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ABBY OHLHEISER<\/strong> Earlier this week, one Colorado town\u00a0floated the idea of letting its residents buy hunting permits for drones<\/a>. Now, the FAA has responded to the proposal by telling Americans to please stop thinking about shooting down drones.<\/p>\n The\u00a0proposal itself\u00a0<\/a>sounds more like a clever way to get Rand Paul-type libertarians to donate to a local government budget than a viable way to protect a town from federal drones. According to the draft of the proposed ordinance, residents of\u00a0Deer Trail, Colorado could pay $25 a year for a drone hunting permit. And there\u2019s a $100 reward for any successful downed drone, providing the unmanned\u00a0aerial\u00a0vehicle\u2019s \u201cmarkings and configuration are consistent with those used on any similar craft known to be owned or operated by the United States federal government.\u201d<\/p>\n The man behind the Deer Trail proposal, who seems to be one of the few people in the town taking it seriously, knows the idea is against the law, but doesn\u2019t really care. Phillip Steel, speaking to\u00a0CNN<\/a>, said \u201cIs it illegal? Of course it is. But it\u2019s also illegal to spy on American citizens\u2026If they fly in town, we will shoot them down.\u201d<\/p>\n The FAA, too, is taking the idea very, very seriously, it seems. The agency, which is already behind schedule to meet a 2015 deadline for new regulations governing drone use in the U.S., released a statement reminding Deer Trail that the federal agency is responsible for regulating the air space over the town, and indicating that they\u2019d enforce existing laws to punish any enterprising drone hunters in Colorado or anywhere else.\u00a0Here\u2019s the AP,<\/a>\u00a0quoting from the statement:<\/p>\n A drone \u201chit by gunfire could crash, causing damage to persons or property on the ground, or it could collide with other objects in the air,\u201d the statement said. \u201cShooting at an unmanned aircraft could result in criminal or civil liability, just as would firing at a manned airplane.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n Full article here<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n <!– <\/p>\n –><\/p>\n This article was posted: Saturday, July 20, 2013 at 6:30 am<\/p>\n Tags: drones<\/a><\/p>\n
Atlantic Wire<\/a>
July 20, 2013<\/p>\n\n
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