In a press release on Monday December 16, 2024 Representative Mikie Sherrill of the 11th District of New Jersey announced a plan of action to locate and track Unmanned Aircraft Systems (UAS) flying over New Jersey, increase the available information for local law enforcement agencies, and improve communications with the public.
Rep. Sherrill emphasized that she is “incredibly frustrated with the lack of coordination and communication from agencies as New Jerseyans continue to watch unidentified drones fly across our skies” and that “New Jerseyans’ patience is getting very thin, including my own.”
The Representative is calling for a “effective, whole-of-government response” to the recent increase in reported drone sightings across New Jersey, writing to Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin and consulting with local leaders and subject matter experts.
Rep. Sherrill, a former Navy helicopter aircraft commander and member of the House Armed Services Committee, is no stranger to tackling the challenges faced by US C-UAS technologies and legislation. In 2023 she successfully passed the Balloon Location Identification Pronouncement Study (BLIPS) Act to increase coordination between the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) and the Department of Defense (DOD) to better track unmanned, free-flying balloons in American airspace. Additionally, the statement highlights her fight to secure nearly $200 million in the Fiscal Year 2025 National Defense Authorization Act, which will allow the Department of Defense to develop a strategy to counter threats from UAS technology and conduct a full assessment US C-UAS capabilities.
The action plan in it’s entirety is listed below, taken from the press release:
- Deploy Reaper drones and counter-UAS radars to locate and track: Customs and Border Protection (CBP) possesses a fleet of MQ-9 Reaper drones, unmanned aircraft that have the electro-optical/infra-red (EO/IR) capabilities to track targets in various environments. Where appropriate, coordinating authorities should also have the use of counter-UAS radar systems that can accurately detect drones at site of launch — whether those systems are federal-, commercial-, state, or locally operated. CBP, which is under the jurisdiction of the Department of Homeland Security, would need to coordinate with non-border law enforcement to operate outside their normal area of responsibility. With that in mind, the FBI, which is currently leading the investigation into the drone incursions, should immediately and formally request the use of the required number of CBP MQ-9 Reaper drones, in coordination with the Department of Homeland Security, to track these UAS and identify their locations of origin. As they track the unidentified drones with the Reapers, federal partners should coordinate directly with New Jersey law enforcement agencies to respond swiftly to the drone landing locations.
- Coordinate congressional information sharing: This issue crosses multiple jurisdictions — homeland security, law enforcement, the military, and the intelligence communities, just to name a few. In turn, the issue tracks across the jurisdiction of multiple congressional committees. Congress needs a unified response, which means it needs to be operating off of a unified set of information. Today, I am calling on congressional leadership to immediately convene a classified hearing with the committees of jurisdiction — including but not limited to the Committees on Homeland Security, Transportation and Infrastructure, Armed Services, Judiciary, and Intelligence — with leaders from the relevant federal agencies to receive a full briefing on the federal government’s response to incursions from unidentified UAS. Unclassified information from the briefing should also be promptly shared with the public.
- Centralize the response: The interagency process, as it stands, isn’t meeting the moment. This is not the time for a lack of clarity over who holds responsibility, nor is it a time for intra-agency turf protection. It’s clear that there needs to be a coordinating agency that can knock heads together to hasten outcomes and streamline communication. There should be a clear process for local law enforcement to report sightings to be thoroughly reviewed by federal partners. So I am calling for President Biden to immediately stand up an interagency Task Force to address the challenges posed by unidentified UAS incursions — to formulate a whole-of-government approach and ensure that all information that is appropriate for the public to have is shared in a timely manner. The North American Aerospace Defense Command (NORAD), which has deep experience in overseeing the security of U.S. airspace and a wealth of assets and expertise in this arena, is naturally suited to lead the interagency response.
- Streamline communication with the public:The lack of a unified, cohesive message from the federal government is only adding to the fear and concern that the public is feeling. Elected leaders from the congressional to municipal levels, and law enforcement agencies at the state and local levels, are receiving different information from different agencies, and lines of communication — both to report and to receive reporting — are unhelpful and unclear. Law enforcement agencies on the ground need clear guidance on how to relay the information they are receiving to federal officials with the relevant jurisdiction and clear guidance on what information can be shared with the public.In concert with the action above, I am calling for the federal government to immediately implement a clear reporting process and the means of disseminating appropriately cleared information to the public.
- Future detection and prevention: It is clear from my conversations with agency leaders that the various federal actors in this space do not have sufficient resources or authorities to respond to incursions of this kind. Congress cannot grant them those resources without knowing what they need. Therefore, I am calling on the leaders of the agencies with jurisdiction over this issue to collaborate on a report to Congress that contains a detailed request for any novel legal authorities they believe they require and any new resources, financial or otherwise, they believe they require to ensure that they are fully capable of swiftly and decisively responding to UAS incursions in the future.
Post Image Credit: U.S. Congresswoman Mikie Sherrill.
