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The mysterious drone phenomenon centered in New Jersey has prompted government officials to issue fresh calls for expanded power as their counter-drone authorization is set to expire this week.
The current drone-countering authorities — authorized as part of the FAA Reauthorization Act of 2018 — grant both the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and the Department of Justice (DOJ) authority to use advanced detection technologies to identify, track and intercept drones that aren’t complying with the law.
The 2018 measure exempts the agencies from other laws that prevent interference with aircraft and wiretapping without a warrant. It expires on Dec. 20, and lawmakers must attach a last-minute extension to a stopgap spending bill to fund the government this week in order to prevent a lapse.
But government officials say the 11th hour, piecemeal approach harms their ability to counter drone threats.
A social media user said she filmed several drones hovering over Fairfield, Connecticut on Thursday night. (Lucy Biggers)
“We cannot appropriately budget, we can’t strategically plan for the future,” Steven Willoughby, deputy director of the Department of Homeland Security’s counter-drone office, said during a security forum last week.
“The administration has been seeking, for several years now, additional authorities to expand the counter-UAS authorities, both of the federal government, which are themselves very limited, and also to give state and local authorities the authority to use certain C-UAS technologies with federal oversight,” a senior Biden administration official told reporters on a call over the weekend. “That legislation has been pending.”
DRONE MYSTERY: NEW JERSEY HOMEOWNERS THREATEN TO TAKE MATTERS INTO THEIR OWN HANDS IF GOVERNMENT DOESN’T ACT
A DHS official said that while there is “no known malicious activity in New Jersey,” the sightings there “highlight a gap in our current authorities, and so we would also urge Congress to pass our…
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