How the FAA taught me about Administrative Law.
Dear model aircraft owners,
Go fuck yourselves.
Sincerely,
The FAA
Tonight the FAA posted this Press Release on their website. All model aircraft owners must register with the FAA or face severe penalties such as a $27,500 fine or possibly three years in prison. Needless to say I was quite excited to become a FAA Registered Drone Pilot.
Until I started reading exactly what they had stipulated.
** Disclaimer **
My efforts below are the result of frantic research and reading legalese in the space of about half an hour. I’ll probably fall asleep soon and see more about it tomorrow.
Here is the long and short of it:
Registration is by pilot, not aircraft.
Anything between 250g and ~25kg flying weight must be registered. This is the only qualification.
Any aircraft operated exclusively as a model before Dec. 21st, 2015 must be registered by Feb 19th, 2016.
Up to $27,500 Civil Penalties for failing to register, plus up to $250,000/3 years imprisonment in criminal penalties.
Any aircraft purchase after the 21st must be registered before first flight.
There is a $5 fee for registration, waived refunded until Jan. 20th, 2016. Get to it!
Registration valid for 3 years.
Registration number must be put on aircraft.
Both web and paper options available, web users must be 13 years or older.
All registrees must be 13 years or older.
Nothing related to business UASs in this rule.
Only applies to aircraft operated outdoors, although the weight requirement probably covers most of our indoor-only craft anyway.
That penalty is ludicrous! However, if this is what America needed me to do so I can pursue my hobby so be it. The land of the free indeed.
Then I read this gem:
Q. Who is required to register on the new online UAS registration website?
A. Only individual recreational or hobby users who meet U.S. citizenship requirements are able to register their unmanned aircraft using this new streamlined web-based process. This new, faster and easier system will be available for other UAS owners soon.
U.S. Citizenship requirements? Did that mean I needed to be a citizen to register? As a resident do I lose all rights to my hobby? No, it couldn’t be. I read further.
Q. Is there a citizenship requirement?
A. Only United States citizens can register their small UAS. The certificate serves as a certificate of ownership for non-citizens, not a registration certificate.
Wait, what? This is beginning to look unclear. How could a law as messy as this be passed? Did no one bother to think through this or explain in? What happens to all the international RC competitions? Are all non-citizens supposed to stop flying their model aircraft? What is this crazy law?
Fortunately, as I found out soon after, this is not a law. In fact, it was an opportunity for me to learn about U.S. Administrative Law! Yaaay!
So as the name clearly suggests the FAA or Federal Aviation Administration is a federal agency. Thanks to the Administrative Procedure Act, they aren’t the arbiters of all things that are good and holy. This essentially means that all power the FAA has is mandated by Congress. The typical flow of this relationship is the FAA thinks up a rule, it writes a proposal for this rule, then the respective powers in Congress review and eventually make a decision. There’s more to it but there’s the sparknotes.
This particular Press Release seems to be a proposal for a rule as the last ruling on the subject from congress still applies. Here it is in all its glory below:
SEC. 336. SPECIAL RULE FOR MODEL AIRCRAFT. (a) IN GENERAL. — Notwithstanding any other provision of law relating to the incorporation of unmanned aircraft systems into Federal Aviation Administration plans and policies, including this subtitle, the Administrator of the Federal Aviation Administration may not promulgate any rule or regulation regarding a model aircraft, or an aircraft being developed as a model aircraft, if — (1) the aircraft is flown strictly for hobby or recreational use; (2) the aircraft is operated in accordance with a communitybased set of safety guidelines and within the programming of a nationwide community-based organization; (3) the aircraft is limited to not more than 55 pounds unless otherwise certified through a design, construction, inspection, flight test, and operational safety program administered by a community-based organization; (4) the aircraft is operated in a manner that does not interfere with and gives way to any manned aircraft; and (5) when flown within 5 miles of an airport, the operator of the aircraft provides the airport operator and the airport air traffic control tower (when an air traffic facility is located at the airport) with prior notice of the operation (model aircraft operators flying from a permanent location within 5 miles of an airport should establish a mutually-agreed upon operating procedure with the airport operator and the airport air traffic control tower (when an air traffic facility is located at the airport)). (b) STATUTORY CONSTRUCTION. — Nothing in this section shall be construed to limit the authority of the Administrator to pursue enforcement action against persons operating model aircraft who endanger the safety of the national airspace system. (c) MODEL AIRCRAFT DEFINED. — In this section, the term ‘‘model aircraft’’ means an unmanned aircraft that is — (1) capable of sustained flight in the atmosphere; H. R. 658–68 (2) flown within visual line of sight of the person operating the aircraft; and (3) flown for hobby or recreational purposes.
TLDR: The FAA is barred from rule making on model aircraft which is defined as hobby aircraft below 55 pounds etc…
Great! So that invalidates the FAA rules right? This should mean that until congress decides on passing the rule everyone is free to fly their hobby aircraft under 55 pounds at their leisure, without the fear of 3 years in prison.
Well I sure do hope so. However I’m probably still going to get that FAA Registered Drone Pilot License, buy a matching windbreaker, wear aviators, and add to my resume “I am an FAA Registered Drone Pilot.”
