Florida has now banned state and native authorities companies from utilizing drones from a “overseas nation of concern,” which implies that hundreds of DJI drones being utilized by public security departments can’t be used.
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The ban took impact on Wednesday, April 5 2023. The ban doesn’t impact industrial and personal drone use.
The Florida legislation is an unfunded mandate, which can drive particular person public companies to give you the cash to interchange their drone fleets and practice employees on new know-how.
Whereas Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis has repeatedly claimed that Chinese language drone know-how poses a safety threat, a survey by DRONERESPONDERS signifies that greater than 90% of Florida public security companies are presently utilizing DJI drones, as is the case throughout the nation.
The ban has met with important detrimental response right now, as customers and stakeholders calculate the worth of {hardware} which can now should be changed. In line with one native Florida information station, “the Broward Sheriff’s Workplace has grounded 63 drones, bought at a value of $300,000, whereas Miami-Dade police and fireplace rescue have needed to floor 41 drones, which value greater than $200,000.”
Florida’s Division of Administration Providers has revealed a brief checklist of permitted drone suppliers:
Pursuant to part 934.50(7)(b), Florida Statutes, the division hereby gives the next checklist of permitted producers whose drones could also be bought or in any other case acquired and utilized by a governmental company below part 934.50, Florida Statutes:
- Skydio
- Parrot
- Altavian
- Teal Drones
- Vantage Robotics
The checklist seems to be based mostly on the Division of Protection’s DIU “Blue sUAS” checklist, however is a listing of producers quite than platforms. The checklist doesn’t embody all US-manufactured or NDAA compliant drones.
Florida’s ban is the most recent transfer within the ongoing conflict on Chinese language drone know-how. Whereas DeSantis particularly has made statements about “spying,” the efforts to restrict authorities publicity to Chinese language know-how, a part of the “Huawei impact”, has been ongoing for a number of years within the U.S. authorities as geopolitical pressures enhance. Whereas DJI has put know-how safeguards into their techniques that permit customers to maintain their knowledge contained to a neighborhood card with out connecting to the web or importing knowledge in any respect, the U.S. authorities’s said concern is an present legislation in China stating that Chinese language authorities companies could request entry to Chinese language-based firm’s knowledge.
The ban doesn’t impact personal firms and industrial pursuits, it is just related to Florida state and native authorities companies.
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Miriam McNabb is the Editor-in-Chief of DRONELIFE and CEO of JobForDrones, knowledgeable drone providers market, and a fascinated observer of the rising drone business and the regulatory setting for drones. Miriam has penned over 3,000 articles targeted on the industrial drone area and is a world speaker and acknowledged determine within the business. Miriam has a level from the College of Chicago and over 20 years of expertise in excessive tech gross sales and advertising and marketing for brand spanking new applied sciences.
For drone business consulting or writing, Electronic mail Miriam.
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