Oregon lawmakers weigh drone use vs. citizen privacy
SALEM, Ore. (AP) — As the nation debates the use of drones to hunt terrorism suspects abroad, Oregon lawmakers are considering legislation that would regulate how drones could be used here.
The Oregon Legislature will consider three drone-related bills this session. One of them goes before the Senate Judiciary Committee on Wednesday. The bill would require law enforcement agencies to obtain a criminal warrant before using drones for surveillance of private property, in all but emergency circumstances. State or local government bodies would be required to register with the state Department of Aviation to fly an unmanned aircraft in Oregon's skies.
The legislation is intended to ensure citizens' privacy.
"We think drones coming to Oregon raises significant privacy issues that can't be addressed under current law," said Becky Straus, a lobbyist with the American Civil Liberties Union of Oregon, which supports the bill.
But opponents of the legislation say it would discourage development of a new economic sector that could help Oregon — the manufacture of drones.
"That's a heartache we have with the committee bill," said Roger Lee, director of Economic Development for Central Oregon, a nonprofit group that is pushing to allow drone testing in the region. "It would add another layer of regulation on top of federal regulations."
Under current law, anyone can own a drone if they have a license from the Federal Aviation Administration. But extremely tight federal regulations and an extensive application process make it very difficult for the average person to obtain a flying permit. Bills regulating the use of drones are popping up around the country because Congress wants to streamline this application process and make it easier for public bodies to use domestic drones.
According to the National Conference of State Legislatures, Oregon is one of more than 30 states considering regulatory action on domestic drones amid concerns that they will be used to spy on Americans. In March, Virginia approved a two-year moratorium on unmanned aircraft to allow time for study. California and Georgia are considering legislation intended to boost the unmanned aerial vehicle industry.
Last week in Washington state, a bill that would have regulated the use and purchases of drones by state agencies and local municipalities died without getting a vote. The bipartisan bill was supported by civil liberties groups and privacy advocates but had a powerful opponent: the Boeing Co., which argued it would have blunted job growth in the burgeoning drone manufacturing industry.
President Barack Obama last year signed a budget bill requiring the FAA to expand the use of unmanned aircrafts into American airspace by 2015, and to develop regulations for testing and licensing commercial drones.
Among its provisions, the Oregon bill up for a hearing Wednesday would impose penalties on private citizens who use drones to eavesdrop, wiretap, stalk or trespass. It also makes killing game with a drone a crime.
Sen. Floyd Prozanksi, chairman of the Judiciary Committee, said the bill is intended to prevent the "misuse of drones" by citizens and law enforcement. The Eugene Democrat said more amendments will be introduced, and one would protect hobbyists who fly model aircraft from unnecessary penalties.
Rep. John Huffman, R-The Dalles, has introduced a measure that would require law enforcement agencies to erase all data collected by a drone within 30 days if no criminal activity was recorded.
"I just want to make sure that people's rights are held intact when law enforcement agencies use drones," he said. "But I'm not trying to restrict the use of drones."
He said the ACLU, law enforcement agencies and industry representatives provided input for his bill. A similar bill has been introduced in the Senate by Chip Shields, a Democrat from Portland.
A variety of agencies are interested in putting drones to use in Oregon.
Oregon State University has applied for a drone license to spot forest fires and study environmental changes.
Clackamas County Sheriff's Sgt. Adam Phillips said his department applied with the FAA for a small-capacity drone license.
Small drones are cheaper than helicopters and can fly places that would be dangerous to send an officer, Phillips said. He said the Sheriff's Office could use unmanned aircraft to help with search and rescue missions or to fight wildfires. Phillips said the department so far has no plans to integrate the aircraft if the FAA approves the application, and lacks the budget to acquire them.
The FAA will select diverse areas across the country for drone testing, and Oregon is tossing its hat in the ring with a multistate proposal that includes a possible partnership with Washington, Alaska and Hawaii.
Nationwide, the topic of drones has been rife with controversy.
The Seattle Police Department was one of the first agencies in the country to adopt a drone program. The department planned to use two small drones to survey crime and crash scenes and for search and rescue operations. But citizens and privacy advocates protested, and the police department decided to abandon the program.
Copyright 2013 The Associated Press.
I am working on a start up company called http://honeycombcorp.com based in Portland that would use drones to image farmers fields. Basically we help them use less water, less fertilizer and fewer pesticides. This is good for the economy and good for the environment! There are thousands of civilian uses for drones that people are willing to turn their back on just because they are afraid of a little airplane with a camera. I don't want to be spied on any more than the next guy but we don't ban cars because of drunk drivers! Ban the government from spying but let us honest hardworking people with good ideas have a shot at the American dream! @Agness P WeatherbyÂ
Don't be fooled people this isn't to prevent citizen's illegal use of drones. This is to ban drones outright. the bill is worded such that any RC device that can have a camera mounted to it is considered a drone.
You know that AR drone that works with your iphone you would be a criminal now if you owned one.
You gotta love how the news report on a bill yet doesnt provide which bill they are referring to so Oregon residents can look it up themselves. Fact checking must be a thing of the past. The bill in question is oregon senate bill 71.
www.leg.state.or.us/13reg/measpdf/sb0001.dir/sb0071.intro.pdf@mike Â
I don't need a personal drone and would be happy to give up drones as long as the law agencies can't use them either. Stay out of my email/voice mail too arserholes.Â
Your nieghbor could climb a tree and take pictures of you. They could take pictures out their window into your yard. I have full view of 3 of my nieghbors back yards from my second story house. A helicopter could fly over and shoot pictures. You should not expect the same level of privacy outside your house as you do inside your house.
I dont support snooping and I think government agencies should get a warrant for this type of stuff. But I dont think a small a harmless hobby should be impacted. Do you really think your neighbor is that interested in what you are doing that this is a wide spread problem that they need to create rediculous laws?
@Agness P Weatherby@mike
 The term 'drone" is misleading when it comes to RC planes.Â
For the most part people put cameras on them to take video so they can wow their friends and put it on YouTube to show off piloting skills. Just like motorcyclists do.Â
The issue is that once you pair a camera and an RC plane, you now have a "drone". I would not want to give up a growing entertainment industry that profits the state as a whole because of poorly written legislation.Â
Laws exist now to prevent people from spying in your home. Yet the laws are written that don't preclude people from legal surveillance and photography for entertainment.Â
We should expect no less from legislatures when it comes to cameras on RC planes.Â
That's nothing. Google Glass will be inside your own home! Not mine though. I'll snap it off anyone's head that might try to enter my home with one. Google is basically turning technogeeks into their own private spies. I find that scary!
They wouldn't need drones for search and rescue missions if people would stop getting lost. Â You're welcome.
@Fake Pilot On the upside, you could possibly actually fly one of those.
@randola @Fake Pilot Hahaha, good point.  That would make me a REAL pilot!!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g6CgCYsSiY0&list=UU7he88s5y9vM3VlRriggs7A&index=2
Learn about rc aircraft photography before it's too late
Ban all planes in U.S. Airspace! A drone is any unmanned flying object with a motor like your remote controlled aircraft. put a camera on it and everyone screams. BUT you can rent a plane or helicopter and take pictures all you want. i think their are too many paranoid people in the U.S.A. BAN CAMERAS!
The difference between men and boys is the price of their toys.Â
I think drones would be great....... just as  long as I retain the right to shoot them out of the sky with my paint ball gun.  :)
Our president wants them?
Pull!
Big Fine!!!! Goto Jail!!! Lose Guns!!!
So,,,,,,, whats the difference between a drone and an RC helicopter with a camera?
@oodathunked Nothing and the private citizen will suffer as you will go to jail if you use a rc device to take the same pictures that you could legally take from a plane or helicopter.
Cool!
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@Lindsey Kardashium WRONG STORY here.
@Lindsey Kardashium i didn't like him anyway
Satellites that can see in your backyard are already in space. thay can see what you are doing in real time. You just have to be of interest to them. google is a citizen based program that only serves as general information. Your photographed or video taped at least 15 times during any part of your day with ground cameras and your worried about a cop drone?
@lousecrapton I am not video taped or photographed by any law enforcement officer while I am in my private back yard, legally! When I go out my front door into a public environment it becomes a different story as far as my privacy rights are concerned! As for space pictures, in order for them to be submitted into court, they must have a warrant before the pictures were taken. This is American soil the last time I checked. Yes, they still take them and yes, they may study them, but the law forbids the use of the military and it's equipment on U.S.citizens on U.S. soil! This is also why the National Guard is state operated and the U.S. Coast Guard is Homeland Security. I am not worried about any drones and what they would see in my backyard. I am just tired of my CONSTITUTIONAL RIGHTS being chipped away at by over-zealous, paranoid police and apathetic citizens. What would you say if they decided to search the inside of your house? They can just by saying they are looking for an armed criminal that may be in the area. And it's apathy like you are displaying here that has given them this power! Â
@MickRoh You what I totally agree. My answer is to the paranoid out there who get on the drone bandwagon and loose all common sense. However, because of BUSH'S patriot act, the government can declare you a Terrorist and you can kiss your constitutional rights goodbye. Due Process? you won't have it. hows that for constitutional right. Â
So, it seems like money for a few people once again is more important than protecting the basic rights to privacy. Drones really aren't as quiet or hard to see as purported by those that want them. How else could Afgan soldiers be filmed surrendering to a drone? I value my privacy and I am a law-abiding person! I own my house, which means I am spending over $200,000 to have a private back yard! If any law enforcement officer wants to see what I am doing in my back yard, they can either knock politely on my front door or get a search warrant! And don't tell me about bloody Google! They have not refreshed their image of my area in a while! There are leaves on the image of my dogwood in the front yard on GoogleMaps. My dogwood is totally bare of leaves as of this morning when I went on my routine walk. By defending the police in their wishes for unrestricted use of drones, you are supporting the construction of a facist, police state. Plain and simple. If you say the only ones who don't want the police to use drones are criminal or "less endowed" , then you are either involved with the Justice Department at some level or you will also allow police to search you, your car and your home without any legal reason.
The bad guys can buy drones and watch the cops eat donuts, while they rob houses with confidence.
Drone wars!!!!!
The only people that should fear drones are criminals and prudes.
Like they are weighing on the CRC, which isn't wanted either.
Its very simple, NO DRONES IN US AIRSPACE.
Funny how they still have plenty of money for drones. I just made a clone, it's big, fat, and can see each and every one of you.
Funny how they still have plenty of money for drones. They should cut all the money they spend spying on American citizens.
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@faith I'd rather have a helicopter so at least I know it's there. I think I own the property above my house, and if I am sun bathing naked in my backyard how would I know if a drone was above me, checking my junk out?
@TreeWizard Did you ever try to google your place? Heck, in the time slow motion you can see everything what is/ was going on in your own place from the space like view.. And anyone knowing your address can see the same. It is not like day to day, hour by hour, but, I can see my horses grazing the grass on diferent places. I can even see myself if I zoom it. So, enjoy your naked sun bathing in your backyard, lets hope you have nothing to be ashemed of.
@faith @TreeWizard I have googled my house. I did it like 3 weeks ago to track my running route.
@TreeWizard @faith You are in denial.You didn't check anything because you have replied instantly. If you would be serious, you would do the search or ask me how to get there.
@faith @TreeWizard I am ASHAMED of nothing. My pasty body is 100% natural. I have checked my place out on google. Lucky for them I didn't see them coming.Â
Whatever happened to the good old days when the gubment took pride in spying on you. They used to be so proactive camping out side your house in a van. Now they just want all this high tech stuff to do the work for them. They have no pride anymore.
My only concern is getting as many of these little drones as possible in the hands of searchers to use for missing climbers and hikers and campers. This is a tremendous tool .
@USCitizen I can understand that, agree with it even, but some control does need to be in place so they are just not doing this whenever and where ever they think they want to look. Invasion of privacy is not something most of us need or want.  And its not that I have anything to hide, but if you want to look in my home, come to the front door and knock! Don't fly a drone up to my bathroom or bedroom windows..  So technically, there are pro's and cons to this.
@Khre'Riov Ael i-Mhiessan t'Rllaillieu @USCitizen Aren't most search and rescue missions conducted my LE?
@USCitizen @TreeWizard @Khre'Riov Ael i-Mhiessan t'Rllaillieu So are you purposing that County sheriffs have drones for S&R or groups like Portland Mountain Rescue?
@TreeWizard @Khre'Riov Ael i-Mhiessan t'Rllaillieu @USCitizen Yes. The County Sheriff directs the search and they certify their own team of searchers. They also use organizations like Portland Mountain Rescue.
@TreeWizard  @USCitizen Dang.. you forgot to bribe the typo gremlin..  Â
@Khre'Riov Ael i-Mhiessan t'Rllaillieu @USCitizen by*
@TreeWizard @USCitizen Or search & rescue teams Tree..  Â
@USCitizen now that I do agree with.
what is the difference between drones and a decked out toy with cameras attached to it? rc flyers been attaching cameras on there RC choppers .does that make them a drone? Probably not because they range isimmitted.
o.k. this is Obama's fault right? Well, looky there, the American Civil Liberties Union of Oregon, trying to protect your privacy. Oh those dreaded liberals what will they do next?
Curious how the bill I read a couple weeks ago only placed limitations on regular citizens, and left law enforcement and government in general to continue to use drones to trample what ever rights they so choose.