An article by Cleveland.com shares:
A bill aimed at privacy protections that sailed through Ohio’s House of Representatives last year is now drawing fierce pushback in the Senate, especially from the first responders it pertains to.
Sponsored by Rep. Bernard Willis of Clark County, House Bill 251 aims to establish the first statewide legal framework for how and when law enforcement agencies can use unmanned aerial vehicles, often called drones. Departments currently operate under local policies or none at all, so the core provisions initially proposed drew little resistance: requiring police to obtain a warrant before using a drone to observe or enter a property, banning armed drones and logging all drone surveillance flights as public records.
The draft approved by the House, however, has sparked concerns since it differs substantively from the one introduced. A new exception was added to permit warrantless drone use “to operate in navigable airspace, in a physically nonintrusive manner, in order to observe what is otherwise visible to the naked eye.”
Soaring to new heights, together.
Be sure to visit the BWU Technology Partnerships Initiative website to learn more about how our NEOFIX program drives economic growth, promotes policy and infrastructure to improve drone safety and efficiency in various industries, and ensures that drone technology is being used responsibly.