Congress looks to arm DHS, DOJ against drones

The Federal Aviation Administration reauthorization bill up before the House includes a controversial provision that would give the Department of Homeland Security and the Department of Justice authority to intercept and even destroy drones in flight.

DHS Secretary Kirstjen Nielsen cited the lack of such authority as a dangerous policy gap in an August speech and said a legislative update was one of the agency's top priorities.

"DHS doesn't have clear legal authority to identify, track or take down dangerous drones," she said in her remarks. "We can't even test defensive measures in civilian environments." The Secret Service is currently the only agency with limited authority to defend against drone aircraft.

However, the bill's provision to authorize DHS and DOJ to deal with drone-borne threats is proving controversial among privacy and civil rights advocates, who worry the new authorities would be subject to abuse.

The Electronic Frontier Foundation said in a statement that including the authorities in a routine reauthorization bill squelches the opportunity to debate how to limit government's ability to intercept and destroy unmanned aerial vehicles.

Neema Singh Guliani, senior legislative council for the American Civil Liberties Union said that the provisions, "give the government virtually carte blanche to surveil, seize, or even shoot a drone out of the sky -- whether owned by journalists or commercial entities -- with no oversight or due process."

The bill is included in a legislative package released by House and Senate leaders on Sept. 22 that includes reauthorizations of the Transportation Security Administration and the National Transportation Safety Board. The House is set to vote on the package on Sept. 26.