BILL ANALYSIS Ó
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|SENATE RULES COMMITTEE | AJR 6|
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THIRD READING
Bill No: AJR 6
Author: Fox (D)
Amended: As introduced
Vote: 21
SENATE TRANSPORTATION & HOUSING COMMITTEE : 10-0, 6/4/13
AYES: DeSaulnier, Gaines, Beall, Cannella, Galgiani, Hueso,
Lara, Liu, Roth, Wyland
NO VOTE RECORDED: Pavley
ASSEMBLY FLOOR : 70-1, 4/29/13 - See last page for vote
SUBJECT : Unmanned aircraft systems: test sites
SOURCE : Author
DIGEST : This resolution requests the Federal Aviation
Administration (FAA) to consider California as one of the test
sites for unmanned aircraft systems.
ANALYSIS : Unmanned aerial systems (UAS), commonly referred to
as drones, are aircraft without a human pilot on board; flight
is controlled either autonomously by computers on the aircraft,
or under the remote control of a pilot who is on the ground or
in another vehicle. UAS range in size from as large as a Boeing
737 to smaller than a radio-controlled model airplane.
The FAA first authorized use of UAS in 1990 and has since then
authorized limited use for firefighting, disaster relief, search
and rescue, law enforcement, border patrol, military training,
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AJR 6
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and testing and evaluation. Operators must apply to the FAA for
approval prior to operating UAS. The FAA currently does not
authorize UAS operations in Class B airspace, which exists over
major urban areas and contains the highest density of manned
aircraft in the national airspace system, so UAS use is very
limited.
In February 2012, Congress passed and President Obama signed
H.R. 658 (Public Law 112-95), the FAA Modernization and Reform
Act of 2012. Among other things, H.R. 658 requires the United
States Department of Transportation to develop a comprehensive
plan to safely accelerate integration of UAS into the national
airspace system by 2015. H.R. 658 also requires the FAA to
establish a five-year pilot program at six test sites to
integrate UAS into the national airspace system. The FAA has
accepted applications from 50 organizations in 37 states,
including two in California, and expects to select the six test
sites later this year.
This resolution requests the FAA to consider California as one
of the test sites for UAS.
Comments
Purpose . The author's office states that while 10 states have
established commissions or public-private partnerships aimed at
acquiring a test site, California has not. The author therefore
introduced this resolution to highlight the need for the FAA to
consider California as a desirable test site and for state
leaders to participate in the application process.
According to a March 2013 report by the Association for Unmanned
Vehicle Systems International, public safety and precision
agriculture comprise 90% of potential markets for UAS. Public
safety officials who might use UAS technology include police
officers, firefighters, and emergency medical providers, in
cases of natural disasters, man-made disasters, and crimes.
Precision agriculture includes remote sensing, where remote
sensors are used to scan plants for health problems, records
growth rates and hydration, and locate disease outbreaks. It
also includes precision application, where crop farmers and
horticulturists use targeted spray techniques to more
selectively apply pesticides and nutrients, thereby saving money
and reducing environmental impacts. The report states that 10
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states - including California - stand to benefit most in terms
of job creation and additional revenue as a result of increased
UAS production.
Privacy and other concerns . According to the National
Conference of State Legislatures, 43 states are considering or
have enacted legislation restricting UAS, due to concerns about
privacy, benefits, and business interests. In February 2013,
the FAA issued a request for public input to help ensure that
privacy questions are addressed in the pilot program.
FISCAL EFFECT : Fiscal Com.: No
ASSEMBLY FLOOR : 70-1, 4/29/13
AYES: Achadjian, Alejo, Allen, Bigelow, Bloom, Blumenfield,
Bocanegra, Bonilla, Bonta, Bradford, Brown, Buchanan, Ian
Calderon, Campos, Chau, Chávez, Chesbro, Conway, Cooley,
Dahle, Daly, Dickinson, Eggman, Fong, Fox, Frazier, Beth
Gaines, Garcia, Gatto, Gomez, Gordon, Gray, Grove, Hagman,
Hall, Harkey, Roger Hernández, Holden, Jones, Jones-Sawyer,
Levine, Linder, Logue, Lowenthal, Maienschein, Mansoor,
Medina, Melendez, Mitchell, Morrell, Mullin, Muratsuchi,
Nazarian, Nestande, Olsen, Patterson, Perea, V. Manuel Pérez,
Quirk, Quirk-Silva, Salas, Skinner, Ting, Torres, Wagner,
Waldron, Weber, Wilk, Williams, John A. Pérez
NOES: Donnelly
NO VOTE RECORDED: Ammiano, Atkins, Gorell, Pan, Rendon, Stone,
Wieckowski, Yamada, Vacancy
JA:k 6/4/13 Senate Floor Analyses
SUPPORT/OPPOSITION: NONE RECEIVED
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