Source: Republic ReportLee Fang
Drones are mainly associated with the Predator airships that patrol
the Afghanistan sky. But thanks to a bipartisan vote last week, the
public can expect 30,000 domestic drones flying over the United States in the next eight years.
The dramatic change in policy, which has raised concerns with everyone from civil liberties groups like the ACLU and Electronic Frontier Foundation to the pilot association and the Independent Institute, as well as conservative think tanks, occurred thanks to an aggressive and well-organized effort by drone makers and their lobbyists.
Yesterday, we reported how the Association for Unmanned Vehicle Systems International (AUVS), a drone trade group, actually doubled
its recent lobbying expenses. Today, we report on a PowerPoint
presentation put together by top AUVS lobbyists Michael Toscano, Mario
Mairena, and Ben Gielow. The lobby group — which maintains an official
partnership in Congress with Reps. Buck McKeon (R-CA), Henry Cuellar
(D-TX), and dozens of other lawmakers — was the driving force behind the
domestic drone decision passed last week. In the presentation obtained
by Republic Report, there are several fascinating concerns raised by the
lobbyists:
– Page 5: Drone lobbyists claimed access to airspace and “Global
Conflict – particularly U.S. and allied nation involvement in future
conflicts” will “either positively or negatively” influence “market
growth” for the industry.
– Page 6: The drone lobbyists take full credit for authoring
the expansion of domestic drone use codified in the FAA authorization
bill passed last week, noting “the only changes made to the UAS section of the House FAA bill were made at the request of AUVSI. Our suggestions were often taken word-for-word.”
– Pages 10-12: The drone industry eagerly anticipates that
civil drone use, including use of drones for “suspect tracking” by law
enforcement, will soon eclipse military use of drones. Under a section
called “Challenges facing UAS,” the lobbyists listed “Civil Liberties.”
View the presentation below:
Drone Lobby Presentation
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