Drone Advocacy Alliance - April '25 State-Level Updates on US DJI Drone Ban Legislation

This is the April '25 state-level update from the Drone Advocacy Alliance (DAA).

Alabama

A resolution has been offered in the Alabama House of Representatives that would create a study committee on the risks of drones manufactured in China. The committee would include several stakeholders from across the drone industry, including (potentially) DAA partner(s). The sponsor of the resolution has been clear that he does not want to see drones manufactured in China banned, which is positive. They do think there are risks, but he believes that there is a solution and that is something we can all get behind.

Data security is critically important and something we all take seriously and we appreciate the resolution’s sponsor for being willing to work with the community. The resolution will need to pass a House Committee and the full House, as well as 2 Senate committees and the full Senate before it is adopted. With only a handful of working days left in their legislative session, they may not get it all done in time, but we wanted to alert DAA partners regardless.

Arizona

A hearing was held last week on SB 1350, a bill that would place certain software requirements on agency drone use. However, the bill would still allow drone use under those parameters and would not ban any manufacturers or their products. The Governor recently announced on X that there is now a moratorium on any new bills that comes across her desk so we are monitoring this closely and will keep you all informed of any new developments.

Louisiana

A new bill in Louisiana would impose a country of origin ban on state agencies, including law enforcement. The bill is still in the early stages of the legislative process and, as it is currently drafted, would impact nearly all electronics manufactured in China, not just drones. The DAA have prepared materials to help you engage, which can be found in the DAA Google Drive here and would appreciate you sharing with your network in Louisiana.

Michigan

The DAA continue to push back on a bill in Michigan that would prevent local government entities, including public safety and public schools, from contracting for Chinese-made drones. The effort to ban procurement and use of these drones is being led by the Speaker of the House, but thanks to truly terrific end user engagement The DAA are making progress. The DAA expect to see updated language to the bill in the coming weeks and have heard there may be a study committee formed comprising public safety voices in MI. The DAA have prepared materials and public safety drone use examples to help push back in Michigan, which are in the DAA Google Drive here.

Nevada

The helpful bill in Nevada, which would allow public safety agencies to once again procure and use drones manufactured in China if they meet certain data security criteria, passed the Nevada Assembly unanimously this week! The DAA are making great progress rolling back market restrictions, but it remains important to make our voices heard in support of this bill as it heads to the Senate. The DAA have prepared materials to do so, which are in the DAA Google Drive here.

New York

The DAA continue to monitor the situation in NY and want to flag that end user engagement, particularly from small businesses that have contracts with state/local entities and public safety, is critically important. The DAA have been told that voices from the Buffalo region and Nassau County (Long Island, close to NYC) can be the most impactful. As a reminder, we have resources in the DAA drive to help spread the word.

North Carolina

The harmful bill in North Carolina passed out of a House committee last week. There are still several steps to go before House passage, and opposition to the bill remains very important. The DAA have been told that public safety and any small businesses that may be impacted by state procurement and use bans can kill this bill if they voice their opposition. Any engagement that DAA partners can drive would therefore be very helpful. The DAA have materials to push back on this bill, in the DAA Google Drive here.

North Dakota

Despite a victory earlier this year, a new provision with funding to ban and replace drones manufactured in China has been attached to the larger state budget bill. The DAA have killed two past attempts to impose a country of origin ban this year and continue working to oppose it once more.

Oregon

In some good news, a bill in Oregon (SB 238) that would expand public safety’s ability to use drones passed the state Senate last week! It is great to see the legislature recognize the importance of drones for public safety and we hope this will lead to more positive changes to expand the use of drone technology in the state. It now goes to the House and we are optimistic that it will pass.

Texas

A committee substitute for the bill containing a country of origin procurement and use ban (HB 41) was released last week, changing the bill’s effective date and making other small concessions. However, the changes do little to address the very real consequences this bill would have on public safety and drone users in the state. It remains very important to push back on this bill, and strong end user opposition can make a difference. There is a campaign to push back on the bill on the DAA Action Center, and we encourage you to share it with any interested parties in Texas. The DAA Google Drive also contains materials to push back, as well as a list of target legislators that will be crucial in this fight, at this link.

West Virginia

The West Virginia legislature has adjourned for the year and we can now say that we won! The DAA defeated a procurement and use ban bill for the second year in a row. Thank you to all the partners for making this happen!

Stay Aware of the Latest:

The DAA are also tracking looming threats in states such as Colorado, Minnesota, Ohio and Wisconsin, so if you or your contacts hear anything, please let us know. To always stay aware of the latest, even between our partner updates, we encourage you to check our tracker of state legislative threats, which is regularly updated in the Drone Advocacy Alliance Google Drive. You can always reach out to us as well with any questions.

Reminder – Our Federal Campaigns

Although Congress is currently on recess for the Easter break, our federal campaigns remain active! If you have not yet taken action on them, please visit the “Take Action” page of the DAA website and submit your letters (as always, customized is best!). A rundown of these three campaigns is below:

Calling for the Completion of the Mandated Security Audit of DJI & Autel

This campaign calls for Congress to urge the appropriate national security agencies to undertake the mandated security review from last year’s NDAA. If this is not done in a timely manner, DJI and Autel drones could find themselves banned by default – harming end users across America.

Supporting the DRONE Act

This bill would expand certain existing federal grant programs for law enforcement to allow the grants to be used for the purchase and use of drones for the public safety community, expanding access to life-saving technology.

Calling for Customs Investigation

This campaign calls on Congress to request more information from U.S. Customs and Border Protection about shipment delays for DJI products and seek a quick resolution to allow people to access their drones that are currently stuck in the process.

If you have any thoughts you would like to share about these initiatives, please reach out to the DAA at info@droneadvocacyalliance.com