The FAA rules and regulations you need to know to keep your drone use legal

FILE PHOTO - An Airspace Systems Interceptor autonomous aerial drone flies during a product demonstration in Castro Valley, California March 6, 2017. Picture taken March 6, 2017. REUTERS/Stephen Lam

Recreational vs. Commercial Drone Regulations

One of the biggest hurdles to mass adoption of drones is the numerous regulations that restrict what drone owners and operators can do. In the U.S., the Federal Aviation Administration has several regulations that have hindered drone market growth.

The most prevalent of these restrictions is the one colloquially known as the "line of sight rule," which mandates that drone operators keep the unmanned aircraft within eye shot at all times. This clearly removes any potential application for drones in the delivery space, as the need to keep a drone in line of sight at all times defeats the purpose of sending off a drone to drop off a product at a consumer's home.

But there are different FAA drone regulations for commercial use and for recreational use. Recreational drone laws are in some ways more lax than commercial ones, but the line of sight remains pivotal (more on these laws later).

Drone Pilot License

"Do I need a license to fly a drone?" It's one of the most common questions prospective drone owners ask.

To act as a remote pilot for drones in accordance with FAA regulations, a person must obtain a remote pilot certificate. Those interested must pass a test at an FAA-approved Knowledge Testing Center (list of locations available here). Note that most Knowledge Testing Centers charge approximately $150 to those who want to take the initial exam.

After one passes the test, he or she must complete the FAA Airman Certificate and/or Rating Application (known as IACRA) to receive a remote pilot certificate. Applications are typically validated within 10 days. Applicants then receive instructions for printing a temporary airman certificate, which is valid for 120 days. The FAA mails a permanent Remote Pilot Certificate within that 120-day window.

Those who fail the exam can retake it after 14 days.

Drone Registration

The FAA recently released a list of drone registrations by state for both "hobbyists" and "non-hobbyists." You can view the full data sets here (it includes breakdowns by city, as well) but we've provided a rundown of the hobbyist information below. Note that this information is as of May 12, 2016 at 12:50 PM EST.

State	Number of Drone Registrations
Alabama	688
Alaska	159
Arizona	590
Arkansas	465
California	3015
Colorado	720
Connecticut	426
District of Columbia	76
Delaware	100
Florida	2221
Georgia	914
Hawaii	195
Indiana	267
Illinois	1532
Indiana	825
Iowa	770
Kansas	611
Kentucky	574
Louisiana	514
Maine	425
Maryland	682
Massachusetts	783
Michigan	1290
Minnesota	1033
Mississippi	318
Missouri	1079
Montana	213
Nebraska	438
Nevada	247
New Hampshire	301
New Jersey	1042
New Mexico	236
New York	2403
North Carolina	1007
North Dakota	244
Ohio	1499
Oklahoma	623
Oregon	472
Pennsylvania	1928
Rhode Island	124
South Carolina	531
South Dakota	244
Tennessee	718
Texas	2413
Utah	438
Vermont	271
Virginia	1011
Washington	805
West Virginia	438
Wisconsin	929
Wyoming	116

FAA Laws & Regulations

As a prospective drone owner, you might be asking "Do I need to register my drone?"

Fortunately, the FAA has outlined a series of guidelines related to drone operation through Public Law 112-95, Section 336 – Special Rule for Model Aircraft, as well as Title 14 of the Code of Federal Regulation (14 CFR) Part 107. The table below outlines the differences for recreational and commercial use.

	Recreational Use	Commercial Use
Pilot Requirements	None	Must have Remote Pilot Airman Certificate Must be at least 16 years of age Must pass TSA vetting process
Aircraft Requirements	Aircraft must be registered if it weights more than 0.55 lbs, unless it is exclusively operated in compliance with Section 336 of Public Law 112-95 (Special Rule for Model Aircraft)	Must be less than 55 lbs Must be registered if it weighs more than 0.55 lbs Must undergo pre-flight check for safe operating conditions
Location Requirements	Must be five miles from airports without providing advanced notification to airport and air traffic control	Class G airspace
Operating Rules	Must yield right of way to manned aircraft at all times Must keep aircraft in line of sight at all times UAS must be under 55 lbs Must follow community-based safety guidelines Must provide advanced notification to airports and air traffic control to fly drones within five miles of an airport	Must keep aircraft in line of sight at all times Must remain under 400 feet Must fly only during daytime Must fly at or below 100 mph Mut always yield right of way to manned aircraft Must not fly over humans Must not fly from a moving vehicle

Local Laws & Regulations

In addition the federal laws, several states have enacted drone regulations of their own. Here's a breakdown of drone regulations by state:

Alabama: N/A

Alaska: N/A

Arizona: N/A

Arkansas: Act 293 forbids the use of drones to invade privacy and commit video voyeurism. Act 1019 forbids the use of drones for surveillance of "critical infrastructure."

California: Civil Code Section 1708.8 forbids the use of drones to record another person without their consent.

Colorado: N/A

Connecticut: N/A

Delaware: N/A

Florida: Criminal Code Section 934.50 forbids the use of drones for surveillance that violates another person's reasonable expectation of privacy. This includes law enforcement, however police can use drones with a valid search warrant.

Georgia: N/A

Hawaii: Act 208 created a drone test site advisory board, along with a chief operating officer to oversee the site.

Idaho: N/A

Illinois: 20 ILCS 5065 created the Unmanned Aerial System Oversight Task Force Act charged with regulating commercial and private drones. These regulations include landowners' rights, operational safety, and privacy rights.

Indiana: N/A

Iowa: N/A

Kansas: N/A

Kentucky: N/A

Louisiana: La. Revised Statutes, section 3.41, et seq. regulates drone use for agricultural purposes and mandates that operators be licensed and registered, with renewals every three years.

Maine: Sec. 1. 25 MRSA Pt. 12 mandates that law enforcement agencies obtain approval before acquiring drones and lays out other rules for police use, such as warrant requirements.

Maryland: Section 14-301 establishes the state's power over local authorities to create laws that regulate drone operation.

Massachusetts: N/A

Michigan: Mich. Compiled Laws Section 324.40112 forbids the use of drones to interfere with hunters, and Mich. Compiled Laws Section 324.40111c forbids the use of drones to locate, hunt, trap, or catch animals.

Minnesota: N/A

Mississippi: Miss. Code Section 97-29-61 forbids the use of drones to spy on another person inside a building.

Missouri: N/A

Montana: N/A

Nebraska: N/A

Nevada: Amendments 362, 640, and 746 officially define drones as aircraft, which regulates drone operations. This law also prohibits weapons on drones and forbids the use of drones within a certain distance of airports and other "critical" facilities. Finally, it places restrictions on drone use by law enforcement.

New Hampshire: RSA 207:57 forbids the use of drones to interfere with legal hunting, fishing, and trapping.

New Jersey: N/A

New Mexico: N/A

New York: N/A

North Carolina: Section 7.16(e) of S.L. 2013-360 gives North Carolina's Chief Information Officer the power to approve drone use by state agencies, mandates tests for drone operations, and establishes a permit process for commercial drones.

North Dakota: North Dakota Code Sec. 29-29.4-01 restricts drone use to surveillance, crime investigation, and other law enforcement uses. It also mandates law enforcement have a warrant to do so.

Ohio: N/A

Oklahoma: N/A

Oregon: The State Fish and Wildlife Commission forbids the use of drones to hunt, fish, or trap animals and prohibits using drones to interfere with hunters.

Pennsylvania: N/A

Rhode Island: N/A

South Carolina: N/A

South Dakota: N/A

Tennessee: Tenn. Code Section 39-13-903(a) forbids drones from capturing footage at open-air ticketed events where 100 or more people gather (note: the law specifically refers to fireworks events). Furthermore, the law bans the use of drones over prison grounds.

Texas: Gov. Code Section 411.062 created the role of director to set rules for drone use in the Capitol Complex. Gov. Code Section 423.002(a) requires that professionals (such as photographers) obtain written consent from individuals that appear in images captured by drones. Without such permission, individuals must be unrecognizable. Finally, Gov. Code Section 423.0045 forbids the use of drones over critical infrastructure, such as power plants and dams.

Utah: Utah Code Title 63G, Chapter 18 allows police to use drones for data collection at test sites and to locate missing persons only in areas without a reasonable expectation of privacy.

Vermont: N/A

Virginia: Virginia Code Section 19.2-60.1 mandates that police obtain a warrant before using drones for criminal investigations or surveillance. The exceptions to this are Amber, Senior, and Blue Alerts.

Washington: N/A

West Virginia: West Va. Code Section 20-2-5 forbids the use of drones to hunt, kill, or take wild animals.

Wisconsin: N/A

Wyoming: N/A

More to Learn

Regulatory hurdles will prevent drone mass adoption in the near-term, but BI Intelligence, Business Insider's premium research service, predicts that drone usage will hit the mainstream early in the next decade. This is just one of many insights available in the BI Intelligence report entitled The Drones Report: Market Forecasts, key players and use cases, and regulatory barriers to the proliferation of drones.

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Disclaimer: This article is not intended to provide legal advice. Please contact an attorney to determine what, if any, legal requirements or restrictions apply to the use of Unmanned Aircraft Systems in your area.

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