Legislation to help state and local law enforcement disable drones that threaten public safety passed the Senate, law makers said, as part of the National Defense Authorization Act.
The legislation, the SAFER Skies Act, restored tools that allowed federal law enforcement to detect, track and disable drones threatening public safety, and extended the authorities through 2031. Those authorities had expired on Sept. 20, 2025.
The legislation proposed by U.S. Sens. Gary Peters (D-MI), ranking member of the Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee, Ron Johnson (R-WI), Chuck Grassley (R-IA), chair of the Senate Judiciary Committee, and Catherine Cortez Masto (D-NV), also extended those authorities to state and local law enforcement. Lawmakers said the authorities were more important in the coming years as the U.S. prepares to host the 2026 FIFA World Cup and the 2028 Summer Olympics in Los Angeles.
“Drone technologies continue to become more advanced and more readily available, so we must take every step necessary to ensure law enforcement can respond to threats that drones could pose to sporting events, large gatherings and critical infrastructure,” Peters said on Dec. 18. “This bipartisan legislation would give law enforcement agencies the authority they need to disable drones that pose an immediate safety threat to help protect the public and property from serious harm.”
The legislation passed as part of the NDAA and requires that the FBI train state and local law enforcement officers on the proper use of counter-drone technology before it is deployed, and to make DOJ grant funding available for state and local agencies to purchase counter-drone equipment. The legislation also increases the scope of DHS and DOJ counter-drone authority to allow federal law enforcement to protect facilities like airports from seeing an influx of drone incursions, as well as imposing criminal penalties for certain offenses committed using a drone.
“This year’s National Defense Authorization Act will expand counter-drone authorities to ensure state and local law enforcement agencies are able to effectively defend their communities against criminal drone use,” Grassley said. “I’m proud to have worked with Senator Peters to get this much-needed provision, and longtime priority of ours, across the finish line.”