

12 General, respectively, of each of the following fac13 tors: 

14 ‘‘(A) Potential impacts to safety, efficiency, 

15 and use of the national airspace system, includ16 ing potential effects on manned aircraft and un17 manned aircraft systems or unmanned aircraft, 

18 aviation safety, airport operations, infrastruc19 ture, and air navigation services relating to the 

20 use of any system or technology for carrying 

21 out the actions described in subsection (e)(2). 

22 ‘‘(B) Options for mitigating any identified 

23 impacts to the national airspace system relating 

24 to the use of any system or technology, includ25 ing minimizing, when possible, the use of any 


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1 technology that disrupts the transmission of 

2 radio or electronic signals, for carrying out the 

3 actions described in subsection (e)(2). 

4 ‘‘(C) Potential consequences of the impacts 

5 of any actions taken under subsection (e)(1) to 

6 the national airspace system and infrastructure 

7 if not mitigated. 

8 ‘‘(D) The ability to provide reasonable ad9 vance notice to aircraft operators consistent 

10 with the safety of the national airspace system 

11 and the needs of law enforcement and national 

12 security. 

13 ‘‘(E) The setting and character of any cov14 ered facility or asset, including— 

15 ‘‘(i) whether the covered facility or 

16 asset is located in a populated area or near 

17 other structures; 

18 ‘‘(ii) whether the covered facility or 

19 asset is open to the public; 

20 ‘‘(iii) whether the covered facility or 

21 asset is used for nongovernmental func22 tions; and 

23 ‘‘(iv) any potential for interference 

24 with wireless communications or for injury 

25 or damage to persons or property. 


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1 ‘‘(F) The setting, character, duration, and 

2 national airspace system impacts of National 

3 Special Security Event and Special Event As4 sessment Rating events, to the extent not al5 ready discussed in the National Special Security 

6 Event and Special Event Assessment Rating 

7 nomination process. 

8 ‘‘(G) Potential consequences to national se9 curity, public safety, or law enforcement if 

10 threats posed by unmanned aircraft systems or 

11 unmanned aircraft are not mitigated or de12 feated. 

13 ‘‘(11) The terms ‘unmanned aircraft’ and ‘un14 manned aircraft system’ have the meanings given 

15 those terms in section 44801 of title 49, United 

16 States Code. 

17 ‘‘(b) AUTHORITY OF THE DEPARTMENT OF HOME18 LAND SECURITY AND DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE.—Not19 withstanding section 46502 of title 49, United States 

20 Code, or sections 32, 1030, 1367, and chapters 119 and 

21 206 of title 18, United States Code, the Secretary and 

22 the Attorney General may, for their respective Depart23 ments, take, and may authorize personnel with assigned 

24 duties that include the safety, security, or protection of 

25 people, facilities, or assets to take, actions described in 


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1 subsection (e)(2) that are necessary to detect, identify, 

2 monitor, track, and mitigate a credible threat (as defined 

3 by the Secretary and the Attorney General, in consultation 

4 with the Secretary of Transportation through the Admin5 istrator of the Federal Aviation Administration) that an 

6 unmanned aircraft system or unmanned aircraft poses to 

7 the safety or security of a covered facility or asset. 

8 ‘‘(c) ADDITIONAL LIMITED AUTHORITY FOR DETEC9 TION, IDENTIFICATION, MONITORING, AND TRACKING.— 

10 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Subject to paragraphs (2) 

11 and (3), and notwithstanding sections 1030 and 

12 1367 and chapters 119 and 206 of title 18, United 

13 States Code, any State, local, Tribal, or territorial 

14 law enforcement agency, the Department of Justice, 

15 the Department, and any owner or operator of an 

16 airport or critical infrastructure may authorize per17 sonnel, with assigned duties that include the safety, 

18 security, or protection of people, facilities, or assets, 

19 to use equipment authorized under this subsection to 

20 take actions described in subsection (e)(1) that are 

21 necessary to detect, identify, monitor, or track an 

22 unmanned aircraft system or unmanned aircraft 

23 within the respective areas of responsibility or juris24 diction of the authorized personnel. 


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1 ‘‘(2) AUTHORIZED EQUIPMENT.—Equipment 

2 authorized for unmanned aircraft system detection, 

3 identification, monitoring, or tracking under this 

4 subsection shall be limited to systems or tech5 nologies— 

6 ‘‘(A) tested and evaluated by the Depart7 ment or the Department of Justice, including 

8 evaluation of any potential counterintelligence 

9 or cybersecurity risks; 

10 ‘‘(B) that are annually reevaluated for any 

11 changes in risks, including counterintelligence 

12 and cybersecurity risks; 

13 ‘‘(C) determined by the Federal Commu14 nications Commission and the National Tele15 communications and Information Administra16 tion not to adversely impact the use of the com17 munications spectrum; 

18 ‘‘(D) determined by the Federal Aviation 

19 Administration not to adversely impact the use 

20 of the aviation spectrum or otherwise adversely 

21 impact the national airspace system; and 

22 ‘‘(E) that are included on a list of author23 ized equipment maintained by the Department, 

24 in coordination with the Department of Justice, 

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1 eral Communications Commission, and the Na2 tional Telecommunications and Information Ad3 ministration. 

4 ‘‘(3) STATE, LOCAL, TRIBAL, AND TERRITORIAL

5 COMPLIANCE.—Each State, local, Tribal, or terri6 torial law enforcement agency or owner or operator 

7 of an airport or critical infrastructure acting pursu8 ant to this subsection shall— 

9 ‘‘(A) prior to any such action, issue a writ10 ten policy certifying compliance with the privacy 

11 protections of subparagraphs (A) through (D) 

12 of subsection (j)(2); and 

13 ‘‘(B) comply with any additional guidance 

14 issued by the Secretary or the Attorney General 

15 relating to implementation of this subsection. 

16 ‘‘(4) PROHIBITION.—Nothing in this subsection 

17 shall be construed to authorize the taking of any ac18 tion described in subsection (e) other than the ac19 tions described in paragraph (1) of that subsection. 

20 ‘‘(d) PILOT PROGRAM FOR STATE, LOCAL, TRIBAL, 

21 AND TERRITORIAL LAW ENFORCEMENT.— 

22 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary and the At23 torney General may carry out a pilot program to 

24 evaluate the potential benefits of State, local, Tribal, 

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1 tions that are necessary to mitigate a credible threat 

2 (as defined by the Secretary and the Attorney Gen3 eral, in consultation with the Secretary of Transpor4 tation through the Administrator of the Federal 

5 Aviation Administration) that an unmanned aircraft 

6 system or unmanned aircraft poses to the safety or 

7 security of a covered facility or asset. 

8 ‘‘(2) DESIGNATION.— 

9 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary or the 

10 Attorney General, with the concurrence of the 

11 Secretary of Transportation (through the Ad12 ministrator of the Federal Aviation Administra13 tion), may, under the pilot program established 

14 under paragraph (1), designate 1 or more 

15 State, local, Tribal or territorial law enforce16 ment agencies approved by the respective chief 

17 executive officer of the State, local, Tribal, or 

18 territorial law enforcement agency to engage in 

19 the activities authorized in paragraph (4) under 

20 the direct oversight of the Department or the 

21 Department of Justice, in carrying out the re22 sponsibilities authorized under subsection 

23 (a)(5)(C)(v). 

24 ‘‘(B) DESIGNATION PROCESS.— 


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1 ‘‘(i) NUMBER OF AGENCIES AND DU2 RATION.—On and after the date that is 

3 180 days after the date of enactment of 

4 the Safeguarding the Homeland from the 

5 Threats Posed by Unmanned Aircraft Sys6 tems Act of 2022, the Secretary and the 

7 Attorney General, pursuant to subpara8 graph (A), may designate not more than 

9 12 State, local, Tribal, and territorial law 

10 enforcement agencies for participation in 

11 the pilot program, and may designate 12 

12 additional State, local, Tribal, and terri13 torial law enforcement agencies each year 

14 thereafter, provided that not more than 60 

15 State, local, Tribal, and territorial law en16 forcement agencies in total may be des17 ignated during the 5-year period of the 

18 pilot program. 

19 ‘‘(ii) REVOCATION.—The Secretary 

20 and the Attorney General, in consultation 

21 with the Secretary of Transportation 

22 (through the Administrator of the Federal 

23 Aviation Administration)— 

24 ‘‘(I) may revoke a designation 

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1 retary, Attorney General, and Sec2 retary of Transportation (through the 

3 Administrator of the Federal Aviation 

4 Administration) concur in the revoca5 tion; and 

6 ‘‘(II) shall revoke a designation 

7 under subparagraph (A) if the Sec8 retary, the Attorney General, or the 

9 Secretary of Transportation (through 

10 the Administrator of the Federal 

11 Aviation Administration) withdraws 

12 concurrence. 

13 ‘‘(3) TERMINATION OF PILOT PROGRAM.— 

14 ‘‘(A) DESIGNATION.—The authority to 

15 designate an agency for inclusion in the pilot 

16 program established under this subsection shall 

17 terminate after the 5-year period beginning on 

18 the date that is 180 days after the date of en19 actment of the Safeguarding the Homeland 

20 from the Threats Posed by Unmanned Aircraft 

21 Systems Act of 2022. 

22 ‘‘(B) AUTHORITY OF PILOT PROGRAM

23 AGENCIES.—The authority of an agency des24 ignated under the pilot program established 

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1 thorities granted under the pilot program shall 

2 terminate not later than 6 years after the date 

3 that is 180 days after the date of enactment of 

4 the Safeguarding the Homeland from the 

5 Threats Posed by Unmanned Aircraft Systems 

6 Act of 2022, or upon revocation pursuant to 

7 paragraph (2)(B)(ii). 

8 ‘‘(4) AUTHORIZATION.—Notwithstanding sec9 tion 46502 of title 49, United States Code, or sec10 tions 32, 1030, 1367, and chapters 119 and 206 of 

11 title 18, United States Code, any State, local, Trib12 al, or territorial law enforcement agency designated 

13 pursuant to paragraph (2) may authorize personnel 

14 with assigned duties that include the safety, secu15 rity, or protection of people, facilities, or assets to 

16 take such actions as are described in subsection 

17 (e)(2) that are necessary to detect, identify, monitor, 

18 track, or mitigate a credible threat (as defined by 

19 the Secretary and the Attorney General, in consulta20 tion with the Secretary of Transportation, through 

21 the Administrator of the Federal Aviation Adminis22 tration) that an unmanned aircraft system or un23 manned aircraft poses to the safety or security of a 

24 covered facility or asset under subsection 

25 (a)(5)(C)(v). 


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1 ‘‘(5) EXEMPTION.— 

2 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Subject to subpara3 graph (B), the Chair of the Federal Commu4 nications Commission, in consultation with the 

5 Administrator of the National Telecommuni6 cations and Information Administration, shall 

7 implement a process for considering the exemp8 tion of 1 or more law enforcement agencies des9 ignated under paragraph (2), or any station op10 erated by the agency, from any provision of title 

11 III of the Communications Act of 1934 (47 

12 U.S.C. 151 et seq.) to the extent that the des13 ignated law enforcement agency takes such ac14 tions as are described in subsection (e)(2) and 

15 may establish conditions or requirements for 

16 such exemption. 

17 ‘‘(B) REQUIREMENTS.—The Chair of the 

18 Federal Communications Commission, in con19 sultation with the Administrator of the Na20 tional Telecommunications and Information Ad21 ministration, may grant an exemption under 

22 subparagraph (A) only if the Chair of the Fed23 eral Communications Commission in consulta24 tion with the Administrator of the National 


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1 Telecommunications and Information Adminis2 tration finds that the grant of an exemption— 

3 ‘‘(i) is necessary to achieve the pur4 poses of this subsection; and 

5 ‘‘(ii) will serve the public interest. 

6 ‘‘(C) REVOCATION.—Any exemption grant7 ed under subparagraph (A) shall terminate 

8 automatically if the designation granted to the 

9 law enforcement agency under paragraph 

10 (2)(A) is revoked by the Secretary or the Attor11 ney General under paragraph (2)(B)(ii) or is 

12 terminated under paragraph (3)(B). 

13 ‘‘(6) REPORTING.—Not later than 2 years after 

14 the date on which the first law enforcement agency 

15 is designated under paragraph (2), the Secretary 

16 and the Attorney General shall inform the appro17 priate committees of Congress in writing of the use 

18 by any State, local, Tribal, or territorial law enforce19 ment agency of any authority granted pursuant to 

20 paragraph (4). 

21 ‘‘(7) RESTRICTIONS.—Any entity acting pursu22 ant to the authorities granted under this sub23 section— 

24 ‘‘(A) may do so only using equipment au25 thorized by the Department, in coordination 


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1 with the Department of Justice, the Federal 

2 Communications Commission, the National 

3 Telecommunications and Information Adminis4 tration, and the Department of Transportation 

5 (through the Federal Aviation Administration) 

6 according to the criteria described in subsection 

7 (c)(2); 

8 ‘‘(B) shall, prior to any such action, issue 

9 a written policy certifying compliance with the 

10 privacy protections of subparagraphs (A) 

11 through (D) of subsection (j)(2); 

12 ‘‘(C) shall ensure that all personnel under13 taking any actions listed under this subsection 

14 are properly trained in accordance with the cri15 teria that the Secretary and Attorney General 

16 shall collectively establish, in consultation with 

17 the Secretary of Transportation, the Adminis18 trator of the Federal Aviation Administration, 

19 the Chair of the Federal Communications Com20 mission, and the Assistant Secretary of Com21 merce for Communications and Information of 

22 the National Telecommunications and Informa23 tion Administration; and 

24 ‘‘(D) shall comply with any additional 

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1 section issued by the Secretary or Attorney 

2 General. 

3 ‘‘(e) ACTIONS DESCRIBED.— 

4 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The actions authorized 

5 under subsection (c) that may be taken by a State, 

6 local, Tribal, or territorial law enforcement agency, 

7 the Department, the Department of Justice, and any 

8 owner or operator of an airport or critical infrastruc9 ture, are limited to actions during the operation of 

10 an unmanned aircraft system, to detect, identify, 

11 monitor, and track the unmanned aircraft system or 

12 unmanned aircraft, without prior consent, including 

13 by means of intercept or other access of a wire com14 munication, an oral communication, or an electronic 

15 communication used to control the unmanned air16 craft system or unmanned aircraft. 

17 ‘‘(2) CLARIFICATION.—The actions authorized 

18 in subsections (b) and (d)(4) are the following: 

19 ‘‘(A) During the operation of the un20 manned aircraft system or unmanned aircraft, 

21 detect, identify, monitor, and track the un22 manned aircraft system or unmanned aircraft, 

23 without prior consent, including by means of 

24 intercept or other access of a wire communica25 tion, an oral communication, or an electronic 


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1 communication used to control the unmanned 

2 aircraft system or unmanned aircraft. 

3 ‘‘(B) Warn the operator of the unmanned 

4 aircraft system or unmanned aircraft, including 

5 by passive or active, and direct or indirect, 

6 physical, electronic, radio, and electromagnetic 

7 means. 

8 ‘‘(C) Disrupt control of the unmanned air9 craft system or unmanned aircraft, without 

10 prior consent of the operator of the unmanned 

11 aircraft system or unmanned aircraft, including 

12 by disabling the unmanned aircraft system or 

13 unmanned aircraft by intercepting, interfering, 

14 or causing interference with wire, oral, elec15 tronic, or radio communications used to control 

16 the unmanned aircraft system or unmanned air17 craft. 

18 ‘‘(D) Seize or exercise control of the un19 manned aircraft system or unmanned aircraft. 

20 ‘‘(E) Seize or otherwise confiscate the un21 manned aircraft system or unmanned aircraft. 

22 ‘‘(F) Use reasonable force, if necessary, to 

23 disable, damage, or destroy the unmanned air24 craft system or unmanned aircraft. 


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1 ‘‘(f) RESEARCH, TESTING, TRAINING, AND EVALUA2 TION.— 

3 ‘‘(1) REQUIREMENT.— 

4 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Notwithstanding sec5 tion 46502 of title 49, United States Code, or 

6 any provision of title 18, United States Code, 

7 the Secretary, the Attorney General, and the 

8 heads of the State, local, Tribal, or territorial 

9 law enforcement agencies designated pursuant 

10 to subsection (d)(2) shall conduct research, 

11 testing, training on, and evaluation of any 

12 equipment, including any electronic equipment, 

13 to determine the capability and utility of the 

14 equipment prior to the use of the equipment in 

15 carrying out any action described in subsection 

16 (e). 

17 ‘‘(B) COORDINATION.—Personnel and con18 tractors who do not have duties that include the 

19 safety, security, or protection of people, facili20 ties, or assets may engage in research, testing, 

21 training, and evaluation activities pursuant to 

22 subparagraph (A). 

23 ‘‘(2) TRAINING OF FEDERAL, STATE, LOCAL, 

24 TERRITORIAL, AND TRIBAL LAW ENFORCEMENT

25 PERSONNEL.—The Attorney General, through the 


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1 Director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, 

2 may— 

3 ‘‘(A) provide training relating to measures 

4 to mitigate a credible threat that an unmanned 

5 aircraft or unmanned aircraft system poses to 

6 the safety or security of a covered facility or 

7 asset to any personnel who are authorized to 

8 take such measures, including personnel author9 ized to take the actions described in subsection 

10 (e); and 

11 ‘‘(B) establish or designate 1 or more fa12 cilities or training centers for the purpose de13 scribed in subparagraph (A). 

14 ‘‘(3) COORDINATION FOR RESEARCH, TESTING, 

15 TRAINING, AND EVALUATION.— 

16 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary, the 

17 Attorney General, and the heads of the State, 

18 local, Tribal, or territorial law enforcement 

19 agencies designated pursuant to subsection 

20 (d)(2) shall coordinate procedures governing re21 search, testing, training, and evaluation to 

22 carry out any provision under this subsection 

23 with the Administrator of the Federal Aviation 

24 Administration before initiating such activity in 

25 order that the Administrator of the Federal 


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1 Aviation Administration may ensure the activity 

2 does not adversely impact or interfere with safe 

3 airport operations, navigation, air traffic serv4 ices, or the safe and efficient operation of the 

5 national airspace system. 

6 ‘‘(B) STATE, LOCAL, TRIBAL, AND TERRI7 TORIAL LAW ENFORCEMENT AGENCY COORDI8 NATION.—Each head of a State, local, Tribal, 

9 or territorial law enforcement agency designated 

10 pursuant to subsection (d)(2) shall coordinate 

11 the procedures governing research, testing, 

12 training, and evaluation of the law enforcement 

13 agency through the Secretary and the Attorney 

14 General, in coordination with the Federal Avia15 tion Administration. 

16 ‘‘(g) FORFEITURE.—Any unmanned aircraft system 

17 or unmanned aircraft that is seized by the Secretary or 

18 the Attorney General pursuant to subsection (b) is subject 

19 to forfeiture to the United States pursuant to the provi20 sions of chapter 46 of title 18, United States Code. 

21 ‘‘(h) REGULATIONS AND GUIDANCE.—The Secretary, 

22 the Attorney General, and the Secretary of Transpor23 tation— 


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1 ‘‘(1) may prescribe regulations and shall issue 

2 guidance in the respective areas of each Secretary or 

3 the Attorney General to carry out this section; and 

4 ‘‘(2) in developing regulations and guidance de5 scribed in subparagraph (A), consult the Chair of 

6 the Federal Communications Commission, the Ad7 ministrator of the National Telecommunications and 

8 Information Administration, and the Administrator 

9 of the Federal Aviation Administration. 

10 ‘‘(i) COORDINATION.— 

11 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary and the At12 torney General shall coordinate with the Adminis13 trator of the Federal Aviation Administration before 

14 carrying out any action authorized under this section 

15 in order that the Administrator may ensure the ac16 tion does not adversely impact or interfere with— 

17 ‘‘(A) safe airport operations; 

18 ‘‘(B) navigation; 

19 ‘‘(C) air traffic services; or 

20 ‘‘(D) the safe and efficient operation of the 

21 national airspace system. 

22 ‘‘(2) GUIDANCE.—Before issuing any guidance, 

23 or otherwise implementing this section, the Secretary 

24 or the Attorney General shall, respectively, coordi25 nate with— 


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1 ‘‘(A) the Secretary of Transportation in 

2 order that the Secretary of Transportation may 

3 ensure the guidance or implementation does not 

4 adversely impact or interfere with any critical 

5 infrastructure relating to transportation; and 

6 ‘‘(B) the Administrator of the Federal 

7 Aviation Administration in order that the Ad8 ministrator may ensure the guidance or imple9 mentation does not adversely impact or inter10 fere with— 

11 ‘‘(i) safe airport operations; 

12 ‘‘(ii) navigation; 

13 ‘‘(iii) air traffic services; or 

14 ‘‘(iv) the safe and efficient operation 

15 of the national airspace system. 

16 ‘‘(3) COORDINATION WITH THE FAA.—The Sec17 retary and the Attorney General shall coordinate the 

18 development of their respective guidance under sub19 section (h) with the Secretary of Transportation 

20 (through the Administrator of the Federal Aviation 

21 Administration). 

22 ‘‘(4) COORDINATION WITH THE DEPARTMENT

23 OF TRANSPORTATION AND NATIONAL TELE24 COMMUNICATIONS AND INFORMATION ADMINISTRA25 TION.—The Secretary and the Attorney General, 


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1 and the heads of any State, local, Tribal, or terri2 torial law enforcement agencies designated pursuant 

3 to subsection (d)(2), through the Secretary and the 

4 Attorney General, shall coordinate the development 

5 for their respective departments or agencies of the 

6 actions described in subsection (e) with the Sec7 retary of Transportation (through the Administrator 

8 of the Federal Aviation Administration) and the As9 sistant Secretary of Commerce for Communications 

10 and Information of the National Telecommuni11 cations and Information Administration. 

12 ‘‘(5) STATE, LOCAL, TRIBAL, AND TERRITORIAL

13 IMPLEMENTATION.—Prior to taking any action au14 thorized under subsection (d)(4), each head of a 

15 State, local, Tribal, or territorial law enforcement 

16 agency designated under subsection (d)(2) shall co17 ordinate, through the Secretary and the Attorney 

18 General— 

19 ‘‘(A) with the Secretary of Transportation 

20 in order that the Administrators of non-aviation 

21 modes of the Department of Transportation 

22 may evaluate whether the action may have ad23 verse impacts on critical infrastructure relating 

24 to non-aviation transportation; 


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1 ‘‘(B) with the Administrator of the Federal 

2 Aviation Administration in order that the Ad3 ministrator may ensure the action will have no 

4 adverse impact, or will not, interfere with— 

5 ‘‘(i) safe airport operations; 

6 ‘‘(ii) navigation; 

7 ‘‘(iii) air traffic services; or 

8 ‘‘(iv) the safe and efficient operation 

9 of the national airspace system; and 

10 ‘‘(C) to allow the Department and the De11 partment of Justice to ensure that any action 

12 authorized by this section is consistent with 

13 Federal law enforcement and in the interest of 

14 national security. 

15 ‘‘(j) PRIVACY PROTECTION.— 

16 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Any regulation or guidance 

17 issued to carry out an action under subsection (e) by 

18 the Secretary or the Attorney General, respectively, 

19 shall ensure for the Department or the Department 

20 of Justice, respectively, that— 

21 ‘‘(A) the interception of, acquisition of, ac22 cess to, maintenance of, or use of any commu23 nication to or from an unmanned aircraft sys24 tem or unmanned aircraft under this section is 

25 conducted in a manner consistent with the First 


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1 and Fourth Amendments to the Constitution of 

2 the United States and any applicable provision 

3 of Federal law; 

4 ‘‘(B) any communication to or from an un5 manned aircraft system or unmanned aircraft 

6 are intercepted or acquired only to the extent 

7 necessary to support an action described in sub8 section (e); 

9 ‘‘(C) any record of a communication de10 scribed in subparagraph (B) is maintained only 

11 for as long as necessary, and in no event for 

12 more than 180 days, unless the Secretary or 

13 the Attorney General, as applicable, determines 

14 that maintenance of the record is— 

15 ‘‘(i) required under Federal law; 

16 ‘‘(ii) necessary for the purpose of liti17 gation; and 

18 ‘‘(iii) necessary to investigate or pros19 ecute a violation of law, including by— 

20 ‘‘(I) directly supporting an ongo21 ing security operation; or 

22 ‘‘(II) protecting against dan23 gerous or unauthorized activity by un24 manned aircraft systems or unmanned 

25 aircraft; and 


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1 ‘‘(D) a communication described in sub2 paragraph (B) is not disclosed to any person 

3 not employed or contracted by the Department 

4 or the Department of Justice unless the disclo5 sure— 

6 ‘‘(i) is necessary to investigate or 

7 prosecute a violation of law; 

8 ‘‘(ii) will support— 

9 ‘‘(I) the Department of Defense; 

10 ‘‘(II) a Federal law enforcement, 

11 intelligence, or security agency; 

12 ‘‘(III) a State, local, Tribal, or 

13 territorial law enforcement agency; or 

14 ‘‘(IV) another relevant entity or 

15 person if the entity or person is en16 gaged in a security or protection oper17 ation; 

18 ‘‘(iii) is necessary to support a depart19 ment or agency listed in clause (ii) in in20 vestigating or prosecuting a violation of 

21 law; 

22 ‘‘(iv) will support the enforcement ac23 tivities of a Federal regulatory agency re24 lating to a criminal or civil investigation of, 

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1 forcement action relating to, an action de2 scribed in subsection (e); 

3 ‘‘(v) is between the Department and 

4 the Department of Justice in the course of 

5 a security or protection operation of either 

6 department or a joint operation of those 

7 departments; or 

8 ‘‘(vi) is otherwise required by law. 

9 ‘‘(2) LOCAL PRIVACY PROTECTION.—In exer10 cising any authority described in subsection (c) or 

11 (d), a State, local, Tribal, or territorial law enforce12 ment agency designated under subsection (d)(2) or 

13 owner or operator of an airport or critical infrastruc14 ture shall ensure that— 

15 ‘‘(A) the interception of, acquisition of, ac16 cess to, maintenance of, or use of communica17 tions to or from an unmanned aircraft system 

18 or unmanned aircraft under this section is con19 ducted in a manner consistent with— 

20 ‘‘(i) the First and Fourth Amend21 ments to the Constitution of the United 

22 States; and 

23 ‘‘(ii) applicable provisions of Federal, 

24 and where required, State, local, Tribal, 

25 and territorial law; 


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1 ‘‘(B) any communication to or from an un2 manned aircraft system or unmanned aircraft is 

3 intercepted or acquired only to the extent nec4 essary to support an action described in sub5 section (e); 

6 ‘‘(C) any record of a communication de7 scribed in subparagraph (B) is maintained only 

8 for as long as necessary, and in no event for 

9 more than 180 days, unless the Secretary, the 

10 Attorney General, or the head of a State, local, 

11 Tribal, or territorial law enforcement agency 

12 designated under subsection (d)(2) determines 

13 that maintenance of the record is— 

14 ‘‘(i) required to be maintained under 

15 Federal, State, local, Tribal, or territorial 

16 law; 

17 ‘‘(ii) necessary for the purpose of any 

18 litigation; or 

19 ‘‘(iii) necessary to investigate or pros20 ecute a violation of law, including by— 

21 ‘‘(I) directly supporting an ongo22 ing security or protection operation; 

23 or 

24 ‘‘(II) protecting against dan25 gerous or unauthorized activity by an 


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1 unmanned aircraft system or un2 manned aircraft; and 

3 ‘‘(D) the communication is not disclosed 

4 outside the agency or entity unless the disclo5 sure— 

6 ‘‘(i) is necessary to investigate or 

7 prosecute a violation of law; 

8 ‘‘(ii) would support the Department of 

9 Defense, a Federal law enforcement, intel10 ligence, or security agency, or a State, 

11 local, Tribal, or territorial law enforcement 

12 agency; 

13 ‘‘(iii) would support the enforcement 

14 activities of a Federal regulatory agency in 

15 connection with a criminal or civil inves16 tigation of, or any regulatory, statutory, or 

17 other enforcement action relating to, an 

18 action described in subsection (e); 

19 ‘‘(iv) is to the Department or the De20 partment of Justice in the course of a se21 curity or protection operation of either the 

22 Department or the Department of Justice, 

23 or a joint operation of the Department and 

24 Department of Justice; or 

25 ‘‘(v) is otherwise required by law. 


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1 ‘‘(k) BUDGET.— 

2 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary and the At3 torney General shall submit to Congress, as a part 

4 of the homeland security or justice budget materials 

5 for each fiscal year after fiscal year 2023, a consoli6 dated funding display that identifies the funding 

7 source for the actions described in subsection (e) 

8 within the Department and the Department of Jus9 tice. 

10 ‘‘(2) CLASSIFICATION.—Each funding display 

11 submitted under paragraph (1) shall be in unclassi12 fied form but may contain a classified annex. 

13 ‘‘(l) PUBLIC DISCLOSURES.— 

14 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Notwithstanding any provi15 sion of State, local, Tribal, or territorial law, infor16 mation shall be governed by the disclosure obliga17 tions set forth in section 552 of title 5, United 

18 States Code (commonly known as the ‘Freedom of 

19 Information Act’), if the information relates to— 

20 ‘‘(A) any capability, limitation, or sensitive 

21 detail of the operation of any technology used 

22 to carry out an action described in subsection 

23 (e)(1) of this section; or 

24 ‘‘(B) an operational procedure or protocol 

25 used to carry out this section. 


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1 ‘‘(2) STATE, LOCAL, TRIBAL, OR TERRITORIAL

2 AGENCY USE.— 

3 ‘‘(A) CONTROL.—Information described in 

4 paragraph (1) that is obtained by a State, local, 

5 Tribal, or territorial law enforcement agency 

6 from a Federal agency under this section— 

7 ‘‘(i) shall remain subject to the con8 trol of the Federal agency, notwithstanding 

9 that the State, local, Tribal, or territorial 

10 law enforcement agency has the informa11 tion described in paragraph (1) in the pos12 session of the State, local, Tribal, or terri13 torial law enforcement agency; and 

14 ‘‘(ii) shall not be subject to any State, 

15 local, Tribal, or territorial law authorizing 

16 or requiring disclosure of the information 

17 described in paragraph (1). 

18 ‘‘(B) ACCESS.—Any request for public ac19 cess to information described in paragraph (1) 

20 shall be submitted to the originating Federal 

21 agency, which shall process the request as re22 quired under section 552(a)(3) of title 5, 

23 United States Code. 

24 ‘‘(m) ASSISTANCE AND SUPPORT.— 


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1 ‘‘(1) FACILITIES AND SERVICES OF OTHER

2 AGENCIES AND NON-FEDERAL ENTITIES.— 

3 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary and the 

4 Attorney General are authorized to use or ac5 cept from any other Federal agency, or any 

6 other public or private entity, any supply or 

7 service to facilitate or carry out any action de8 scribed in subsection (e). 

9 ‘‘(B) REIMBURSEMENT.—In accordance 

10 with subparagraph (A), the Secretary and the 

11 Attorney General may accept any supply or 

12 service with or without reimbursement to the 

13 entity providing the supply or service and not14 withstanding any provision of law that would 

15 prevent the use or acceptance of the supply or 

16 service. 

17 ‘‘(C) AGREEMENTS.—To implement the re18 quirements of subsection (a)(5)(C), the Sec19 retary or the Attorney General may enter into 

20 1 or more agreements with the head of another 

21 executive agency or with an appropriate official 

22 of a non-Federal public or private agency or en23 tity, as may be necessary and proper to carry 

24 out the responsibilities of the Secretary and At25 torney General under this section. 


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1 ‘‘(2) MUTUAL SUPPORT.— 

2 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Subject to subpara3 graph (B), the Secretary and the Attorney Gen4 eral are authorized to provide support or assist5 ance, upon the request of a Federal agency or 

6 department conducting— 

7 ‘‘(i) a mission described in subsection 

8 (a)(5)(C); 

9 ‘‘(ii) a mission described in section 

10 130i of title 10, United States Code; or 

11 ‘‘(iii) a mission described in section 

12 4510 of the Atomic Energy Defense Act 

13 (50 U.S.C. 2661). 

14 ‘‘(B) REQUIREMENTS.—Any support or as15 sistance provided by the Secretary or the Attor16 ney General shall only be granted— 

17 ‘‘(i) for the purpose of fulfilling the 

18 roles and responsibilities of the Federal 

19 agency or department that made the re20 quest for the mission for which the request 

21 was made; 

22 ‘‘(ii) when exigent circumstances exist; 

23 ‘‘(iii) for a specified duration and lo24 cation; 

25 ‘‘(iv) within available resources; 


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1 ‘‘(v) on a non-reimbursable basis; and 

2 ‘‘(vi) in coordination with the Admin3 istrator of the Federal Aviation Adminis4 tration. 

5 ‘‘(n) SEMIANNUAL BRIEFINGS AND NOTIFICA6 TIONS.— 

7 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—On a semiannual basis be8 ginning 180 days after the date of enactment of the 

9 Safeguarding the Homeland from the Threats Posed 

10 by Unmanned Aircraft Systems Act of 2022, the 

11 Secretary and the Attorney General shall, respec12 tively, provide a briefing to the appropriate commit13 tees of Congress on the activities carried out pursu14 ant to this section. 

15 ‘‘(2) REQUIREMENT.—The Secretary and the 

16 Attorney General each shall conduct the briefing re17 quired under paragraph (1) jointly with the Sec18 retary of Transportation. 

19 ‘‘(3) CONTENT.—Each briefing required under 

20 paragraph (1) shall include— 

21 ‘‘(A) policies, programs, and procedures to 

22 mitigate or eliminate impacts of activities car23 ried out pursuant to this section to the national 

24 airspace system and other critical infrastructure 

25 relating to national transportation; 


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1 ‘‘(B) a description of— 

2 ‘‘(i) each instance in which any action 

3 described in subsection (e) has been taken, 

4 including any instances that may have re5 sulted in harm, damage, or loss to a per6 son or to private property; 

7 ‘‘(ii) the guidance, policies, or proce8 dures established by the Secretary or the 

9 Attorney General to address privacy, civil 

10 rights, and civil liberties issues implicated 

11 by the actions permitted under this sec12 tion, as well as any changes or subsequent 

13 efforts by the Secretary or the Attorney 

14 General that would significantly affect pri15 vacy, civil rights, or civil liberties; 

16 ‘‘(iii) options considered and steps 

17 taken by the Secretary or the Attorney 

18 General to mitigate any identified impacts 

19 to the national airspace system relating to 

20 the use of any system or technology, in21 cluding the minimization of the use of any 

22 technology that disrupts the transmission 

23 of radio or electronic signals, for carrying 

24 out the actions described in subsection 

25 (e)(2); and 


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1 ‘‘(iv) each instance in which a commu2 nication intercepted or acquired during the 

3 course of operations of an unmanned air4 craft system or unmanned aircraft was— 

5 ‘‘(I) held in the possession of the 

6 Department or the Department of 

7 Justice for more than 180 days; or 

8 ‘‘(II) shared with any entity 

9 other than the Department or the De10 partment of Justice; 

11 ‘‘(C) an explanation of how the Secretary, 

12 the Attorney General, and the Secretary of 

13 Transportation have— 

14 ‘‘(i) informed the public as to the pos15 sible use of authorities granted under this 

16 section; and 

17 ‘‘(ii) engaged with Federal, State, 

18 local, Tribal, and territorial law enforce19 ment agencies to implement and use au20 thorities granted under this section; 

21 ‘‘(D) an assessment of whether any gaps 

22 or insufficiencies remain in laws, regulations, 

23 and policies that impede the ability of the Fed24 eral Government or State, local, Tribal, and ter25 ritorial governments and owners or operators of 


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1 critical infrastructure to counter the threat 

2 posed by the malicious use of unmanned air3 craft systems and unmanned aircraft; 

4 ‘‘(E) an assessment of efforts to integrate 

5 unmanned aircraft system threat assessments 

6 within National Special Security Event and 

7 Special Event Assessment Rating planning and 

8 protection efforts; 

9 ‘‘(F) recommendations to remedy any gaps 

10 or insufficiencies described in subparagraph 

11 (D), including recommendations relating to nec12 essary changes in law, regulations, or policies; 

13 ‘‘(G) a description of the impact of the au14 thorities granted under this section on— 

15 ‘‘(i) lawful operator access to national 

16 airspace; and 

17 ‘‘(ii) unmanned aircraft systems and 

18 unmanned aircraft integration into the na19 tional airspace system; and 

20 ‘‘(H) a summary from the Secretary of any 

21 data and results obtained pursuant to sub22 section (r), including an assessment of— 

23 ‘‘(i) how the details of the incident 

24 were obtained; and 


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1 ‘‘(ii) whether the operation involved a 

2 violation of Federal Aviation Administra3 tion aviation regulations. 

4 ‘‘(4) UNCLASSIFIED FORM.—Each briefing re5 quired under paragraph (1) shall be in unclassified 

6 form but may be accompanied by an additional clas7 sified briefing. 

8 ‘‘(5) NOTIFICATION.— 

9 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 30 

10 days after an authorized department, agency, or 

11 owner or operator of an airport or critical infra12 structure deploys any new technology to carry 

13 out the actions described in subsection (e), the 

14 Secretary and the Attorney General shall, re15 spectively or jointly, as appropriate, submit a 

16 notification of the deployment to the appro17 priate committees of Congress. 

18 ‘‘(B) CONTENTS.—Each notification sub19 mitted pursuant to subparagraph (A) shall in20 clude a description of options considered to 

21 mitigate any identified impacts to the national 

22 airspace system relating to the use of any sys23 tem or technology, including the minimization 

24 of the use of any technology that disrupts the 

25 transmission of radio or electronic signals in 


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1 carrying out the actions described in subsection 

2 (e). 

3 ‘‘(o) RULE OF CONSTRUCTION.—Nothing in this sec4 tion shall be construed to— 

5 ‘‘(1) vest in the Secretary, the Attorney Gen6 eral, or any State, local, Tribal, or territorial law en7 forcement agency, authorized under subsection (c) or 

8 designated under subsection (d)(2) any authority of 

9 the Secretary of Transportation or the Adminis10 trator of the Federal Aviation Administration; 

11 ‘‘(2) vest in the Secretary of Transportation, 

12 the Administrator of the Federal Aviation Adminis13 tration, or any State, local, Tribal, or territorial law 

14 enforcement agency designated under subsection 

15 (d)(2) any authority of the Secretary or the Attor16 ney General; 

17 ‘‘(3) vest in the Secretary any authority of the 

18 Attorney General; 

19 ‘‘(4) vest in the Attorney General any authority 

20 of the Secretary; or 

21 ‘‘(5) provide a new basis of liability with respect 

22 to an officer of a State, local, Tribal, or territorial 

23 law enforcement agency designated under subsection 

24 (d)(2) or who participates in the protection of a 

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1 ney General under subsection (a)(5)(C)(iii)(II), 

2 who— 

3 ‘‘(A) is acting in the official capacity of the 

4 individual as an officer; and 

5 ‘‘(B) does not exercise the authority grant6 ed to the Secretary and the Attorney General 

7 by this section. 

8 ‘‘(p) TERMINATION.— 

9 ‘‘(1) TERMINATION OF ADDITIONAL LIMITED

10 AUTHORITY FOR DETECTION, IDENTIFICATION, MON11 ITORING, AND TRACKING.—The authority to carry 

12 out any action authorized under subsection (c), if 

13 performed by a non-Federal entity, shall terminate 

14 on the date that is 5 years and 6 months after the 

15 date of enactment of the Safeguarding the Home16 land from the Threats Posed by Unmanned Aircraft 

17 Systems Act of 2022 and the authority for the pilot 

18 program established under subsection (d) shall ter19 minate as provided for in paragraph (3) of that sub20 section. 

21 ‘‘(2) TERMINATION OF AUTHORITIES WITH RE22 SPECT TO COVERED FACILITIES AND ASSETS.—The 

23 authority to carry out this section with respect to a 

24 covered facility or asset shall terminate on the date 

25 that is 7 years after the date of enactment of the 


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1 Safeguarding the Homeland from the Threats Posed 

2 by Unmanned Aircraft Systems Act of 2022. 

3 ‘‘(q) SCOPE OF AUTHORITY.—Nothing in this section 

4 shall be construed to provide the Secretary or the Attorney 

5 General with any additional authority other than the au6 thorities described in subsections (a)(5)(C)(iii), (b), (c), 

7 (d), and (f). 

8 ‘‘(r) UNITED STATES GOVERNMENT DATABASE.— 

9 ‘‘(1) AUTHORIZATION.—The Department is au10 thorized to develop a Federal database to enable the 

11 transmission of data concerning security-related inci12 dents in the United States involving unmanned air13 craft and unmanned aircraft systems between Fed14 eral, State, local, Tribal, and territorial law enforce15 ment agencies for purposes of conducting analyses of 

16 such threats in the United States. 

17 ‘‘(2) POLICIES, PLANS, AND PROCEDURES.— 

18 ‘‘(A) COORDINATION AND CONSULTA19 TION.—Before implementation of the database 

20 developed under paragraph (1), the Secretary 

21 shall develop policies, plans, and procedures for 

22 the implementation of the database— 

23 ‘‘(i) in coordination with the Attorney 

24 General, the Secretary of Defense, and the 

25 Secretary of Transportation (through the 


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1 Administrator of the Federal Aviation Ad2 ministration); and 

3 ‘‘(ii) in consultation with State, local, 

4 Tribal, and territorial law enforcement 

5 agency representatives, including rep6 resentatives of fusion centers. 

7 ‘‘(B) REPORTING.—The policies, plans, 

8 and procedures developed under subparagraph 

9 (A) shall include criteria for Federal, State, 

10 local, Tribal, and territorial reporting of un11 manned aircraft systems or unmanned aircraft 

12 incidents. 

13 ‘‘(C) DATA RETENTION.—The policies, 

14 plans, and procedures developed under subpara15 graph (A) shall ensure that data on security-re16 lated incidents in the United States involving 

17 unmanned aircraft and unmanned aircraft sys18 tems that is retained as criminal intelligence in19 formation is retained based on the reasonable 

20 suspicion standard, as permitted under part 23 

21 of title 28, Code of Federal Regulations.’’. 

22 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

23 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Safeguarding the Home24 land from the Threats Posed by Unmanned Aircraft Sys25 tems Act of 2022’’. 


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1 SEC. 2. DEPARTMENT OF HOMELAND SECURITY UNMANNED 

2 AIRCRAFT SYSTEM DETECTION AND MITIGA3 TION ENFORCEMENT AUTHORITY. 

4 Subtitle A of title II of the Homeland Security Act 

5 of 2002 (6 U.S.C. 121 et seq.) is amended by striking section 

6 210G (6 U.S.C. 124n) and inserting the following: 

7 ‘‘SEC. 210G. PROTECTION OF CERTAIN FACILITIES AND AS8 SETS FROM UNMANNED AIRCRAFT. 

9 ‘‘(a) DEFINITIONS.—In this section: 

10 ‘‘(1) The term ‘air navigation facility’ has the 

11 meaning given the term in section 40102(a)(4) of title 

12 49, United States Code. 

13 ‘‘(2) The term ‘airport’ has the meaning given 

14 the term in section 47102(2) of title 49, United Sates 

15 Code. 

16 ‘‘(3) The term ‘appropriate committees of Con17 gress’ means— 

18 ‘‘(A) the Committee on Homeland Security 

19 and Governmental Affairs, the Committee on 

20 Commerce, Science, and Transportation, and the 

21 Committee on the Judiciary of the Senate; and 

22 ‘‘(B) the Committee on Homeland Security, 

23 the Committee on Transportation and Infra24 structure, the Committee on Oversight and Re25 form, the Committee on Energy and Commerce, 


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1 and the Committee on the Judiciary of the 

2 House of Representatives. 

3 ‘‘(4) The term ‘budget’, with respect to a fiscal 

4 year, means the budget for that fiscal year that is 

5 submitted to Congress by the President under section 

6 1105(a) of title 31, United States Code. 

7 ‘‘(5) The term ‘covered facility or asset’ means 

8 any facility or asset that— 

9 ‘‘(A) is identified as high-risk and a poten10 tial target for unlawful unmanned aircraft or 

11 unmanned aircraft system activity by the Sec12 retary or the Attorney General, or by the chief 

13 executive of the jurisdiction in which a State, 

14 local, Tribal, or territorial law enforcement 

15 agency designated pursuant to subsection (d)(2) 

16 operates after review and approval of the Sec17 retary or the Attorney General, in coordination 

18 with the Secretary of Transportation with re19 spect to potentially impacted airspace, through a 

20 risk-based assessment for purposes of this section 

21 (except that in the case of the missions described 

22 in clauses (i)(II) and (iii)(I) of subparagraph 

23 (C), such missions shall be presumed to be for the 

24 protection of a facility or asset that is assessed 

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1 ful unmanned aircraft or unmanned aircraft 

2 system activity); 

3 ‘‘(B) is located in the United States; and 

4 ‘‘(C) directly relates to 1 or more— 

5 ‘‘(i) missions authorized to be per6 formed by the Department, consistent with 

7 governing statutes, regulations, and orders 

8 issued by the Secretary, pertaining to— 

9 ‘‘(I) security or protection func10 tions of the U.S. Customs and Border 

11 Protection, including securing or pro12 tecting facilities, aircraft, and vessels, 

13 whether moored or underway; 

14 ‘‘(II) United States Secret Service 

15 protection operations pursuant to sec16 tions 3056(a) and 3056A(a) of title 18, 

17 United States Code, and the Presi18 dential Protection Assistance Act of 

19 1976 (18 U.S.C. 3056 note); 

20 ‘‘(III) protection of facilities pur21 suant to section 1315(a) of title 40, 

22 United States Code; 

23 ‘‘(IV) transportation security 

24 functions of the Transportation Secu25 rity Administration; or 


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1 ‘‘(V) the security or protection 

2 functions for facilities, assets, and op3 erations of Homeland Security Inves4 tigations; 

5 ‘‘(ii) missions authorized to be per6 formed by the Department of Justice, con7 sistent with governing statutes, regulations, 

8 and orders issued by the Attorney General, 

9 pertaining to— 

10 ‘‘(I) personal protection oper11 ations by— 

12 ‘‘(aa) the Federal Bureau of 

13 Investigation as specified in sec14 tion 533 of title 28, United States 

15 Code; or 

16 ‘‘(bb) the United States Mar17 shals Service as specified in sec18 tion 566 of title 28, United States 

19 Code; 

20 ‘‘(II) protection of penal, deten21 tion, and correctional facilities and op22 erations conducted by the Federal Bu23 reau of Prisons and prisoner oper24 ations and transport conducted by the 

25 United States Marshals Service; 


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1 ‘‘(III) protection of the buildings 

2 and grounds leased, owned, or operated 

3 by or for the Department of Justice, 

4 and the provision of security for Fed5 eral courts, as specified in section 566 

6 of title 28, United States Code; or 

7 ‘‘(IV) protection of an airport or 

8 air navigation facility; 

9 ‘‘(iii) missions authorized to be per10 formed by the Department or the Depart11 ment of Justice, acting together or sepa12 rately, consistent with governing statutes, 

13 regulations, and orders issued by the Sec14 retary or the Attorney General, respectively, 

15 pertaining to— 

16 ‘‘(I) protection of a National Spe17 cial Security Event and Special Event 

18 Assessment Rating event; 

19 ‘‘(II) the provision of support to a 

20 State, local, Tribal, or territorial law 

21 enforcement agency, upon request of 

22 the chief executive officer of the State 

23 or territory, to ensure protection of 

24 people and property at mass gath25 erings, that is limited to a specified 


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1 duration and location, within avail2 able resources, and without delegating 

3 any authority under this section to 

4 State, local, Tribal, or territorial law 

5 enforcement; 

6 ‘‘(III) protection of an active Fed7 eral law enforcement investigation, 

8 emergency response, or security func9 tion, that is limited to a specified du10 ration and location; or 

11 ‘‘(IV) the provision of security or 

12 protection support to critical infra13 structure owners or operators, for stat14 ic critical infrastructure facilities and 

15 assets upon the request of the owner or 

16 operator; 

17 ‘‘(iv) missions authorized to be per18 formed by the United States Coast Guard, 

19 including those described in clause (iii) as 

20 directed by the Secretary, and as further set 

21 forth in section 528 of title 14, United 

22 States Code, and consistent with governing 

23 statutes, regulations, and orders issued by 

24 the Secretary of the Department in which 

25 the Coast Guard is operating; and 


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1 ‘‘(v) responsibilities of State, local, 

2 Tribal, and territorial law enforcement 

3 agencies designated pursuant to subsection 

4 (d)(2) pertaining to— 

5 ‘‘(I) protection of National Spe6 cial Security Event and Special Event 

7 Assessment Rating events or other mass 

8 gatherings in the jurisdiction of the 

9 State, local, Tribal, or territorial law 

10 enforcement agency; 

11 ‘‘(II) protection of critical infra12 structure assessed by the Secretary as 

13 high-risk for unmanned aircraft sys14 tems or unmanned aircraft attack or 

15 disruption, including airports in the 

16 jurisdiction of the State, local, Tribal, 

17 or territorial law enforcement agency; 

18 ‘‘(III) protection of government 

19 buildings, assets, or facilities in the ju20 risdiction of the State, local, Tribal, or 

21 territorial law enforcement agency; or 

22 ‘‘(IV) protection of disaster re23 sponse in the jurisdiction of the State, 

24 local, Tribal, or territorial law enforce25 ment agency. 


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1 ‘‘(6) The term ‘critical infrastructure’ has the 

2 meaning given the term in section 1016(e) of the Crit3 ical Infrastructure Protection Act of 2001 (42 U.S.C. 

4 5195c(e)). 

5 ‘‘(7) The terms ‘electronic communication’, 

6 ‘intercept’, ‘oral communication’, and ‘wire commu7 nication’ have the meanings given those terms in sec8 tion 2510 of title 18, United States Code. 

9 ‘‘(8) The term ‘homeland security or justice 

10 budget materials’, with respect to a fiscal year, means 

11 the materials submitted to Congress by the Secretary 

12 and the Attorney General in support of the budget for 

13 that fiscal year. 

14 ‘‘(9)(A) The term ‘personnel’ means— 

15 ‘‘(i) an officer, employee, or contractor of 

16 the Department or the Department of Justice, 

17 who is authorized to perform duties that include 

18 safety, security, or protection of people, facilities, 

19 or assets; or 

20 ‘‘(ii) an employee who— 

21 ‘‘(I) is authorized to perform law en22 forcement and security functions on behalf 

23 of a State, local, Tribal, or territorial law 

24 enforcement agency designated under sub25 section (d)(2); and 


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1 ‘‘(II) is trained and certified to per2 form those duties, including training spe3 cific to countering unmanned aircraft 

4 threats and mitigating risks in the national 

5 airspace, including with respect to pro6 tecting privacy and civil liberties. 

7 ‘‘(B) To qualify for use of the authorities de8 scribed in subsection (b) or (c), respectively, a con9 tractor conducting operations described in those sub10 sections must— 

11 ‘‘(i) be directly contracted by the Depart12 ment or the Department of Justice; 

13 ‘‘(ii) operate at a government-owned or gov14 ernment-leased facility or asset; 

15 ‘‘(iii) not conduct inherently governmental 

16 functions; 

17 ‘‘(iv) be trained to safeguard privacy and 

18 civil liberties; and 

19 ‘‘(v) be trained and certified by the Depart20 ment or the Department of Justice to meet the 

21 established guidance and regulations of the De22 partment or the Department of Justice, respec23 tively. 

24 ‘‘(C) For purposes of subsection (c)(1), the term 

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1 tractor who is authorized to perform duties that in2 clude the safety, security, or protection of people, fa3 cilities, or assets, of— 

4 ‘‘(i) a State, local, Tribal, or territorial law 

5 enforcement agency; and 

6 ‘‘(ii) an owner or operator of an airport or 

7 critical infrastructure. 

8 ‘‘(10) The term ‘risk-based assessment’ means an 

9 evaluation of threat information specific to a covered 

10 facility or asset and, with respect to potential impacts 

11 on the safety and efficiency of the national airspace 

12 system and the needs of law enforcement and national 

13 security at each covered facility or asset identified by 

14 the Secretary or the Attorney General, respectively, of 

15 each of the following factors: 

16 ‘‘(A) Potential impacts to safety, efficiency, 

17 and use of the national airspace system, includ18 ing potential effects on manned aircraft and un19 manned aircraft systems or unmanned aircraft, 

20 aviation safety, airport operations, infrastruc21 ture, and air navigation services relating to the 

22 use of any system or technology for carrying out 

23 the actions described in subsection (e)(2). 

24 ‘‘(B) Options for mitigating any identified 

25 impacts to the national airspace system relating 


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1 to the use of any system or technology, including 

2 minimizing, when possible, the use of any tech3 nology that disrupts the transmission of radio or 

4 electronic signals, for carrying out the actions 

5 described in subsection (e)(2). 

6 ‘‘(C) Potential consequences of the impacts 

7 of any actions taken under subsection (e)(1) to 

8 the national airspace system and infrastructure 

9 if not mitigated. 

10 ‘‘(D) The ability to provide reasonable ad11 vance notice to aircraft operators consistent with 

12 the safety of the national airspace system and 

13 the needs of law enforcement and national secu14 rity. 

15 ‘‘(E) The setting and character of any cov16 ered facility or asset, including— 

17 ‘‘(i) whether the covered facility or 

18 asset is located in a populated area or near 

19 other structures; 

20 ‘‘(ii) whether the covered facility or 

21 asset is open to the public; 

22 ‘‘(iii) whether the covered facility or 

23 asset is used for nongovernmental functions; 

24 and 


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1 ‘‘(iv) any potential for interference 

2 with wireless communications or for injury 

3 or damage to persons or property. 

4 ‘‘(F) The setting, character, duration, and 

5 national airspace system impacts of National 

6 Special Security Event and Special Event As7 sessment Rating events, to the extent not already 

8 discussed in the National Special Security Event 

9 and Special Event Assessment Rating nomina10 tion process. 

11 ‘‘(G) Potential consequences to national se12 curity, public safety, or law enforcement if 

13 threats posed by unmanned aircraft systems or 

14 unmanned aircraft are not mitigated or defeated. 

15 ‘‘(H) Civil rights and civil liberties guaran16 teed by the First and Fourth Amendments to the 

17 Constitution of the United States. 

18 ‘‘(11) The terms ‘unmanned aircraft’ and ‘un19 manned aircraft system’ have the meanings given 

20 those terms in section 44801 of title 49, United States 

21 Code. 

22 ‘‘(b) AUTHORITY OF THE DEPARTMENT OF HOMELAND

23 SECURITY AND DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE.—Notwith24 standing section 46502 of title 49, United States Code, or 

25 sections 32, 1030, 1367, and chapters 119 and 206 of title 


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1 18, United States Code, the Secretary and the Attorney 

2 General may, for their respective Departments, take, and 

3 may authorize personnel with assigned duties that include 

4 the safety, security, or protection of people, facilities, or as5 sets to take, actions described in subsection (e)(2) that are 

6 necessary to detect, identify, monitor, track, and mitigate 

7 a credible threat (as defined by the Secretary and the Attor8 ney General, in consultation with the Secretary of Trans9 portation through the Administrator of the Federal Avia10 tion Administration) that an unmanned aircraft system or 

11 unmanned aircraft poses to the safety or security of a cov12 ered facility or asset. 

13 ‘‘(c) ADDITIONAL LIMITED AUTHORITY FOR DETEC14 TION, IDENTIFICATION, MONITORING, AND TRACKING.— 

15 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Subject to paragraphs (2) 

16 and (3), and notwithstanding sections 1030 and 1367 

17 and chapters 119 and 206 of title 18, United States 

18 Code, any State, local, Tribal, or territorial law en19 forcement agency, the Department of Justice, the De20 partment, and any owner or operator of an airport 

21 or critical infrastructure may authorize personnel, 

22 with assigned duties that include the safety, security, 

23 or protection of people, facilities, or assets, to use 

24 equipment authorized under this subsection to take 

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1 essary to detect, identify, monitor, or track an un2 manned aircraft system or unmanned aircraft within 

3 the respective areas of responsibility or jurisdiction of 

4 the authorized personnel. 

5 ‘‘(2) AUTHORIZED EQUIPMENT.—Equipment au6 thorized for unmanned aircraft system detection, 

7 identification, monitoring, or tracking under this sub8 section shall be limited to systems or technologies— 

9 ‘‘(A) tested and evaluated by the Depart10 ment or the Department of Justice, including 

11 evaluation of any potential counterintelligence or 

12 cybersecurity risks; 

13 ‘‘(B) that are annually reevaluated for any 

14 changes in risks, including counterintelligence 

15 and cybersecurity risks; 

16 ‘‘(C) determined by the Federal Commu17 nications Commission and the National Tele18 communications and Information Administra19 tion not to adversely impact the use of the com20 munications spectrum; 

21 ‘‘(D) determined by the Federal Aviation 

22 Administration not to adversely impact the use 

23 of the aviation spectrum or otherwise adversely 

24 impact the national airspace system; and 


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1 ‘‘(E) that are included on a list of author2 ized equipment maintained by the Department, 

3 in coordination with the Department of Justice, 

4 the Federal Aviation Administration, the Federal 

5 Communications Commission, and the National 

6 Telecommunications and Information Adminis7 tration. 

8 ‘‘(3) STATE, LOCAL, TRIBAL, AND TERRITORIAL

9 COMPLIANCE.—Each State, local, Tribal, or terri10 torial law enforcement agency or owner or operator of 

11 an airport or critical infrastructure acting pursuant 

12 to this subsection shall— 

13 ‘‘(A) prior to any such action, issue a writ14 ten policy certifying compliance with the privacy 

15 protections of subparagraphs (A) through (D) of 

16 subsection (j)(2); 

17 ‘‘(B) certify compliance with such policy to 

18 the Secretary and the Attorney General annu19 ally, and immediately notify the Secretary and 

20 Attorney General of any noncompliance with 

21 such policy or the privacy protections of sub22 paragraphs (A) through (D) of subsection (j)(2); 

23 and 


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1 ‘‘(C) comply with any additional guidance 

2 issued by the Secretary or the Attorney General 

3 relating to implementation of this subsection. 

4 ‘‘(4) PROHIBITION.—Nothing in this subsection 

5 shall be construed to authorize the taking of any ac6 tion described in subsection (e) other than the actions 

7 described in paragraph (1) of that subsection. 

8 ‘‘(d) PILOT PROGRAM FOR STATE, LOCAL, TRIBAL, 

9 AND TERRITORIAL LAW ENFORCEMENT.— 

10 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary and the Attor11 ney General may carry out a pilot program to evalu12 ate the potential benefits of State, local, Tribal, and 

13 territorial law enforcement agencies taking actions 

14 that are necessary to mitigate a credible threat (as de15 fined by the Secretary and the Attorney General, in 

16 consultation with the Secretary of Transportation 

17 through the Administrator of the Federal Aviation 

18 Administration) that an unmanned aircraft system 

19 or unmanned aircraft poses to the safety or security 

20 of a covered facility or asset. 

21 ‘‘(2) DESIGNATION.— 

22 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary or the 

23 Attorney General, with the concurrence of the 

24 Secretary of Transportation (through the Admin25 istrator of the Federal Aviation Administration), 


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1 may, under the pilot program established under 

2 paragraph (1), designate 1 or more State, local, 

3 Tribal, or territorial law enforcement agencies 

4 approved by the respective chief executive officer 

5 of the State, local, Tribal, or territorial law en6 forcement agency to engage in the activities au7 thorized in paragraph (4) under the direct over8 sight of the Department or the Department of 

9 Justice, in carrying out the responsibilities au10 thorized under subsection (a)(5)(C)(v). 

11 ‘‘(B) DESIGNATION PROCESS.— 

12 ‘‘(i) NUMBER OF AGENCIES AND DURA13 TION.—On and after the date that is 180 

14 days after the date of enactment of the Safe15 guarding the Homeland from the Threats 

16 Posed by Unmanned Aircraft Systems Act 

17 of 2022, the Secretary and the Attorney 

18 General, pursuant to subparagraph (A), 

19 may designate not more than 12 State, 

20 local, Tribal, and territorial law enforce21 ment agencies for participation in the pilot 

22 program, and may designate 12 additional 

23 State, local, Tribal, and territorial law en24 forcement agencies each year thereafter, pro25 vided that not more than 60 State, local, 


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1 Tribal, and territorial law enforcement 

2 agencies in total may be designated during 

3 the 5-year period of the pilot program. 

4 ‘‘(ii) REVOCATION.—The Secretary and 

5 the Attorney General, in consultation with 

6 the Secretary of Transportation (through 

7 the Administrator of the Federal Aviation 

8 Administration)— 

9 ‘‘(I) may revoke a designation 

10 under subparagraph (A) if the Sec11 retary, Attorney General, and Sec12 retary of Transportation (through the 

13 Administrator of the Federal Aviation 

14 Administration) concur in the revoca15 tion; and 

16 ‘‘(II) shall revoke a designation 

17 under subparagraph (A) if the Sec18 retary, the Attorney General, or the 

19 Secretary of Transportation (through 

20 the Administrator of the Federal Avia21 tion Administration) withdraws con22 currence. 

23 ‘‘(3) TERMINATION OF PILOT PROGRAM.— 

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1 gram established under this subsection shall ter2 minate after the 5-year period beginning on the 

3 date that is 180 days after the date of enactment 

4 of the Safeguarding the Homeland from the 

5 Threats Posed by Unmanned Aircraft Systems 

6 Act of 2022. 

7 ‘‘(B) AUTHORITY OF PILOT PROGRAM AGEN8 CIES.—The authority of an agency designated 

9 under the pilot program established under this 

10 subsection to exercise any of the authorities 

11 granted under the pilot program shall terminate 

12 not later than 6 years after the date that is 180 

13 days after the date of enactment of the Safe14 guarding the Homeland from the Threats Posed 

15 by Unmanned Aircraft Systems Act of 2022, or 

16 upon revocation pursuant to paragraph 

17 (2)(B)(ii). 

18 ‘‘(4) AUTHORIZATION.—Notwithstanding section 

19 46502 of title 49, United States Code, or sections 32, 

20 1030, 1367 and chapters 119 and 206 of title 18, 

21 United States Code, any State, local, Tribal, or terri22 torial law enforcement agency designated pursuant to 

23 paragraph (2) may authorize personnel with assigned 

24 duties that include the safety, security, or protection 

25 of people, facilities, or assets to take such actions as 


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1 are described in subsection (e)(2) that are necessary 

2 to detect, identify, monitor, track, or mitigate a cred3 ible threat (as defined by the Secretary and the Attor4 ney General, in consultation with the Secretary of 

5 Transportation, through the Administrator of the 

6 Federal Aviation Administration) that an unmanned 

7 aircraft system or unmanned aircraft poses to the 

8 safety or security of a covered facility or asset under 

9 subsection (a)(5)(C)(v). 

10 ‘‘(5) EXEMPTION.— 

11 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Subject to subpara12 graph (B), the Chair of the Federal Communica13 tions Commission, in consultation with the Ad14 ministrator of the National Telecommunications 

15 and Information Administration, shall imple16 ment a process for considering the exemption of 

17 1 or more law enforcement agencies designated 

18 under paragraph (2), or any station operated by 

19 the agency, from any provision of title III of the 

20 Communications Act of 1934 (47 U.S.C. 151 et 

21 seq.) to the extent that the designated law en22 forcement agency takes such actions as are de23 scribed in subsection (e)(2) and may establish 

24 conditions or requirements for such exemption. 


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1 ‘‘(B) REQUIREMENTS.—The Chair of the 

2 Federal Communications Commission, in con3 sultation with the Administrator of the National 

4 Telecommunications and Information Adminis5 tration, may grant an exemption under subpara6 graph (A) only if the Chair of the Federal Com7 munications Commission in consultation with 

8 the Administrator of the National Telecommuni9 cations and Information Administration finds 

10 that the grant of an exemption— 

11 ‘‘(i) is necessary to achieve the pur12 poses of this subsection; and 

13 ‘‘(ii) will serve the public interest. 

14 ‘‘(C) REVOCATION.—Any exemption granted 

15 under subparagraph (A) shall terminate auto16 matically if the designation granted to the law 

17 enforcement agency under paragraph (2)(A) is 

18 revoked by the Secretary or the Attorney General 

19 under paragraph (2)(B)(ii) or is terminated 

20 under paragraph (3)(B). 

21 ‘‘(6) REPORTING.—Not later than 2 years after 

22 the date on which the first law enforcement agency is 

23 designated under paragraph (2), and annually there24 after for the duration of the pilot program, the Sec25 retary and the Attorney General shall inform the apVerDate Sep 11 2014 07:21 Dec 20, 2022 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00071 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6203 E:\BILLS\S4687.RS S4687

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1 propriate committees of Congress in writing of the use 

2 by any State, local, Tribal, or territorial law enforce3 ment agency of any authority granted pursuant to 

4 paragraph (4), including a description of any pri5 vacy or civil liberties complaints known to the Sec6 retary or Attorney General in connection with the use 

7 of that authority by the designated agencies. 

8 ‘‘(7) RESTRICTIONS.—Any entity acting pursu9 ant to the authorities granted under this subsection— 

10 ‘‘(A) may do so only using equipment au11 thorized by the Department, in coordination 

12 with the Department of Justice, the Federal 

13 Communications Commission, the National Tele14 communications and Information Administra15 tion, and the Department of Transportation 

16 (through the Federal Aviation Administration) 

17 according to the criteria described in subsection 

18 (c)(2); 

19 ‘‘(B) shall, prior to any such action, issue 

20 a written policy certifying compliance with the 

21 privacy protections of subparagraphs (A) 

22 through (D) of subsection (j)(2); 

23 ‘‘(C) shall ensure that all personnel under24 taking any actions listed under this subsection 

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1 teria that the Secretary and Attorney General 

2 shall collectively establish, in consultation with 

3 the Secretary of Transportation, the Adminis4 trator of the Federal Aviation Administration, 

5 the Chair of the Federal Communications Com6 mission, the Assistant Secretary of Commerce for 

7 Communications and Information, and the Ad8 ministrator of the National Telecommunications 

9 and Information Administration; and 

10 ‘‘(D) shall comply with any additional 

11 guidance relating to compliance with this sub12 section issued by the Secretary or Attorney Gen13 eral. 

14 ‘‘(e) ACTIONS DESCRIBED.— 

15 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The actions authorized 

16 under subsection (c) that may be taken by a State, 

17 local, Tribal, or territorial law enforcement agency, 

18 the Department, the Department of Justice, and any 

19 owner or operator of an airport or critical infrastruc20 ture, are limited to actions during the operation of an 

21 unmanned aircraft system, to detect, identify, mon22 itor, and track the unmanned aircraft system or un23 manned aircraft, without prior consent, including by 

24 means of intercept or other access of a wire commu25 nication, an oral communication, or an electronic 


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1 communication used to control the unmanned aircraft 

2 system or unmanned aircraft. 

3 ‘‘(2) CLARIFICATION.—The actions authorized in 

4 subsections (b) and (d)(4) are the following: 

5 ‘‘(A) During the operation of the unmanned 

6 aircraft system or unmanned aircraft, detect, 

7 identify, monitor, and track the unmanned air8 craft system or unmanned aircraft, without 

9 prior consent, including by means of intercept or 

10 other access of a wire communication, an oral 

11 communication, or an electronic communication 

12 used to control the unmanned aircraft system or 

13 unmanned aircraft. 

14 ‘‘(B) Warn the operator of the unmanned 

15 aircraft system or unmanned aircraft, including 

16 by passive or active, and direct or indirect, 

17 physical, electronic, radio, and electromagnetic 

18 means. 

19 ‘‘(C) Disrupt control of the unmanned air20 craft system or unmanned aircraft, without 

21 prior consent of the operator of the unmanned 

22 aircraft system or unmanned aircraft, including 

23 by disabling the unmanned aircraft system or 

24 unmanned aircraft by intercepting, interfering, 

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1 tronic, or radio communications used to control 

2 the unmanned aircraft system or unmanned air3 craft. 

4 ‘‘(D) Seize or exercise control of the un5 manned aircraft system or unmanned aircraft. 

6 ‘‘(E) Seize or otherwise confiscate the un7 manned aircraft system or unmanned aircraft. 

8 ‘‘(F) Use reasonable force, if necessary, to 

9 disable, damage, or destroy the unmanned air10 craft system or unmanned aircraft. 

11 ‘‘(f) RESEARCH, TESTING, TRAINING, AND EVALUA12 TION.— 

13 ‘‘(1) REQUIREMENT.— 

14 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Notwithstanding sec15 tion 46502 of title 49, United States Code, or 

16 any provision of title 18, United States Code, the 

17 Secretary, the Attorney General, and the heads of 

18 the State, local, Tribal, or territorial law en19 forcement agencies designated pursuant to sub20 section (d)(2) shall conduct research, testing, 

21 training on, and evaluation of any equipment, 

22 including any electronic equipment, to determine 

23 the capability and utility of the equipment prior 

24 to the use of the equipment in carrying out any 

25 action described in subsection (e). 


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1 ‘‘(B) COORDINATION.—Personnel and con2 tractors who do not have duties that include the 

3 safety, security, or protection of people, facilities, 

4 or assets may engage in research, testing, train5 ing, and evaluation activities pursuant to sub6 paragraph (A). 

7 ‘‘(2) TRAINING OF FEDERAL, STATE, LOCAL, TER8 RITORIAL, AND TRIBAL LAW ENFORCEMENT PER9 SONNEL.—The Attorney General, through the Director 

10 of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, may— 

11 ‘‘(A) provide training relating to measures 

12 to mitigate a credible threat that an unmanned 

13 aircraft or unmanned aircraft system poses to 

14 the safety or security of a covered facility or 

15 asset to any personnel who are authorized to take 

16 such measures, including personnel authorized to 

17 take the actions described in subsection (e); and 

18 ‘‘(B) establish or designate 1 or more facili19 ties or training centers for the purpose described 

20 in subparagraph (A). 

21 ‘‘(3) COORDINATION FOR RESEARCH, TESTING, 

22 TRAINING, AND EVALUATION.— 

23 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary, the At24 torney General, and the heads of the State, local, 

25 Tribal, or territorial law enforcement agencies 


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1 designated pursuant to subsection (d)(2) shall co2 ordinate procedures governing research, testing, 

3 training, and evaluation to carry out any provi4 sion under this subsection with the Adminis5 trator of the Federal Aviation Administration 

6 before initiating such activity in order that the 

7 Administrator of the Federal Aviation Adminis8 tration may ensure the activity does not ad9 versely impact or interfere with safe airport op10 erations, navigation, air traffic services, or the 

11 safe and efficient operation of the national air12 space system. 

13 ‘‘(B) STATE, LOCAL, TRIBAL, AND TERRI14 TORIAL LAW ENFORCEMENT AGENCY COORDINA15 TION.—Each head of a State, local, Tribal, or 

16 territorial law enforcement agency designated 

17 pursuant to subsection (d)(2) shall coordinate the 

18 procedures governing research, testing, training, 

19 and evaluation of the law enforcement agency 

20 through the Secretary and the Attorney General, 

21 in coordination with the Federal Aviation Ad22 ministration. 

23 ‘‘(g) FORFEITURE.—Any unmanned aircraft system or 

24 unmanned aircraft that is lawfully seized by the Secretary 

25 or the Attorney General pursuant to subsection (b) is subject 


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1 to forfeiture to the United States pursuant to the provisions 

2 of chapter 46 of title 18, United States Code. 

3 ‘‘(h) REGULATIONS AND GUIDANCE.—The Secretary, 

4 the Attorney General, and the Secretary of Transpor5 tation— 

6 ‘‘(1) may prescribe regulations and shall issue 

7 guidance in the respective areas of each Secretary or 

8 the Attorney General to carry out this section; and 

9 ‘‘(2) in developing regulations and guidance de10 scribed in subparagraph (A), consult the Chair of the 

11 Federal Communications Commission, the Adminis12 trator of the National Telecommunications and Infor13 mation Administration, and the Administrator of the 

14 Federal Aviation Administration. 

15 ‘‘(i) COORDINATION.— 

16 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary and the Attor17 ney General shall coordinate with the Administrator 

18 of the Federal Aviation Administration before car19 rying out any action authorized under this section in 

20 order that the Administrator may ensure the action 

21 does not adversely impact or interfere with— 

22 ‘‘(A) safe airport operations; 

23 ‘‘(B) navigation; 

24 ‘‘(C) air traffic services; or 


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1 ‘‘(D) the safe and efficient operation of the 

2 national airspace system. 

3 ‘‘(2) GUIDANCE.—Before issuing any guidance, 

4 or otherwise implementing this section, the Secretary 

5 or the Attorney General shall, respectively, coordinate 

6 with— 

7 ‘‘(A) the Secretary of Transportation in 

8 order that the Secretary of Transportation may 

9 ensure the guidance or implementation does not 

10 adversely impact or interfere with any critical 

11 infrastructure relating to transportation; and 

12 ‘‘(B) the Administrator of the Federal Avia13 tion Administration in order that the Adminis14 trator may ensure the guidance or implementa15 tion does not adversely impact or interfere 

16 with— 

17 ‘‘(i) safe airport operations; 

18 ‘‘(ii) navigation; 

19 ‘‘(iii) air traffic services; or 

20 ‘‘(iv) the safe and efficient operation of 

21 the national airspace system. 

22 ‘‘(3) COORDINATION WITH THE FAA.—The Sec23 retary and the Attorney General shall coordinate the 

24 development of their respective guidance under sub25 section (h) with the Secretary of Transportation 


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1 (through the Administrator of the Federal Aviation 

2 Administration). 

3 ‘‘(4) COORDINATION WITH THE DEPARTMENT OF

4 TRANSPORTATION AND NATIONAL TELECOMMUNI5 CATIONS AND INFORMATION ADMINISTRATION.—The 

6 Secretary and the Attorney General, and the heads of 

7 any State, local, Tribal, or territorial law enforce8 ment agencies designated pursuant to subsection 

9 (d)(2), through the Secretary and the Attorney Gen10 eral, shall coordinate the development for their respec11 tive departments or agencies of the actions described 

12 in subsection (e) with the Secretary of Transportation 

13 (through the Administrator of the Federal Aviation 

14 Administration), the Assistant Secretary of Commerce 

15 for Communications and Information, and the Ad16 ministrator of the National Telecommunications and 

17 Information Administration. 

18 ‘‘(5) STATE, LOCAL, TRIBAL, AND TERRITORIAL

19 IMPLEMENTATION.—Prior to taking any action au20 thorized under subsection (d)(4), each head of a State, 

21 local, Tribal, or territorial law enforcement agency 

22 designated under subsection (d)(2) shall coordinate, 

23 through the Secretary and the Attorney General— 

24 ‘‘(A) with the Secretary of Transportation 

25 in order that the Administrators of non-aviation 


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1 modes of the Department of Transportation may 

2 evaluate whether the action may have adverse 

3 impacts on critical infrastructure relating to 

4 non-aviation transportation; 

5 ‘‘(B) with the Administrator of the Federal 

6 Aviation Administration in order that the Ad7 ministrator may ensure the action will have no 

8 adverse impact, or will not, interfere with— 

9 ‘‘(i) safe airport operations; 

10 ‘‘(ii) navigation; 

11 ‘‘(iii) air traffic services; or 

12 ‘‘(iv) the safe and efficient operation of 

13 the national airspace system; and 

14 ‘‘(C) to allow the Department and the De15 partment of Justice to ensure that any action 

16 authorized by this section is consistent with Fed17 eral law enforcement and in the interest of na18 tional security. 

19 ‘‘(j) PRIVACY PROTECTION.— 

20 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Any regulation or guidance 

21 issued to carry out an action under subsection (e) by 

22 the Secretary or the Attorney General, respectively, 

23 shall ensure for the Department or the Department of 

24 Justice, respectively, that— 


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1 ‘‘(A) the interception of, acquisition of, ac2 cess to, maintenance of, or use of any commu3 nication to or from an unmanned aircraft sys4 tem or unmanned aircraft under this section is 

5 conducted in a manner consistent with the First 

6 and Fourth Amendments to the Constitution of 

7 the United States and any applicable provision 

8 of Federal law; 

9 ‘‘(B) any communication to or from an un10 manned aircraft system or unmanned aircraft 

11 are intercepted or acquired only to the extent 

12 necessary to support an action described in sub13 section (e); 

14 ‘‘(C) any record of a communication de15 scribed in subparagraph (B) is maintained only 

16 for as long as necessary, and in no event for 

17 more than 180 days, unless the Secretary or the 

18 Attorney General, as applicable, determines that 

19 maintenance of the record is— 

20 ‘‘(i) required under Federal law; 

21 ‘‘(ii) necessary for the purpose of liti22 gation; and 

23 ‘‘(iii) necessary to investigate or pros24 ecute a violation of law, including by— 


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1 ‘‘(I) directly supporting an ongo2 ing security operation; or 

3 ‘‘(II) protecting against dangerous 

4 or unauthorized activity by unmanned 

5 aircraft systems or unmanned aircraft; 

6 and 

7 ‘‘(D) a communication described in sub8 paragraph (B) is not disclosed to any person not 

9 employed or contracted by the Department or the 

10 Department of Justice unless the disclosure— 

11 ‘‘(i) is necessary to investigate or pros12 ecute a violation of law; 

13 ‘‘(ii) will support— 

14 ‘‘(I) the Department of Defense; 

15 ‘‘(II) a Federal law enforcement, 

16 intelligence, or security agency; 

17 ‘‘(III) a State, local, Tribal, or 

18 territorial law enforcement agency; or 

19 ‘‘(IV) another relevant entity or 

20 person if the entity or person is en21 gaged in a security or protection oper22 ation; 

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1 vestigating or prosecuting a violation of 

2 law; 

3 ‘‘(iv) will support the enforcement ac4 tivities of a Federal regulatory agency relat5 ing to a criminal or civil investigation of, 

6 or any regulatory, statutory, or other en7 forcement action relating to, an action de8 scribed in subsection (e); 

9 ‘‘(v) is between the Department and 

10 the Department of Justice in the course of 

11 a security or protection operation of either 

12 department or a joint operation of those de13 partments; or 

14 ‘‘(vi) is otherwise required by law. 

15 ‘‘(2) LOCAL PRIVACY PROTECTION.—In exer16 cising any authority described in subsection (c) or 

17 (d), a State, local, Tribal, or territorial law enforce18 ment agency designated under subsection (d)(2) or 

19 owner or operator of an airport or critical infrastruc20 ture shall ensure that— 

21 ‘‘(A) the interception of, acquisition of, ac22 cess to, maintenance of, or use of communica23 tions to or from an unmanned aircraft system or 

24 unmanned aircraft under this section is con25 ducted in a manner consistent with— 


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1 ‘‘(i) the First and Fourth Amendments 

2 to the Constitution of the United States; 

3 and 

4 ‘‘(ii) applicable provisions of Federal, 

5 and where required, State, local, Tribal, 

6 and territorial law; 

7 ‘‘(B) any communication to or from an un8 manned aircraft system or unmanned aircraft is 

9 intercepted or acquired only to the extent nec10 essary to support an action described in sub11 section (e); 

12 ‘‘(C) any record of a communication de13 scribed in subparagraph (B) is maintained only 

14 for as long as necessary, and in no event for 

15 more than 180 days, unless the Secretary, the At16 torney General, or the head of a State, local, 

17 Tribal, or territorial law enforcement agency 

18 designated under subsection (d)(2) determines 

19 that maintenance of the record is— 

20 ‘‘(i) required to be maintained under 

21 Federal, State, local, Tribal, or territorial 

22 law; 

23 ‘‘(ii) necessary for the purpose of any 

24 litigation; or 


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1 ‘‘(iii) necessary to investigate or pros2 ecute a violation of law, including by— 

3 ‘‘(I) directly supporting an ongo4 ing security or protection operation; or 

5 ‘‘(II) protecting against dangerous 

6 or unauthorized activity by an un7 manned aircraft system or unmanned 

8 aircraft; and 

9 ‘‘(D) the communication is not disclosed 

10 outside the agency or entity unless the disclo11 sure— 

12 ‘‘(i) is necessary to investigate or pros13 ecute a violation of law; 

14 ‘‘(ii) would support the Department of 

15 Defense, a Federal law enforcement, intel16 ligence, or security agency, or a State, local, 

17 Tribal, or territorial law enforcement agen18 cy; 

19 ‘‘(iii) would support the enforcement 

20 activities of a Federal regulatory agency in 

21 connection with a criminal or civil inves22 tigation of, or any regulatory, statutory, or 

23 other enforcement action relating to, an ac24 tion described in subsection (e); 


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1 ‘‘(iv) is to the Department or the De2 partment of Justice in the course of a secu3 rity or protection operation of either the 

4 Department or the Department of Justice, 

5 or a joint operation of the Department and 

6 Department of Justice; or 

7 ‘‘(v) is otherwise required by law. 

8 ‘‘(k) BUDGET.— 

9 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary and the Attor10 ney General shall submit to Congress, as a part of the 

11 homeland security or justice budget materials for each 

12 fiscal year after fiscal year 2023, a consolidated fund13 ing display that identifies the funding source for the 

14 actions described in subsection (e) within the Depart15 ment and the Department of Justice. 

16 ‘‘(2) CLASSIFICATION.—Each funding display 

17 submitted under paragraph (1) shall be in unclassi18 fied form but may contain a classified annex. 

19 ‘‘(l) PUBLIC DISCLOSURES.— 

20 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Notwithstanding any provi21 sion of State, local, Tribal, or territorial law, infor22 mation shall be governed by the disclosure obligations 

23 set forth in section 552 of title 5, United States Code 

24 (commonly known as the ‘Freedom of Information 

25 Act’), if the information relates to— 


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1 ‘‘(A) any capability, limitation, or sensitive 

2 detail of the operation of any technology used to 

3 carry out an action described in subsection (e)(1) 

4 of this section; or 

5 ‘‘(B) an operational procedure or protocol 

6 used to carry out this section. 

7 ‘‘(2) STATE, LOCAL, TRIBAL, OR TERRITORIAL

8 AGENCY USE.— 

9 ‘‘(A) CONTROL.—Information described in 

10 paragraph (1) that is obtained by a State, local, 

11 Tribal, or territorial law enforcement agency 

12 from a Federal agency under this section— 

13 ‘‘(i) shall remain subject to the control 

14 of the Federal agency, notwithstanding that 

15 the State, local, Tribal, or territorial law 

16 enforcement agency has the information de17 scribed in paragraph (1) in the possession 

18 of the State, local, Tribal, or territorial law 

19 enforcement agency; and 

20 ‘‘(ii) shall not be subject to any State, 

21 local, Tribal, or territorial law authorizing 

22 or requiring disclosure of the information 

23 described in paragraph (1). 

24 ‘‘(B) ACCESS.—Any request for public ac25 cess to information described in paragraph (1) 


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1 shall be submitted to the originating Federal 

2 agency, which shall process the request as re3 quired under section 552(a)(3) of title 5, United 

4 States Code. 

5 ‘‘(m) ASSISTANCE AND SUPPORT.— 

6 ‘‘(1) FACILITIES AND SERVICES OF OTHER AGEN7 CIES AND NON-FEDERAL ENTITIES.— 

8 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary and the 

9 Attorney General are authorized to use or accept 

10 from any other Federal agency, or any other 

11 public or private entity, any supply or service to 

12 facilitate or carry out any action described in 

13 subsection (e). 

14 ‘‘(B) REIMBURSEMENT.—In accordance 

15 with subparagraph (A), the Secretary and the 

16 Attorney General may accept any supply or 

17 service with or without reimbursement to the en18 tity providing the supply or service and notwith19 standing any provision of law that would pre20 vent the use or acceptance of the supply or serv21 ice. 

22 ‘‘(C) AGREEMENTS.—To implement the re23 quirements of subsection (a)(5)(C), the Secretary 

24 or the Attorney General may enter into 1 or 

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1 tive agency or with an appropriate official of a 

2 non-Federal public or private agency or entity, 

3 as may be necessary and proper to carry out the 

4 responsibilities of the Secretary and Attorney 

5 General under this section. 

6 ‘‘(2) MUTUAL SUPPORT.— 

7 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Subject to subpara8 graph (B), the Secretary and the Attorney Gen9 eral are authorized to provide support or assist10 ance, upon the request of a Federal agency or de11 partment conducting— 

12 ‘‘(i) a mission described in subsection 

13 (a)(5)(C); 

14 ‘‘(ii) a mission described in section 

15 130i of title 10, United States Code; or 

16 ‘‘(iii) a mission described in section 

17 4510 of the Atomic Energy Defense Act (50 

18 U.S.C. 2661). 

19 ‘‘(B) REQUIREMENTS.—Any support or as20 sistance provided by the Secretary or the Attor21 ney General shall only be granted— 

22 ‘‘(i) for the purpose of fulfilling the 

23 roles and responsibilities of the Federal 

24 agency or department that made the request 


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1 for the mission for which the request was 

2 made; 

3 ‘‘(ii) when exigent circumstances exist; 

4 ‘‘(iii) for a specified duration and lo5 cation; 

6 ‘‘(iv) within available resources; 

7 ‘‘(v) on a non-reimbursable basis; and 

8 ‘‘(vi) in coordination with the Admin9 istrator of the Federal Aviation Adminis10 tration. 

11 ‘‘(n) SEMIANNUAL BRIEFINGS AND NOTIFICATIONS.— 

12 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—On a semiannual basis be13 ginning 180 days after the date of enactment of the 

14 Safeguarding the Homeland from the Threats Posed 

15 by Unmanned Aircraft Systems Act of 2022, the Sec16 retary and the Attorney General shall, respectively, 

17 provide a briefing to the appropriate committees of 

18 Congress on the activities carried out pursuant to this 

19 section. 

20 ‘‘(2) REQUIREMENT.—The Secretary and the At21 torney General each shall conduct the briefing re22 quired under paragraph (1) jointly with the Sec23 retary of Transportation. 

24 ‘‘(3) CONTENT.—Each briefing required under 

25 paragraph (1) shall include— 


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1 ‘‘(A) policies, programs, and procedures to 

2 mitigate or eliminate impacts of activities car3 ried out pursuant to this section to the national 

4 airspace system and other critical infrastructure 

5 relating to national transportation; 

6 ‘‘(B) a description of— 

7 ‘‘(i) each instance in which any action 

8 described in subsection (e) has been taken, 

9 including any instances that may have re10 sulted in harm, damage, or loss to a person 

11 or to private property; 

12 ‘‘(ii) the guidance, policies, or proce13 dures established by the Secretary or the At14 torney General to address privacy, civil 

15 rights, and civil liberties issues implicated 

16 by the actions permitted under this section, 

17 as well as any changes or subsequent efforts 

18 by the Secretary or the Attorney General 

19 that would significantly affect privacy, civil 

20 rights, or civil liberties; 

21 ‘‘(iii) options considered and steps 

22 taken by the Secretary or the Attorney Gen23 eral to mitigate any identified impacts to 

24 the national airspace system relating to the 

25 use of any system or technology, including 


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1 the minimization of the use of any tech2 nology that disrupts the transmission of 

3 radio or electronic signals, for carrying out 

4 the actions described in subsection (e)(2); 

5 and 

6 ‘‘(iv) each instance in which a commu7 nication intercepted or acquired during the 

8 course of operations of an unmanned air9 craft system or unmanned aircraft was— 

10 ‘‘(I) held in the possession of the 

11 Department or the Department of Jus12 tice for more than 180 days; or 

13 ‘‘(II) shared with any entity other 

14 than the Department or the Depart15 ment of Justice; 

16 ‘‘(C) an explanation of how the Secretary, 

17 the Attorney General, and the Secretary of 

18 Transportation have— 

19 ‘‘(i) informed the public as to the pos20 sible use of authorities granted under this 

21 section; and 

22 ‘‘(ii) engaged with Federal, State, 

23 local, Tribal, and territorial law enforce24 ment agencies to implement and use au25 thorities granted under this section; 


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1 ‘‘(D) an assessment of whether any gaps or 

2 insufficiencies remain in laws, regulations, and 

3 policies that impede the ability of the Federal 

4 Government or State, local, Tribal, and terri5 torial governments and owners or operators of 

6 critical infrastructure to counter the threat posed 

7 by the malicious use of unmanned aircraft sys8 tems and unmanned aircraft; 

9 ‘‘(E) an assessment of efforts to integrate 

10 unmanned aircraft system threat assessments 

11 within National Special Security Event and 

12 Special Event Assessment Rating planning and 

13 protection efforts; 

14 ‘‘(F) recommendations to remedy any gaps 

15 or insufficiencies described in subparagraph (D), 

16 including recommendations relating to necessary 

17 changes in law, regulations, or policies; 

18 ‘‘(G) a description of the impact of the au19 thorities granted under this section on— 

20 ‘‘(i) lawful operator access to national 

21 airspace; and 

22 ‘‘(ii) unmanned aircraft systems and 

23 unmanned aircraft integration into the na24 tional airspace system; and 


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1 ‘‘(H) a summary from the Secretary of any 

2 data and results obtained pursuant to subsection 

3 (r), including an assessment of— 

4 ‘‘(i) how the details of the incident 

5 were obtained; and 

6 ‘‘(ii) whether the operation involved a 

7 violation of Federal Aviation Administra8 tion aviation regulations. 

9 ‘‘(4) UNCLASSIFIED FORM.—Each briefing re10 quired under paragraph (1) shall be in unclassified 

11 form but may be accompanied by an additional clas12 sified briefing. 

13 ‘‘(5) NOTIFICATION.— 

14 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 30 days 

15 after an authorized department, agency, or 

16 owner or operator of an airport or critical infra17 structure deploys any new technology to carry 

18 out the actions described in subsection (e), the 

19 Secretary and the Attorney General shall, respec20 tively or jointly, as appropriate, submit a notifi21 cation of the deployment to the appropriate com22 mittees of Congress. 

23 ‘‘(B) CONTENTS.—Each notification sub24 mitted pursuant to subparagraph (A) shall in25 clude a description of options considered to mitiVerDate Sep 11 2014 07:21 Dec 20, 2022 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00095 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6203 E:\BILLS\S4687.RS S4687

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1 gate any identified impacts to the national air2 space system relating to the use of any system or 

3 technology, including the minimization of the use 

4 of any technology that disrupts the transmission 

5 of radio or electronic signals in carrying out the 

6 actions described in subsection (e). 

7 ‘‘(o) RULE OF CONSTRUCTION.—Nothing in this sec8 tion shall be construed to— 

9 ‘‘(1) vest in the Secretary, the Attorney General, 

10 or any State, local, Tribal, or territorial law enforce11 ment agency, authorized under subsection (c) or des12 ignated under subsection (d)(2) any authority of the 

13 Secretary of Transportation or the Administrator of 

14 the Federal Aviation Administration; 

15 ‘‘(2) vest in the Secretary of Transportation, the 

16 Administrator of the Federal Aviation Administra17 tion, or any State, local, Tribal, or territorial law en18 forcement agency designated under subsection (d)(2) 

19 any authority of the Secretary or the Attorney Gen20 eral; 

21 ‘‘(3) vest in the Secretary any authority of the 

22 Attorney General; 

23 ‘‘(4) vest in the Attorney General any authority 

24 of the Secretary; or 


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1 ‘‘(5) provide a new basis of liability with respect 

2 to an officer of a State, local, Tribal, or territorial 

3 law enforcement agency designated under subsection 

4 (d)(2) or who participates in the protection of a mass 

5 gathering identified by the Secretary or Attorney 

6 General under subsection (a)(5)(C)(iii)(II), who— 

7 ‘‘(A) is acting in the official capacity of the 

8 individual as an officer; and 

9 ‘‘(B) does not exercise the authority granted 

10 to the Secretary and the Attorney General by 

11 this section. 

12 ‘‘(p) TERMINATION.— 

13 ‘‘(1) TERMINATION OF ADDITIONAL LIMITED AU14 THORITY FOR DETECTION, IDENTIFICATION, MONI15 TORING, AND TRACKING.—The authority to carry out 

16 any action authorized under subsection (c), if per17 formed by a non-Federal entity, shall terminate on 

18 the date that is 5 years and 6 months after the date 

19 of enactment of the Safeguarding the Homeland from 

20 the Threats Posed by Unmanned Aircraft Systems Act 

21 of 2022 and the authority for the pilot program estab22 lished under subsection (d) shall terminate as pro23 vided for in paragraph (3) of that subsection. 

24 ‘‘(2) TERMINATION OF AUTHORITIES WITH RE25 SPECT TO COVERED FACILITIES AND ASSETS.—The 


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1 authority to carry out this section with respect to a 

2 covered facility or asset shall terminate on the date 

3 that is 7 years after the date of enactment of the Safe4 guarding the Homeland from the Threats Posed by 

5 Unmanned Aircraft Systems Act of 2022. 

6 ‘‘(q) SCOPE OF AUTHORITY.—Nothing in this section 

7 shall be construed to provide the Secretary or the Attorney 

8 General with any additional authority other than the au9 thorities described in subsections (a)(5)(C)(iii), (b), (c), (d), 

10 and (f). 

11 ‘‘(r) UNITED STATES GOVERNMENT DATABASE.— 

12 ‘‘(1) AUTHORIZATION.—The Department is au13 thorized to develop a Federal database to enable the 

14 transmission of data concerning security-related inci15 dents in the United States involving unmanned air16 craft and unmanned aircraft systems between Fed17 eral, State, local, Tribal, and territorial law enforce18 ment agencies for purposes of conducting analyses of 

19 such threats in the United States. 

20 ‘‘(2) POLICIES, PLANS, AND PROCEDURES.— 

21 ‘‘(A) COORDINATION AND CONSULTATION.— 

22 Before implementation of the database developed 

23 under paragraph (1), the Secretary shall develop 

24 policies, plans, and procedures for the implemen25 tation of the database— 


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1 ‘‘(i) in coordination with the Attorney 

2 General, the Secretary of Defense, and the 

3 Secretary of Transportation (through the 

4 Administrator of the Federal Aviation Ad5 ministration); and 

6 ‘‘(ii) in consultation with State, local, 

7 Tribal, and territorial law enforcement 

8 agency representatives, including represent9 atives of fusion centers. 

10 ‘‘(B) REPORTING.—The policies, plans, and 

11 procedures developed under subparagraph (A) 

12 shall include criteria for Federal, State, local, 

13 Tribal, and territorial reporting of unmanned 

14 aircraft systems or unmanned aircraft incidents. 

15 ‘‘(C) DATA RETENTION.—The policies, 

16 plans, and procedures developed under subpara17 graph (A) shall ensure that data on security-re18 lated incidents in the United States involving 

19 unmanned aircraft and unmanned aircraft sys20 tems that is retained as criminal intelligence in21 formation is retained based on the reasonable 

22 suspicion standard, as permitted under part 23 

23 of title 28, Code of Federal Regulations.’’. 


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Calendar No. 676 

117TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION S. 4687 

[Report No. 117–277] 

A BILL 

To enhance the authority granted to the Departposes. tems and unmanned aircraft, and for other pur- Justice with respect to unmanned aircraft sys- ment of Homeland Security and Department of 

DECEMBER 19, 2022 

Reported with an amendment 


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