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Board defers decision on whether drone/LiDAR deliverables amount to unlicensed land surveying
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Summary
The Tennessee Board of Land Surveyors deferred a formal finding after staff presented a complaint asserting that a local drone/LiDAR firm’s topographic deliverables and marketing effectively constituted land surveying without a licensed surveyor; the board asked staff to return in November with fuller attendance and potential expert review.
The Tennessee Board of Land Surveyors on Aug. 28 agreed to defer a complaint about a company offering drone-based topographic models and site plans so the full board could review marketing materials, product samples and, if needed, an expert surveyor’s analysis.
Legal staff summarized the complaint: an unnamed licensed surveyor provided screenshots and proposals indicating an unlicensed company advertised “site survey with TOPO,” produced one‑foot contour topographic plans for a 25-acre site using drone photogrammetry and RTK-enabled drones, and offered downloadable outputs (PDF/DWG/point cloud) that the complainant said are functionally equivalent to certified surveying products. The respondent later edited website text to add disclaimers and a statement that “legal property boundaries and certified elevation data were available as an upgrade through our partnership with a licensed land surveyor,” but the board noted the changes were made after the complaint was filed.
Board members and staff discussed case law from other states, including a Feb. 2023 Eastern District of North Carolina decision and a Mississippi federal decision that rejected First Amendment defenses and held the function and use of mapping outputs — not the vendor’s label — determine whether licensure is required. Glenn, the board’s executive director, read Tennessee’s statutory definition of land surveying (TCA 62-18-1023) for the board and emphasized the statute’s function‑based language: “The practice of land surveying means any service of work... for the monumenting of property boundaries, and for the planning and layout of lands and subdivisions of land, including the topography...”
Several board members said disclaimers alone do not change the substance of the deliverable. One board member summarized the consensus bluntly: “If it looks like a survey and smells like a survey, it’s a survey.” The board agreed it would be prudent to review the matter with full membership present and, if necessary, to commission an expert reviewer who can examine the firm’s raw deliverables.
Why it matters: Advances in drone photogrammetry and point-cloud (LiDAR) workflows have made high-resolution topography and models widely accessible. How licensing boards classify and regulate those outputs affects whether businesses must partner with licensed surveyors or cease offering certain products to clients.
Board instructions and next steps: The board voted to defer formal action until the November meeting, when members asked staff to provide the respondent’s marketing materials, sample deliverables, and a recommended scope for an expert technical review if the board requests one. No formal enforcement finding was made at the Aug. 28 meeting.
What the respondent said (as summarized by staff): Respondent’s written submission, included in the record, stated the company does not provide legal property boundaries or certify elevation references, partners with licensed surveyors when certified data is required and had updated its website language after the complaint was filed. Staff noted the company had not yet produced any project in which a licensed surveyor was formally partnered or had stamped deliverables.
Board comment: Members repeatedly emphasized the function‑based statutory test. Several asked for legal and technical analyses before any enforcement step is taken, citing the need for clear administrative record and consistency with federal court precedent elsewhere.
