[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":244},["ShallowReactive",2],{"en-post-counter-drone-law-police-2026":3,"en-related-counter-drone-law-police-2026":209},{"id":4,"title":5,"author":6,"body":7,"category":190,"date":191,"description":192,"draft":193,"extension":194,"image":195,"meta":196,"navigation":197,"path":198,"seo":199,"slug":200,"stem":201,"tags":202,"translation_slug":183,"updated":207,"__hash__":208},"en_posts\u002Fen\u002Fposts\u002Fcounter-drone-law-police-2026.md","US Police Can Disable Drones Now — Only 61 Certified","Lucas Buzzo",{"type":8,"value":9,"toc":182},"minimark",[10,14,17,22,25,41,44,46,50,53,56,59,61,65,68,128,131,133,137,150,153,155,159,161],[11,12,13],"p",{},"State and local police in the United States can now legally detect, track, and disable drones under a federal rule that took effect July 1, 2026 — but as of a Texas Senate hearing this week, only 61 officers nationwide have completed the required certification. El Paso police alone have tracked 1,776 suspected cartel drone incursions from across the border with Ciudad Juárez, exposing a wide gap between the new authority and the trained personnel available to use it.",[15,16],"hr",{},[18,19,21],"h2",{"id":20},"background-the-safer-skies-act","Background: The SAFER SKIES Act",[11,23,24],{},"Congress created this authority through the SAFER SKIES Act, passed as part of the fiscal year 2026 National Defense Authorization Act in December 2025. For the first time, the law extends counter-unmanned aircraft system (C-UAS) powers — previously reserved for a handful of federal agencies like the Department of Defense and the Secret Service — to state, local, tribal, and territorial (SLTT) law enforcement and correctional agencies.",[11,26,27,28,35,36,40],{},"The Department of Justice and Department of Homeland Security published the implementing ",[29,30,34],"a",{"href":31,"rel":32},"https:\u002F\u002Fwww.federalregister.gov\u002Fdocuments\u002F2026\u002F07\u002F06\u002F2026-13609\u002Fcounter-uas-authority-for-state-local-tribal-and-territorial-law-enforcement-and-correctional",[33],"nofollow","interim final rule in the Federal Register"," on July 6, 2026, effective July 1. Agencies seeking this authority must complete federal training and certification, use only equipment from an Authorized Systems List maintained on the FBI's Law Enforcement Enterprise Portal, coordinate with air traffic control before mitigating a threat, and report every qualifying operation to federal authorities. The rule is open for public comment through ",[37,38,39],"strong",{},"September 6, 2026",", meaning the operational details can still change before it becomes final.",[11,42,43],{},"Critically, the authority is narrow by design: agencies may act only against drones posing a \"credible threat\" to people, critical infrastructure, correctional facilities, or major public events — not against any drone flying nearby.",[15,45],{},[18,47,49],{"id":48},"why-texas-lawmakers-are-sounding-the-alarm","Why Texas Lawmakers Are Sounding the Alarm",[11,51,52],{},"The gap between authority and readiness became the focus of a Texas Senate committee hearing this week, where El Paso Police Sergeant Cory Balke testified that cartel-operated drones crossing from Ciudad Juárez are now a near-daily occurrence. Balke told lawmakers \"the threat is very high, and they are very capable,\" describing cartel aircraft capable of identifying individuals from a mile away and tracking moving vehicles on the US side of the border.",[11,54,55],{},"El Paso police have logged 1,776 cross-border incursions from drones broadcasting Remote ID, plus roughly 14,000 additional radar and sensor detections over the same period. The drones range from consumer quadcopters costing around $500 to modified agricultural models worth up to $60,000 and capable of carrying loads over 440 pounds (200 kg) — payload capacity that has raised concern among Texas officials about smuggling and surveillance.",[11,57,58],{},"Yet nationwide, only 61 officers across 46 agencies had completed certification through the FBI's National Counter-UAS Training Center in Huntsville, Alabama, as of the hearing — the sole facility currently authorized to train personnel under the new rule. Drone technology specialist Michael McGee, also testifying, pointed to Ukraine's war experience — where drones are attributed to the vast majority of Russian battlefield casualties — as evidence that the threat is outpacing US domestic readiness.",[15,60],{},[18,62,64],{"id":63},"the-rules-officers-must-follow","The Rules Officers Must Follow",[11,66,67],{},"Getting certified is only part of the equation. The interim final rule imposes strict guardrails on how a trained agency can respond once it identifies a credible drone threat:",[69,70,71,84],"table",{},[72,73,74],"thead",{},[75,76,77,81],"tr",{},[78,79,80],"th",{},"Requirement",[78,82,83],{},"Detail",[85,86,87,96,104,112,120],"tbody",{},[75,88,89,93],{},[90,91,92],"td",{},"Training",[90,94,95],{},"Federal certification through the National Counter-UAS Training Center",[75,97,98,101],{},[90,99,100],{},"Equipment",[90,102,103],{},"Must appear on the FBI's Authorized Systems List",[75,105,106,109],{},[90,107,108],{},"Coordination",[90,110,111],{},"Real-time notification to air traffic control before mitigation",[75,113,114,117],{},[90,115,116],{},"Reporting",[90,118,119],{},"Every qualifying operation documented to federal authorities",[75,121,122,125],{},[90,123,124],{},"Scope",[90,126,127],{},"Limited to credible threats — not routine or recreational flights",[11,129,130],{},"Unauthorized counter-drone action outside this framework — jamming, spoofing, or physically disabling an aircraft without certification — remains a federal offense, separate from the criminal and FCC penalties that already apply to unlicensed radio-frequency interference in the US.",[15,132],{},[18,134,136],{"id":135},"what-this-means-for-drone-pilots","What This Means for Drone Pilots",[11,138,139,140,144,145,149],{},"For the vast majority of licensed and recreational pilots flying legally, this rule targets someone else: it authorizes trained officers to act against drones judged a credible threat, not against ordinary flights conducted within the ",[29,141,143],{"href":142},"\u002Fdrone-laws-usa\u002F","rules that already govern US airspace",". But the expansion still matters in practical terms. Pilots operating near the US-Mexico border, correctional facilities, or major public events should expect a growing regional presence of detection systems and should double-check ",[29,146,148],{"href":147},"\u002Fdrone-no-fly-zones-guide\u002F","no-fly zone restrictions"," before flying in those areas, since a misidentified or erratic flight path near a sensitive site is exactly the scenario the rule is meant to catch.",[11,151,152],{},"The September 6, 2026 comment deadline is also a real opportunity: pilots, dealers, and industry groups can submit feedback on the Authorized Systems List, the credible-threat standard, and reporting requirements before DOJ and DHS finalize the rule. Given how quickly certified capacity is lagging behind the number of newly authorized agencies, expect additional guidance — and likely more state-level legislation modeled on Texas's hearings — before the rule's first anniversary.",[15,154],{},[156,157],"faq",{":items":158},"[{\"question\":\"Can local police legally disable my drone in the US?\",\"answer\":\"Only if the agency has completed federal certification through the FBI's National Counter-UAS Training Center, uses equipment from the Authorized Systems List, and determines the drone poses a credible threat to people, infrastructure, or an event — as authorized under the SAFER SKIES Act's interim final rule, effective July 1, 2026.\"},{\"question\":\"What is the SAFER SKIES Act?\",\"answer\":\"The SAFER SKIES Act, enacted in December 2025 as part of the FY2026 National Defense Authorization Act, extends counter-drone detection, tracking, and mitigation authority to state, local, tribal, and territorial law enforcement for the first time, under strict federal training and reporting requirements.\"},{\"question\":\"How many US police officers are certified in counter-drone response?\",\"answer\":\"As of a Texas Senate hearing in August 2026, only 61 officers across 46 agencies nationwide had completed federal counter-UAS certification, despite thousands of tracked drone incursions at the US-Mexico border alone.\"},{\"question\":\"Can I comment on the new counter-drone rule?\",\"answer\":\"Yes. The Department of Justice and Department of Homeland Security are accepting public comments on the interim final rule through September 6, 2026, via the Federal Register docket before the rule is finalized.\"}]",[15,160],{},[11,162,163],{},[164,165,166,167,172,173,172,177],"em",{},"Sources: ",[29,168,171],{"href":169,"rel":170},"https:\u002F\u002Fdronexl.co\u002F2026\u002F08\u002F18\u002Ftexas-cartel-drones-61-certified-officers\u002F",[33],"DroneXL"," | ",[29,174,176],{"href":31,"rel":175},[33],"Federal Register",[29,178,181],{"href":179,"rel":180},"https:\u002F\u002Fdronelife.com\u002F2026\u002F07\u002F07\u002Fcounter-uas-rules-safer-skies-act\u002F",[33],"DroneLife",{"title":183,"searchDepth":184,"depth":184,"links":185},"",2,[186,187,188,189],{"id":20,"depth":184,"text":21},{"id":48,"depth":184,"text":49},{"id":63,"depth":184,"text":64},{"id":135,"depth":184,"text":136},"news","2026-08-18","New federal rules let trained state and local police detect and disable drones, but only 61 officers are certified nationwide. Here's what changes for pilots.",false,"md","\u002Fimages\u002Fcounter-drone-law-police-2026.jpg",{},true,"\u002Fen\u002Fposts\u002Fcounter-drone-law-police-2026",{"title":5,"description":192},"counter-drone-law-police-2026","en\u002Fposts\u002Fcounter-drone-law-police-2026",[203,204,205,206],"regulation","counter-drone","drone laws","faa",null,"05qoptG9AAqjNhjHpRpMTjk1tN9MXgogDDu_rGdk4Wg",[210,212,223,233],{"title":5,"description":192,"date":191,"category":190,"image":195,"slug":200,"tags":211,"author":6},[203,204,205,206],{"title":213,"description":214,"date":215,"category":190,"image":216,"slug":217,"tags":218,"author":6},"Drone Shot Down Over Romania by NATO F-18 (4th in 2026)","A Spanish F\u002FA-18 on NATO patrol shot down a drone that crossed into Romania from Moldova on Aug 16, 2026 — the fourth interception Romania recorded this year.","2026-08-17","\u002Fimages\u002Fromenia-abate-drones-russos-otan.jpg","nato-f18-drone-shot-down-romania-2026",[219,220,221,222,205],"military drones","NATO","romania","airspace",{"title":224,"description":225,"date":215,"category":190,"image":226,"slug":227,"tags":228,"author":6},"Uber Eats Adds Zipline Drones, Targets 1M Daily Flights","Uber invested in Zipline to launch Uber Eats drone delivery in Houston and Dallas this year, aiming for 1 million daily drone flights nationwide by 2029.","\u002Fimages\u002Fcleveland-clinic-zipline-drone-delivery.jpg","uber-eats-zipline-drone-delivery-partnership",[229,230,231,232],"drone delivery","Zipline","Uber","commercial drones",{"title":234,"description":235,"date":236,"category":190,"image":237,"slug":238,"tags":239,"author":6},"DJI Wins Partial Reversal of Pentagon Blacklist Case","A federal appeals court ruled the Pentagon didn't justify DJI's 'Chinese military' listing on the public record — here's what the August 14 ruling changes.","2026-08-16","\u002Fimages\u002Fpentagono-ban-dji-eua.jpg","dji-pentagon-blacklist-ruling-2026",[240,241,203,242,243],"dji","pentagon","drone market","china",1787095351015]