DJI Drone Ban Bill Passes House and Is Headed to the Senate

Although much of the political news this week has been on the much-anticipated Presidential Debate, which finally took place last night, there have been other happenings, including movement on the Countering CCP Drones Act, which would move to ban DJI drones in the United States.

The Countering CCP Drones Act passed the House of Representatives vote, and has been officially handed off to the Senate for additional debate, potential amendments, and an eventual vote. If the bill passes the Senate and is signed into law by the President without significant revisions, it will add DJI drones to the Federal Communications Commission’s (FCC) Covered List of drones banned from operating on the U.S. communications infrastructure, which would essentially make new DJI drones illegal in the United States.

Unsurprisingly, given DJI’s dominance in the drone industry, many first responders (police, fire, search and rescue teams, etc.) use DJI drones as part of their work. In response to their reasonable concerns about a DJI drone ban, Senators Mark Warner (D-VA) and Rick Scott (R-FL) introduced the Countering CCP Drones and Supporting Drones for Law Enforcement Act in July. As DroneLife explains, this bill would create a short-term grant program to help first responders replace their DJI drones.

As numerous first responders have made clear, a DJI ban could have significant negative impacts on public safety in the U.S.

Politicians in favor of the bill, like Stefanik, argue that DJI because it is Chinese, poses economic and national security threats in the U.S. She calls DJI’s drones “Communist Chinese spy drones.”

“It is strategically irresponsible to allow Communist China to be our drone factory. It is now critical that the Senate include this legislation in their National Defense Authorization Act,” Stefanik says.

She is far from the only politician in D.C. to hold these views. During debate proceedings earlier this week, Representative John Moolenaar (R-MI) said, “DJI poses a real national security risk to the United States given its deep partnership with the Chinese military, its expressed allegiance to the Chinese Communist Party, and its surveillance technology operating across U.S. soil. What is more, that very same technology equips the CCP’s genocide of the Uyghur people in Xinjiang.”

“Understanding these risks, the Pentagon placed DJI on its blacklist as a Chinese military company. The Treasury Department forbids Americans from investing in DJI. The Commerce Department restricts U.S. companies from exporting technology to DJI. It is time for Congress to do its part and to start winding down DJI’s presence in the United States.”

DJI has long denied the dangers of its drones in the U.S., calling the bill’s claims inaccurate.

“DJI drones do not collect flight logs, photos, or videos — by default… DJI is not a military company. We remain one of few drone companies to clearly denounce and actively discourage use of our drones in combat… [and] DJI follows the rules and regulations in the markets it operates in,” DJI said earlier this year.

The company has taken to social media this year, including earlier this week, to elicit support from its American users, saying that if the bill is signed into law, drone operators will no longer be able to use DJI drones for recreational, commercial, or government use.

The Senate may make sweeping changes to the bill before voting on it. However, it is clear that DJI’s fears that its drones could be banned in the United States are well-founded.

Image credits: Featured image by Ryan Mense for PetaPixel