Planning for Terrorist Attacks That Use Small and Medium Sized Drones (H.R. 1646)

What is H.R. 1646?

(Updated March 1, 2017)

This bill would require the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) to research the possibility of small and medium sized unmanned aerial systems (UAS -- but more commonly known as drones) could be used to carry out an act of terrorism.

DHS would be officially designated as the lead federal department responsible for developing policies, guidance, and protocols to prevent or mitigate an attack perpetrated with a small or medium sized drones.

It would be instructed to consult with the Departments of Defense (DOD), Transportation, and Energy -- then disseminate information to state, local, and tribal law enforcement with information related to responding to threats from drones.

DHS would also assess the security threat associated with the commercial availability of small and medium sized drones by coordinating with DHS Centers of Excellence and other academic institutions.

Argument in favor

Drones aren’t going away -- their popularity and availability is only going to increase with time. The time to develop plans for preventing and responding to attacks using drones is now.

Argument opposed

There is still a lot of uncertainty regarding the regulation of consumer-operated drones, so Homeland Security can’t be expected to develop a plan before those issues are settled.

Impact

People or businesses that use small and medium sized drones, DHS Centers of Excellence, the Departments of Defense, Transportation, and Energy; DHS, the Secretary of Homeland Security.

Cost of H.R. 1646

A CBO cost estimate is unavailable.

Additional Info

In-Depth: This bill’s sponsor, Rep. Bonnie Watson Coleman (D-NJ), cited the need for “security policies for drones, and coordination with state and local law enforcement to ensure we’re prepared for, and ideally able to prevent, an attack by a commercially available drone.”

Rep. Watson Coleman went on to highlight several instances where drones flew near French nuclear facilities, the French President’s residence, and when a small drone landed on the grounds of the White House. The Secretary of Homeland Security Jeh Johnson has previously expressed concerns about drones on the 2016 presidential campaign trail, or at the Super Bowl.

The Department of Homeland Security has been testing responses to deter consumer-grade drones from being used to carry out attacks on vulnerable targets, as several of those drones can carry very potent payloads. Among the defenses tested is what is known as geofencing, which uses the drone’s GPS system to prevent it from flying in no-fly zones.

This bill was passed out of the House Homeland Security Committee unanimously by voice vote.

Media:

• Sponsoring Rep. Bonnie Watson Coleman (D-NJ) Press Release
• Rep. Watson Coleman (D-NJ) Fact Sheet
• House Homeland Security Committee Press Release
• The Verge (Context)
• Wired (Context)
  

Summary by Eric Revell
(Photo Credit: Flickr user Don McCullough)