Congress should address the 'legal framework' deficiency regarding drone security, says Rep. Dan Crenshaw.

On Tuesday, Rep. Dan Crenshaw, R-Texas, highlighted the "real issue" that Congress must address concerning drone security, after a House Intelligence Committee classified briefing on the unexplained sightings.

"According to Crenshaw, it is inaccurate for the Biden administration to claim they are absolutely certain that there are no issues with the sightings, as they are not entirely sure. There are currently around 100 cases under active investigation, and while there were previously around 6,000, many of them have been assessed and found to be manned aircraft, planes, or satellites. The administration is investigating every single one of these cases."

One of the main issues in ensuring drone security, according to Crenshaw, is the absence of a defined "legal framework."

"Since 2017, we have granted the federal government authority to detect and mitigate drone activity across the United States, but this authority is limited. The Department of Justice (DOJ), Department of Defense (DOD), Department of Energy (DOE), and Department of Homeland Security (DHS) all have specific authority, but it is limited to government facilities. If a government facility shoots down a drone overhead, they could be criminally liable. This is a problem that needs to be solved in Congress."

Crenshaw stated that Congress has been considering several bills related to this issue, and he anticipates that they will receive increased attention.

"According to Crenshaw, there are no criminal penalties for individuals who fly unlicensed drones in restricted airspace. There is no legal framework to address this issue, and there is no central agency responsible for dealing with drones. It is unclear who is in charge of managing drones, and state and local authorities lack the capabilities and authority to handle the situation."

"I believe the reason for this understandable breakout in the American public is because everyone is questioning who to call for this," he said.

On Monday, a joint statement from the DHS, FBI, FAA, and DOD was released in anticipation of their upcoming briefing to lawmakers about the recent drone sightings.

The federal agencies clarified that the unexplained sightings so far consist of a mix of legal commercial drones, recreational drones, and police drones, as well as manned fixed-wing aircraft, helicopters, and celestial objects mistakenly identified as drones.

The agencies have not identified any "anomalous" activity and do not assess it to pose a national security or public safety risk over civilian airspace in New Jersey or other areas in the northeast.

While there have been a limited number of visual sightings of drones over military facilities in New Jersey and other areas, including in restricted airspace, the agencies have assured that such occurrences are not new.