Wyoming legislature passed a law that would restrict using drones across the state.
According to representative Kendall Kroker of Evansville, the law is important because many Wyoming residents are concerned about their privacy. Said Kroker, “We don’t want surveillance everywhere.”
The draft requires a warrant for the use of drones by police forces or government agencies. As stated in the legislature draft, the only exception to needing a warrant for police is when a police officer “has probable cause to believe a person is committing a felony or is about to commit a felony.”
“Basically, it’s kind of the same principle right now: if a police officer is in an apartment building, and he hears sounds in an apartment of someone screaming and being attacked, he does not need a warrant to get into the home. He has got a probable cause that something is happening there, so he can use it,” Rep. Kroker said. “With a drone, I can not think of a specific example where that would happen.”
Reports on use of drones are now required under the new bill, Rep. Kroker said.
“Any government agency that uses a drone is going to have to issue a report on how they used the drone, and one of the things they are going to put in there is the cost of using the drone.”
According to Rep. Walters, information on drone use will be available for the public to look up at any point.
“The more transparent the government agency is, the more information available to the public, the better it is,” Rep. Kroker said.
According to a report by Wyoming Liberty Group by Stephen R. Klein, there are nine states in the U.S. that passed laws restricting the use of drones. In addition, there are more than 20 states where restrictions on using drones have been considered.
