February marks the second month of the state legislative session, and with it has come a flurry of activity. With even numbered and election years often marking shorter legislative sessions, state legislatures have been moving quickly to achieve all their goals. New Mexico became the first state to adjourn for 2024 this month, with ten more states to follow in March. 

What We’re Working on 

Drone Prepared: Drone Prepared is our industry-supported, fifty-state educational campaign, which aims to create a cohesive regulatory environment for drone operations.  

This month, our model legislation for Drone Prepared passed the South Dakota legislature as Senate Bill 169 and will now head to the Governor for signature. The bill: 

With this legislation, South Dakota is at the forefront of states leading the way in preparing for the benefits that the future of uncrewed and autonomous flight will bring to communities. 

AAM Prepared: AAM Prepared is our initiative focused on ensuring that states and localities are prepared for the future of aviation and are enabling the integration of AAM into their communities. Our model legislation was introduced and passed out of Committee in Alabama this month as House Bill 176. We look forward to working more with the State on setting Alabama up as a leader in AAM.  

The Big Issues 

Autonomous Ground Vehicles 

Autonomous Vehicles have been the subject of much debate this legislative session. AV’s present safety, economic, and workplace benefits. They have the capacity to improve highway safety, stabilize transportation costs, and fill gaps in the industry left by the driver shortage. Despite these benefits, concerns have been raised by stakeholders that AVs are not yet proven on the roads or ready to be deployed. This debate has taken center stage in California but is an important one across all 50 states.  

The Good 

As AV’s drive more miles, advance technologically, and prove their safety and reliability, we have seen numerous states embrace the technology and propose or enact enabling regulatory frameworks. This allows States to embrace AV technology and the AV industry while being able to ensure a safe framework that provides the State with control. This session, we have seen this legislation enacted into law in South Dakota and introduced in KY, NJ, NY, and WA.  

The Bad 

While there have been positive proposed laws this session, we have also seen a proliferation of “Human Operator” bills, which would harm industry. These would require a human operator to be present in AV’s, in some versions, specifically in Automated CMVs. These bills would effectively freeze the industry by imposing a preemptive ban that circumvents the current safe regulatory process. This is why multiple states rejected this language in 2023 and two states, IN and WA, have already rejected this language for 2024. Currently, this language is active in CA, FL, IA, IL, MA, NE, and NY.  

Stay Connected 

Only two months into the 2024 legislative session, we expect to see more measures introduced, new trends emerging, and new issues taking precedence. To get weekly updates on all new/active legislation and how AUVSI is engaging, sign up for our newsletter: https://bit.ly/DronePrepared