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Committee tables bill to require state agencies to buy only NDAA‑approved drones after public‑safety pushback
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Summary
After extended testimony from emergency managers and public‑safety drone operators warning the measure would reduce operational capability and impose heavy costs on counties, the committee voted unanimously to table House Bill 205 and asked sponsors to work with stakeholders on compromise language.
A Senate committee voted to table House Bill 205 on Tuesday after public‑safety officials and industry witnesses testified that the bill’s requirement for state agencies to use only Department‑of‑Defense/NDAA‑approved unmanned aircraft systems (UAS) would significantly harm emergency responders’ operational capacity.
Representative Clark, sponsor of HB 205, said the measure would have directed the Georgia Emergency Management and Homeland Security Agency (GEMA) to create a state‑approved list of UAS that align with federal requirements and DOD/NDAA guidance, and he proposed a multi‑year compliance window to allow agencies time to transition. Clark argued reliance on foreign manufacturing is a national‑security concern and said the bill was designed to spur domestic manufacturing.
But multiple witnesses from county emergency management agencies, local law enforcement, and the aviation industry said the DOD‑approved list would be too expensive and, in many cases, operationally incompatible with public‑safety missions. James Westbrook of the Emergency Management Association of Georgia testified that DOD‑approved systems typically start at about $15,000 and would be an unfunded mandate for many counties; Joshua Pruitt, a public‑safety UAS expert, said domestic manufacturing has focused on warfighter needs and not on the lower‑cost tools used by many first responders.
Field pilots and program managers described life‑saving missions — search‑and‑rescue, structure fire assessments and suspect location — that they said depended on the current fleet. ‘‘We rescued over 60 people … Our drone found that,’’ a Fannin County program manager said, recounting multiple rescues. County officials and state patrol personnel emphasized there is currently no replacement at scale that matches the capability‑to‑cost profile many agencies need.
After more than two hours of testimony and questions, Senator Again moved to table the bill for further work; the motion was seconded and carried unanimously. The committee asked sponsors and stakeholders to form a working group and return with compromise language at a follow‑up meeting.
What’s next: Committee members requested parties meet to propose alternative language or implementation plans and asked Representative Clark to consult with Mr. Pruitt and other stakeholders before the next hearing.
