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Privacy, FAA preemption top concerns after Greenburgh drone proposal
Summary
Board members and residents pressed the limits of local authority and the draft's privacy language after Christopher Lin warned municipal blanket permits can be preempted by the FAA; the board asked legal staff to tighten definitions before a public hearing.
During discussion of the proposed ordinance, several members raised where the town could legally define a "reasonable expectation of privacy" and whether such language would expose the town to litigation.
A resident said the experience is personal: "that is an invasion of your privacy," expressing concern about drones flying over backyards. Christopher Lin acknowledged the difficulty and said he borrowed privacy language from state surveillance law but that exact definitions would need work.
Lin and board members also cautioned that local rules can be vulnerable to federal preemption. Lin cited court practice in saying that blanket permit requirements have been struck down and said the draft aims to avoid regulating airspace directly, which the Federal Aviation Administration controls.
The board directed staff to run the draft by the town attorney and to consult county contacts about how other jurisdictions handled preemption and privacy before scheduling any public hearing.
