S2702

An Act concerning the use of unmanned aerial vehicles and supplementing Title 2A of the New Jersey Statutes.

Be It Enacted by the Senate and General Assembly of the State of New Jersey:

1. a. As used in this act:

“Anti-personnel device” means a firearm or any prohibited weapon or device defined under N.J.S.2C:39-3 or any other projectile designed to harm, incapacitate, or otherwise negatively impact a human being;

“Unmanned aerial vehicle” means an aerial vehicle that is owned or operated by any branch of the Armed Forces of the United States or any law enforcement agency, or agent or employee thereof, that uses aerodynamic forces to propel the vehicle and does not carry a human operator, and is capable of flying autonomously or being piloted remotely and conducting surveillance as defined by this section; and

“Surveillance” means the act of monitoring, observing, photographing, listening to, or making a recording of a person or group of persons or their movements, activities and communications.

b. No law enforcement agency shall utilize an unmanned aerial vehicle to conduct surveillance or to gather any evidence or engage in any other law enforcement activity within this State unless:

(1) the chief law enforcement officer of that law enforcement agency has reasonable grounds to believe that the record or other information that may be derived from an unmanned aerial vehicle is relevant and material to an ongoing criminal investigation; or

(2) the unmanned aerial system is being utilized by the Missing Persons Unit established pursuant to section 2 of P.L.1983, c.467 (C.52:17B-9.7) or other law enforcement agency for a search and rescue mission, including but not limited to, locating a high risk missing person or missing child as defined under section 1 of P.L.2007, c.279 (C.52:17B-212), or following a notification that a person is abducted or missing by an Amber Alert established under section 3 of P.L.2002, c.129 (C.52:17B-194.3) or Silver Alert under section 1 of P.L.2009, c.167 (C.52:17B-194.4)

c. Whenever a law enforcement agency utilizes an unmanned aerial system in accordance with subsection b. of this section and records a verbal or video communication that is unrelated to an ongoing criminal investigation, the contents of that verbal or video communication, and any information that is derived from that communication, shall be discarded within 14 days.

d. Information or records of a verbal or video communication derived from the use of an unmanned aerial system shall be strictly safeguarded and shall not be made available or disclosed to the public or any third party. The provisions of this section shall not apply to the disclosure of information or records of a verbal or video communication derived from the use of an unmanned aerial system to any court or law enforcement agency in carrying out its functions related to the ongoing criminal investigation.

e. Any evidence derived from the use of an unmanned aerial system in violation of this section shall not be used as evidence in a criminal prosecution.

2. a. A forest firefighter service established under the Department of Environmental Protection pursuant to R.S.13:9-1 et seq. may utilize an unmanned aerial system to survey or monitor the extent of a forest fire.

b. Any fire department, paid or volunteer, in this State may utilize an unmanned aerial system to survey or monitor the extent of a fire in situations when the unmanned aerial system can assist firefighters in obtaining visual and oratory information on the damage caused by the fire to a building or other structure.

c. Whenever a forest firefighter service, or any fire department, paid or volunteer, utilizes an unmanned aerial system in accordance with this section and records a verbal or video communication that is unrelated to an arson investigation, the contents of that verbal or video communication, and any information that is derived from that communication, shall be discarded within 14 days.

3. a. Each law enforcement agency or fire department that utilizes an unmanned aerial system shall keep, on location at the agency or department, a record for each an unmanned aerial system listing the following identifying information:

(1) maintenance records for each a unmanned aerial system;

(2) the records of the two most recent calendar years of fuel purchases for each unmanned aerial system;

(3) any other documentation pertinent to the unmanned aerial system that may be otherwise required under rules or regulations adopted pursuant to section 5 of P.L. ,c. (C. ) (pending before the Legislature as this bill). The Attorney General shall have the authority to inspect these records upon request.

b. Each law enforcement agency or fire department that utilizes an unmanned aerial system shall annually inspect the unmanned aerial system to ensure that the system is being properly maintained, is in good working condition, and is safe to be used in the same proximity as the general public. The person conducting the inspection shall have qualifications, knowledge, and experience in the use and inspection of unmanned aerial systems.

A report of the annual inspection shall be forwarded to the Office of the Attorney General no later than January 1 of each year. The report also shall include a statement documenting the number of times that an unmanned aerial system was used during the year, as well as a statement of facts establishing the purpose for which the unmanned aerial system was used, and the character of the information that the law enforcement agency or fire department obtained from utilizing the unmanned aerial system

4. No person, including a law enforcement agency or fire department permitted to utilize an unmanned aerial vehicle pursuant to this act shall operate an unmanned aerial vehicle in this State that is equipped with an anti-personnel device as defined in section 1 of P.L. , c. (C. ) (pending before the Legislature as this bill). A person who violates this section shall be guilty of a crime of the fourth degree.

5. The Attorney General, in conjunction with the Superintendent of State Police, shall adopt rules and regulations in accordance with the Administrative Procedure Act, P.L.1968, c.410 (C.52:14B-1 et seq.), to effectuate the purposes of this act.

6. This act shall take effect immediately.

STATEMENT

This bill sets forth certain guidelines to be followed by law enforcement agencies and fire departments that use unmanned aerial vehicles, commonly referred to as drones. Under the provisions of the bill, a law enforcement agency is prohibited from utilizing a drone unless the chief law enforcement officer has reasonable grounds to believe that the record or other information that may be derived from an unmanned aerial vehicle is relevant and material to an ongoing criminal investigation. The bill also provides that the Missing Persons Unit in the Department of Law and Public Safety or other law enforcement agency may utilize a drone for search and rescue missions, including but not limited to, locating a high risk missing person or missing child or following a notification that a person is abducted or missing by an Amber Alert or Silver Alert.

In addition, the bill provides that the forest fire service established under the Department of Environmental Protection may utilize a drone to survey or monitor the extent of a forest fire. All fire departments operating in the State also are permitted to utilize a drone to survey or monitor the extent of a fire in situations when the unmanned aerial system can assist firefighters in obtaining visual and oratory information on the damage caused by the fire to a building or other structure.

The bill requires each law enforcement agency or fire department that utilizes a drone to keep maintenance records for each unmanned aerial system, a record of the two most recent calendar years of fuel purchases for each unmanned aerial system, and any other documentation pertinent to the unmanned aerial system that may be otherwise required by the Office of the Attorney General. In addition, each law enforcement agency or fire department that utilizes a drone is required to annually inspect the drone to ensure that the system is being properly maintained, is in good working condition and is safe to be used in the same proximity as the general public. A report of the annual inspection is to be forwarded to the Office of the Attorney General no later January 1 of each year. The bill also requires that the report include a statement documenting the number of times that an unmanned aerial system was used during the year, as well as a statement of facts establishing the purpose for which the unmanned aerial system was used, and the character of the information that the law enforcement agency or fire department obtained from utilizing the unmanned aerial system.

The bill requires that any records of a verbal or video communication that are unrelated to the ongoing criminal investigation are to be discarded within 14 days. In the case of drones being used by a fire department, verbal or video communication that are unrelated to an arson investigation are to be discarded within 14 days. The bill also requires that any information or records of a verbal or video communication derived from the use of a drone are to be strictly safeguarded from the public or any other third party. Evidence illegally derived by a law enforcement agency from the use of a drone is prohibited from being used as evidence in a criminal prosecution.

Finally, this bill prohibits drones from being equipped with an “antipersonnel device.” Under the bill, antipersonnel device is defined as a firearm or any prohibited weapon or device or any other projectile designed to harm, incapacitate, or otherwise negatively impact a human being. A person who operates a drone equipped with an antipersonnel device is guilty of a crime of the fourth degree under the provisions of the bill. A crime of the fourth degree is punishable by up to 18 months imprisonment, a fine of up to $10,000, or both.