Federal Agencies Establish Framework for State, Local Counter-Drone Operations

Overview

On July 1, 2026, the Department of Justice (DOJ) and Department of Homeland Security (DHS) released an Interim Final Rule (IFR), implementing provisions of the SAFER SKIES Act and creating an operational framework under which state, local, Tribal, and territorial (SLTT) law enforcement and correctional agencies will be able to conduct authorized counter-unmanned aircraft system (C-UAS) operations. The following day, the Federal Communications Commission (FCC or Commission) released a coordinated package of orders and declaratory rulings on delegated authority that addressed equipment authorization procedures for C-UAS devices, clarified relevant legal authority, provided temporary spectrum access for C-UAS operations, and addressed radio frequency (RF) signal interference concerns to facilitate deployment and testing of C-UAS systems. Together, the actions establish a comprehensive federal framework for SLTT C-UAS testing and operations while maintaining substantial federal oversight of training, certification, equipment approval, spectrum use, and operational safeguards.

Key Takeaways

• The SAFER SKIES Act authorizes qualifying SLTT law enforcement and correctional agencies to conduct certain C-UAS operations to detect and mitigate credible unmanned aircraft and UAS threats to people, facilities, assets, large-scale venues, critical infrastructure, and correctional facilities, through a federally controlled framework.
• Detection authority includes identifying, monitoring, and tracking a UAS or warning its operator, and mitigation authority includes actively transmitting radio frequency signals to "detect, disrupt, disable, or seize control of a UAS or unmanned aircraft."
• The IFR establishes the operational framework for those activities, including certification requirements, Authorized Technologies and Authorized Systems Lists, privacy safeguards, reporting obligations, and oversight mechanisms.
• The FCC's companion actions provide the spectrum authority, equipment authorization relief, and legal framework necessary to support deployment of C-UAS technologies and systems under the SAFER SKIES regime.
• SLTT agencies, critical infrastructure operators, and C-UAS technology providers should evaluate how the new framework may affect operational planning, technology deployment, procurement strategies, and regulatory compliance obligations.

What Is the SAFER SKIES Act?

Enacted as part of the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2026 and signed into law on December 18, 2025, the SAFER SKIES Act creates a mechanism for SLTT law enforcement and correctional entities to lawfully conduct certain C-UAS activities that had previously been available only to a limited number of federal agencies. The statute authorizes qualifying agencies to address credible drone-related threats to people, facilities, assets, critical infrastructure, correctional facilities, and large public venues. It conditions that authority on federal training and certification requirements, the use of approved technologies and systems, and ongoing compliance with federal regulations. As discussed below, the IFR and the FCC's companion actions establish the operational, spectrum, equipment authorization, and oversight framework necessary to fulfill the SAFER SKIES Act's statutory authorizations.

The DOJ/DHS Interim Final Rule Implements the SAFER SKIES Act Framework

The IFR establishes a two-tier certification structure for SLTT agencies, reflecting the different levels of responsibility involved in different types of C-UAS operations.

• Tier 1: Detection and Warning. This includes the detection, identification, monitoring, tracking, warning, and confiscation of potentially threatening drones. SLTT agencies must obtain a Detection and Warning Certification prior to operation.
• Tier 2: Mitigation. This includes disrupting, seizing control of, disabling, damaging, or destroying a UAS. SLTT agencies must obtain a separate Mitigation Certification through the FBI's National Counter-UAS Training Center (NCUTC).

The IFR also establishes the technology approval framework that underpins the broader federal regime. SLTT agencies operating under the Act may use only technologies and systems appearing on newly established Authorized Technologies List and, where the Authorized Systems List has been populated for a category, systems on that list, maintained through an interagency process and made available to authorized users through the FBI's Law Enforcement Enterprise Portal (LEEP). Participating agencies must adopt implementation policies, prepare operational plans for covered activities, comply with reporting and audit requirements, and adhere to detailed privacy and data-handling safeguards. The IFR also restricts the retention and dissemination of information collected during C-UAS operations and establishes compliance and oversight mechanisms designed to support accountability and civil liberties protections.

Importantly, the IFR does not resolve legal and regulatory issues associated with C-UAS technologies that fall within the scope of the FCC's authority. Rather, it expressly recognizes that SLTT agencies remain subject to applicable FCC requirements governing spectrum use, equipment authorization, and harmful interference, and that FCC authorization is required before operating RF-emitting C-UAS systems. Comments on the IFR are due on September 4, 2026.

FCC Actions to Address Communications Law Issues in the SAFER SKIES Act Framework

The package of Bureau and Office-level orders and guidance documents that were released by the FCC on July 2 addresses various legal issues related to the implementation of the SAFER SKIES Act framework. Taken together, these actions provide near-term spectrum authority to C-UAS operators, waive certain equipment authorization and marketing restrictions, address intentional interference concerns arising from Section 333 of the Communications Act, and establish a means for testing and evaluation of counter-UAS technologies. As a practical matter, the FCC orders and declaratory rulings help make the DOJ/DHS framework operational by addressing how SLTT agencies may lawfully deploy, operate, test, and acquire RF-based counter-drone systems. These actions, released by the FCC on July 2, include the following:

Order Granting Special Temporary Authority for C-UAS Operations

The FCC's Wireless Telecommunications Bureau (WTB), Office of Engineering and Technology (OET), Public Safety and Homeland Security Bureau, Space Bureau, and Media Bureau released a joint order granting Special Temporary Authority (STA) for qualifying SLTT law enforcement and correctional agencies to conduct C-UAS operations nationwide using systems on the Authorized Systems List for 180-days. The order also waives parts 1, 2, 15, 22, 24, 25, 27, 30, 73, 74, 78, 80, 87, 90, 95, 96, 97, and 101 of the Commission's rules "to the extent necessary" to facilitate the C-UAS operations covered by the SAFER SKIES Act. For SLTT agencies, the order provides the near-term spectrum authorization contemplated by the IFR while preserving the FCC's role in overseeing the use of RF-emitting C-UAS technologies.

Order Granting Equipment Authorization and Marketing Relief

The FCC's OET released an order waiving certain equipment authorization, marketing, and importation requirements for qualifying counter-UAS systems in sections 2.803, 2.1203, and 2.1204 of the Commission's rules to permit manufacturers and vendors to market and import qualifying systems appearing on the Authorized Systems List for use by eligible SLTT agencies. OET also waives section 2.805 of the Commission's rules, which would otherwise restrict operation of devices prior to Commission authorization, to permit SLTT agencies to operate such systems pursuant to authority granted to them by the SAFER SKIES Act, the IFR, and the FCC. OET concludes that "special circumstances warrant a deviation from the general rules" and that the public interest and public safety would be served by granting waivers of certain prohibitions in the Part 2 Rules.

Importantly, the order does not independently authorize operation of those systems. SLTT agencies must still obtain any required FCC operational authority (currently available via the STA described above), and comply with the SAFER SKIES Act, the IFR, and any conditions imposed by the FCC.

Declaratory Ruling Clarifying Applicability of Section 333 to C-UAS Testing and Operations

WTB issued a declaratory ruling to address legal uncertainty surrounding the applicability of Section 333 of the Communications Act to C-UAS testing and operations. Under Section 333, "[n]o person shall willfully or maliciously interfere with or cause interference to any radio communications of any station licensed or authorized by or under this chapter or operated by the United States Government." Because many C-UAS technologies rely on disrupting or otherwise affecting RF communications used to control a drone, Section 333 has historically been viewed as a significant legal obstacle to broader non-federal C-UAS operations.

In the declaratory ruling, WTB first clarified that Section 333 does not apply to the testing and use of C-UAS technologies by the federal government. This includes C-UAS technologies that cause intentional interference. WTB also concluded that, under Section 333, SLTT agencies operating within the federally supervised SAFER SKIES framework may receive the benefit of derivative immunity when conducting activities expressly authorized by Congress and implemented through the DOJ/DHS regime. This derivative immunity applies to:

• SLTT law enforcement and corrections personnel engaging in C-UAS mitigation activities under the SAFER SKIES Act; and
• any non-federal party acting on behalf of a federal agency with authority to engage in C-UAS actions that meet applicable National Telecommunications and Information Administration standards.

WTB emphasized the importance of the SAFER SKIES Act's training, certification, oversight, reporting, and technology-approval requirements in reaching this conclusion. The declaratory ruling is therefore best understood as a narrowly tailored determination that advances specific requirements of the SAFER SKIES Act rather than a broader authorization for C-UAS mitigation activities involving intentional interference.

Declaratory Ruling Clarifying Permissible Circumstances for C-UAS Signal Jammer Testing

WTB and OET also issued a declaratory ruling that provides guidance regarding the circumstances under which non-federal entities are permitted to test signal jammers or other technologies that disrupt radio communications used to control UAS. WTB and OET clarified that the requirements of Section 333 are satisfied when the following conditions are met:

• RF signal jamming is conducted solely for purposes of the testing of C-UAS or C-UAS immunity for federal or SLTT use;
• The same entity controls and operates both the jamming equipment and the equipment to be jammed; and
• The non-federal entity does not cause harmful interference to any authorized federal or non-federal station.

Non-federal entities must also obtain an experimental authorization for such testing and comply with all applicable rules, conditions, and requirements of that authorization. OET will publish guidance on how to obtain authorizations and ensure compliance with the requirements set forth in the ruling.

Key Implications for Stakeholders

Depending on their role in the C-UAS ecosystem, stakeholders will need to maintain awareness of the new regulatory framework:

• SLTT agencies: SLTT agencies can now conduct authorized detection and mitigation activities for the purposes established by the SAFER SKIES Act, but only through federally approved training, certification, technology, and oversight mechanisms.
• C-UAS technology providers: Inclusion on the Authorized Technologies List and, where applicable, the Authorized Systems List, will be important for operations under the SAFER SKIES framework, while marketing, importation, and testing remain subject to separate FCC requirements and conditions.
• UAS and C-UAS test range operators: While the new framework allows for meaningful C-UAS testing, it does not directly address all testing scenarios or the authorization of specific testing locations and facilities.
• Communications and aviation stakeholders: Future implementation of the framework will continue to depend on FCC spectrum authorizations, equipment approvals, interference protections, and FAA airspace coordination requirements, potentially affecting a broad range of manufacturers, FCC licensees, and aviation industry entities.
• IFR Comments Due September 4, 2026: Stakeholders should also consider whether to file comments on the IFR before September 4, 2026.

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DWT's communications and technology teams advise clients on spectrum access and related regulatory issues in emerging technologies, including UAS and Counter-UAS testing and operations. We are closely monitoring developments in this space and are available to assist companies in evaluating the potential impact of the SAFER SKIES Act framework and associated DOJ, DHS, and FCC actions. For more information, please reach out to Paul Powell, Edric Itchon, Alan Galloway, Heather Moelter or another member of our team and sign up for our alerts.