Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) has announced that the Senate will take action on Wednesday regarding a bipartisan bill aimed at equipping state and local authorities with the necessary resources and authority to track unidentified drones that have been reported over New Jersey, New York, and several other states, which has sparked widespread concern across the nation.
During his speech on the Senate floor, Schumer emphasized that federal agencies currently lack sufficient personnel and resources to monitor all drone sightings occurring in the Northeast. “The utter confusion surrounding these drone sightings shows that the feds can’t respond all on their own. The federal government needs help from local officials detecting these drones,” he remarked.
Schumer emphasizes need for local law enforcement to tackle rising drone sightings
Co-sponsored with Senate Homeland Security Committee Chair Gary Peters (D-Mich.), the bill would enhance collaboration between local law enforcement and federal agencies, including the Defense Department and the Federal Aviation Administration, to improve drone tracking efforts.
“This afternoon, I will come to the Senate floor to stand with Sen. Peters to take up legislation to respond to the recent reports of unusual drone activity. I am proud to co-sponsor this bipartisan legislation, which the FBI, DHS, DOD, and FAA all support,” Schumer stated, referencing the federal departments responsible for national airspace security.
He urged the Senate to expedite the passage of their proposed legislation. The senator detailed that the legislation would clearly empower state and local authorities to engage in drone detection efforts and improve coordination with federal law enforcement.
“The federal government needs help from local officials detecting these drones. But right now, the locals have neither the authority nor the resources to act. Our bill will fix that. All the federal agencies involved say they need local help,” he explained. Schumer also noted the widespread presence of drones, which present serious challenges for policymakers and law enforcement.
“You don’t want to tell people they can’t fly drones for recreational use, and many other commercial uses. So, it’s a difficult area, and we don’t have broad-reaching federal legislation on drones, even though we do say they can’t be near airports and be near military facilities,” he added.
This week, President Biden informed reporters that his administration is monitoring drone activity, asserting that the unidentified aerial vehicles appear to be “nothing nefarious apparently” and do not pose any threat.
In contrast, President-elect Trump has accused the Biden administration of concealing information from the public, even suggesting the option of shooting down the drones, a tactic that experts warn could endanger public safety. The FBI has been alerted to over 5,000 reported drone sightings in recent weeks, with the federal government assisting state and local officials in examining these reports.
Earlier this week, the Department of Homeland Security, the FBI, the FAA, and the Department of Defense jointly released a statement characterizing the sightings as a mix of lawful commercial drones, hobbyist drones, law enforcement drones, as well as manned aircraft, helicopters, and even stars that were mistakenly identified as drones.
Despite these clarifications, some lawmakers on Capitol Hill remain unconvinced. Rep. Nancy Mace (R-S.C.) has raised the possibility that the drones could be operated by foreign adversaries—such as Russia, China, or Iran—or even originate from outer space.
“My concern is, if it’s not craft from outer space—because I think that has to be on the table. That has to be an option—is it our technology? Or is it Russia or Iran or China? Is there someone who’s winning the arms race, and are we behind?” Mace expressed in an interview on OutKick.
