Despite being a big critic of drones, Senator Mark Udall (D. CO) believes that drone technology can be used for good:
http://www.denverpost.com/...
Sen. Mark Udall has worked to carve out a reputation on Capitol Hill as the Senate watchdog to the Obama Administration on intelligence gathering and privacy issues.
He successfully fought to prohibit the IRS from reading Americans' e-mails without a warrant. He pushed last year to amend federal law to better protect Americans from having their communications collected. He opposed the reauthorization of the 2011 Patriot Act because it gave the federal government extensive access to private records and the power to wiretap individuals.
Now, Udall is spinning a sunnier side to unmanned machines that fly in the sky with cameras.
At a speech Wednesday here to entrepreneurs and business leaders in the unmanned aerial technology sector, Udall urged development of the technology, saying it will help people.
"We need to integrate unmanned aerial systems into the American psyche in a way that isn't threatening or scary," he said, in remarks at the National Press Club. "Many here today have likely recognized that I'm deliberately not using the word 'drone' because it carries a stigma. Most Americans don't think about monitoring crops, search-and-rescue operations or the numerous other civilian uses of this technology. They think of Hellfire missiles and the headline-grabbing work our government is doing overseas."
Udall's parsing of the differences between civilian and military use of drones comes at a time the inexpensive unmanned aerial systems sector is rapidly advancing both among local governments and private citizens and has the potential to create new jobs in Colorado.
Udall, along with other Colorado officials, is urging the Federal Aviation Administration to make Colorado a test site for unmanned aircraft systems.
Colorado would be a good test spot for the FAA because it is already a significant hub for national space research and development and the state "has some of the most diverse terrain in the continental United States" providing a wide range of conditions for testing, according to a letter signed by the eight elected officials.
Already, at least one local law enforcement agency employs unmanned aerial systems to help do its work.
The Mesa County Sheriff's Office was the first agency in the country to use drones to do its work .
The little unmanned copters in Grand Junction have helped numerous search and rescue operations and aided a high-profile arson investigation. The county also uses them to document trash collection — a requirement of the Environmental Protection Agency. - Denver Post, 5/8/13
Udall is making the case that though drones have been used in military combat and have been highly controversial in the news, especially with the drone strikes in Yemen. But the drone technology can be used responsibly and effectively:
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/...
Udall, who is preparing legislation on unmanned aerial vehicles, said the industry "will always be behind the eight ball and never reach its full potential" unless it is "up-front in addressing the unavoidable legal and privacy concerns that arise with the advent of any new technology." His comments came at an event at the National Press Club in Washington.
"Many here today have likely recognized that I’m deliberately not using the word 'drone,' because it carries a stigma. Most Americans don’t think about monitoring crops, search-and-rescue operations or the numerous other civilian uses of this technology. They think of Hellfire missiles and the headline-grabbing work our government is doing overseas," he said, according to his prepared remarks.
"While recognizing the potential for unmanned flight systems that lower cost, reduce risk, and allow access to environments that are currently inaccessible, we must also acknowledge the potential for their misuse," he said. "While many see [unmanned aerial vehicles] for the good they will do, they could also create a new avenue for bad actors to trespass on private property and violate Americans' privacy rights. Our laws will need to keep pace with this new technology, and I intend to be a leader in ensuring we pass the right laws." - Huffington Post, 5/8/13
Udall, along with Senator Michael Bennet (D. CO), Governor John Hickenlooper (D. CO), Congressmen Scott Tipton (R. CO-3), Doug Lamborn (R. CO-5), Ed Perlmutter (D. CO-7), Diana DeGette (D. CO-1) and Mike Coffman (R. CO-6) have all written the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) urging it to select Colorado as one of six planned Unmanned Aircraft Systems (UAS) testing sites:
The Honorable Michael P. Huerta, Administrator
Federal Aviation Administration
800 Independence Avenue, S.W.
Washington, D.C. 20591
Dear Administrator Huerta:
We write in support of Colorado’s application to the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) to host one of six Unmanned Aircraft Systems (UAS) testing sites across the country. The University of Colorado Boulder, representing the Colorado UAS Team — a public-private consortium of UAS stakeholders — has put forward a unified application, making the case that Colorado should be home to one of the FAA test sites. Colorado has a unique mix of qualifications that makes it ideal for this designation, and we urge the FAA to approve our state’s application.
Colorado’s robust aerospace industry creates an ideal environment for UAS operations. Colorado ranks first in the nation for private aerospace employment concentration, with highly ranked university engineering programs, including a graduate-level aerospace engineering program that was ranked second in the nation in the most recent National Research Council report. Colorado’s aerospace industry directly employs close to 25,000 private sector workers, with an average salary of $120,310. The aerospace cluster in Colorado also supports approximately 30,000 military personnel. A 2013 study by the Association for Unmanned Vehicle Systems International reports that Colorado is poised to create almost 1,200 new jobs during the first three years following the integration of UAS into U.S. national airspace systems.
Colorado is also a significant hub for national space activity, with four key military commands and three space-related Air Force bases located in the Denver Metro area and the Colorado Springs region. Together, these installations employ thousands of military personnel engaged in aeronautics, aviation and space research, testing, and training operations. With the collaboration of the military, high-caliber academic and research institutions, and hundreds of private companies, Colorado has the industrial base to facilitate cutting-edge UAS research, development, and testing.
The state has other unique advantages for hosting UAS operations. Colorado has some of the most diverse terrain in the continental United States, including large mountainous areas and some of the highest altitude regions to facilitate a wide range of conditions for UAS testing. UAS, properly utilized and carefully deployed, can also play an important public safety role by helping first responders monitor and respond more effectively to new wildfires in Colorado and throughout the West.
We also want to highlight the extraordinary size, diversity, and unity of the Colorado coalition that is proposing to bring a test site to our state. Close to one hundred team members, representing ten regional economic development agencies, seven universities, five industry associations, two state agencies, and dozens of private companies have come together to develop a robust and innovative proposal that leverages the wealth of UAS assets and expertise that resides in Colorado. We believe this approach is critical for ensuring the success and sustainability of a UAS test site.
Finally, we want to emphasize that the safety and constitutionally guaranteed privacy of our constituents is paramount. A UAS test site holds the possibility of significant economic benefits for Colorado, creating jobs and spurring innovation at companies and research institutions across the state. Yet our first responsibility is to ensure that Colorado UAS test-site operations would not violate the privacy or jeopardize the safety of any American. The Colorado UAS coalition is committed to meeting privacy regulations and best practices promulgated by the FAA. We urge the FAA to expeditiously provide additional guidance on privacy, including rules governing operations in the vicinity of private residences, to safeguard the privacy of Americans anywhere UAS will operate under this new program. The Colorado UAS Team has committed to address privacy and safety issues in its application, and to continue this commitment through the site operation process.
In conclusion, we are confident that Colorado is an ideal location for one of the six UAS test sites that the FAA will designate, and we strongly support our state’s application. We offer ourselves as a resource to both the FAA and the state to facilitate this process, and look forward to the many economic benefits that civilian UAS operations, with rigorous privacy and safety safeguards, can bring to Colorado in the coming years.
Now Udall has renewed his call to introduce legislation to set up a privacy framework for commercial unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) operations inside the United States:
http://www.rotor.com/...
“Our work to ensure the public is comfortable must extend far beyond the way we talk about them,” he said, emphasizing that UAVs have the potential to reshape search and rescue operations or industries such as precision agriculture.
He did acknowledge that the technology’s public image could use some work. “We need to integrate UAVs into the American psyche in a way that’s not threatening,” he said. “I’m deliberately not using the word ‘drones’ because it carries a stigma.”
He added, “If the American public views these promising technologies in a negative light — envisioning a sky full of drones watching their every move, however exaggerated that vision may be — this industry will always be behind the eight ball and never reach its full potential.” - Rotor News, 5/8/13
Now based on Udall's record on privacy and civil liberties, I can see his point on this issue. What I am curious though is to see what his legislation on drones and privacy will look like once it's finished. But I'm interested to hear what you think. Please leave your thoughts in the comments.