Julie Bateman
States have long held authority over low-altitude airspace. Nonetheless, with the rise of commercial drones over the past decade, the FAA has extended its near exclusive authority over aircraft in navigable airspace, generally airspace above 500 feet, to low-altitude airspace. Several members of Congress have proposed affirming the state’s authority over low- altitude airspace, most recently Senator Mike Lee with the Drone Integration and Zoning Act of 2019. Under the FAA’s regime, dominant players have secured valuable authorizations for beyond visual line of sight operations and package delivery services, yet small businesses have struggled to obtain authorization for lucrative market applications. Additionally, the FAA has compromised domestic drone businesses’ ability to compete globally with foreign drone businesses that operate in countries with permissive regulations for commercial drones, such as France and New Zealand. States should affirm their authority over drone operations in low-altitude airspace to accelerate competition in the drone industry and to tailor drone regulation to local preferences for privacy, property rights, and civil liberties concerns. By reapportioning this authority to the states, the FAA can focus its limited resources on national systems, such as the drone air traffic management system, manufacturing and performance standards, and the future of interstate drone traffic.