Washington, DC – U.S. Rep. Rodney Davis (R-Ill.), member of the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee, released the following statement after the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) finalized a rule governing the commercial use of small drones. The final rule is similar to the provisions Davis included in the House FAA reform bill, H.R. 4441, the AIRR Act, which passed the committee earlier this year.
“Updating our drone regulations is critical to growing our economy, especially industries such as agriculture,” said Davis. “I’m glad the FAA has finally implemented the law Congress passed in 2012 and that these rules are in line with provisions I was able to include in the FAA reform bill. But our country still lags behind our competitors and it’s holding many of our industries back. This rule is a good first step but we can’t stop there. The FAA must continue to work with us to safely integrate this technology into our airspace so our economy can capitalize on these technological advancements.”
Davis successfully included an amendment to the FAA reform bill, H.R. 4441, the AIRR Act, that would have created a new classification for small drones. Additionally, Davis has pressured the FAA at previous committee hearings to clear the backlog of drone use applications.