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Senate moves bill banning drones within 3 miles of wildfires without incident-commander coordination
Summary
Senate debate and vote moved first substitute House Bill 126 to third reading after sponsor described incidents where drones forced firefighters and air tankers back from a Wasatch County blaze; bill creates a 3-mile no-fly zone around wildfires unless coordinated and sets graded penalties for interference.
Senator Van Tassel told colleagues that last summer a Wasatch County wildfire forced firefighting crews and air tankers to withdraw because of drone interference. In response, first substitute House Bill 126 would make it unlawful to fly an unmanned aircraft within a three-mile area around an active wildfire unless coordinated with the incident commander.
Under the measure, coordination with the incident commander is required for certain drone operations near fires; the bill creates differing penalties based on the severity of the aircraft interference. The text carves out exemptions for coordinated flights by specified groups — public utilities, media and insurance companies — when they coordinate with the incident commander.
Senators asked a small number of questions about scope and exceptions; no substantive amendments were offered on the floor. On a roll call, first substitute House Bill 126 received 20 yea votes, 0 nays and 9 absences and was placed on the bottom of the third-reading calendar.
