Read the full stored bill text
- 83rd Session (2025)
Assembly Bill No. 439–Assemblymember Cole
CHAPTER..........
AN ACT relating to unmanned aerial vehicles; revising provisions
concerning the purchase or acquisition of certain unmanned
aerial vehicles or other related equipment or services under
certain circumstances; and providing other matters properly
relating thereto.
Legislative Counsel’s Digest:
Existing law, in relevant part, requires the Department of Public Safety to adopt
regulations to establish a list of countries, b usinesses and entities from which a
public agency or law enforcement agency is prohibited from purchasing or
acquiring any unmanned aerial vehicle or other equipment or service relating to the
operation of an unmanned aerial vehicle. (NRS 493.118) This bil l provides that a
public agency or law enforcement agency may purchase or acquire any unmanned
aerial vehicle or other equipment or service relating to the operation of an
unmanned aerial vehicle from a business or entity that would otherwise be
contained on the list if: (1) any photograph, image, recording or other information
collected by the business or entity is stored and maintained exclusively within the
United States and is not accessible to certain third parties; (2) before the purchase
or acquisiti on, the public agency or law enforcement agency determines that the
business or entity complies with the information storage and access requirements ;
and (3) the purchase or acquisition complies with federal law.
EXPLANATION – Matter in bolded italics is new; matter between brackets [omitted material] is material to be omitted.
THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEVADA, REPRESENTED IN
SENATE AND ASSEMBLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
Section 1. NRS 493.118 is hereby amended to read as follows:
493.118 1. The Department shall, to the extent that money is
available for this purpose, establish and maintain a registry of
unmanned aerial vehicles that are operated by public agencies in this
State. The Department shall include on its Internet website the
information that is maintained in the registry.
2. A public agency shall, for each unmanned aerial vehicle the
public agency intends to operate, submit to the Department, on a
form provided by the Department, for inclusion in the registry:
(a) The name of the public agency;
(b) The name and contact information of each operator of the
unmanned aerial vehicle;
(c) Sufficient information to identify the unm anned aerial
vehicle; and
(d) A statement describing the use of the unmanned aerial
vehicle by the public agency.
– 2 –
- 83rd Session (2025)
3. The Department shall, on or before February 1 of each year,
prepare and submit to the Director of the Legislative Counsel
Bureau for sub mission to the Legislature, or to the Legislative
Commission when the Legislature is not in regular session, a report
outlining the activities of public agencies with respect to the
operation of unmanned aerial vehicles in this State.
4. The Department s hall adopt regulations prescribing the
public purposes for which a public agency may operate an
unmanned aerial vehicle that is registered with the Department
pursuant to this section, including, without limitation:
(a) The provision of fire services.
(b) The provision of emergency medical services.
(c) The protection of a critical facility that is public property.
(d) Search and rescue operations conducted for persons and
property in distress.
5. The regulations adopted by the Department pursuant t o
subsection 4 must include provisions that:
(a) Authorize, as a public purpose, a public agency to operate an
unmanned aerial vehicle that is registered with the Department in
order to conduct a scheduled inspection to ensure compliance with
building or fire codes or laws, ordinances, regulations or rules
adopting or establishing building or fire codes that are enforced by
the public agency.
(b) Prohibit a public agency from collecting any photograph,
image or recording through the operation of an unman ned aerial
vehicle during a scheduled inspection described in paragraph (a). If
any photograph, image or recording is collected in violation of such
a regulation or if any other information is collected through the
operation of an unmanned aerial vehicle d uring such a scheduled
inspection, the photograph, image, recording or other information:
(1) Is not admissible and must not be disclosed in any
judicial, administrative or other adjudicatory proceeding other than a
proceeding relating to the purpose of the scheduled inspection; and
(2) May not be used to establish reasonable suspicion or
probable cause as the basis for the investigation or prosecution of a
crime or other offense.
6. In addition to the regulations adopted pursuant to subsection
4, the Department shall adopt regulations to establish:
(a) A list of countries, businesses and entities from which a
public agency or law enforcement agency , except as otherwise
provided in subsection 8, shall not purchase or acquire any
unmanned aerial vehic le or other equipment or service relating to
the operation of an unmanned aerial vehicle; and
– 3 –
- 83rd Session (2025)
(b) A list of unmanned aerial vehicles and other related
equipment or services that a public agency or law enforcement
agency shall not operate, purchase or acquire.
7. The lists established pursuant to subsection 6 must include :
[, without limitation:]
(a) Any [country,] business or entity identified by the Secretary
of Defense of the United States Department of Defense pursuant to
Section 1260H of the Willia m M. (Mac) Thornberry National
Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2021, Public Law 116 -
283, any amendments thereto or any subsequent federal law
establishing such a list;
(b) Any unmanned aerial vehicle or other equipment or service
relating to the operation of an unmanned aerial vehicle sold,
manufactured or distributed by an entity identified by the Secretary
of Defense of the United States Department of Defense pursuant to
Section 1260H of the William M. (Mac) Thornberry National
Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2021, Public Law 116 -
283, any amendments thereto or any subsequent federal law
establishing such a list;
(c) Any hardware, software, vendor or service prohibited from
being used by a state agency in Nevada by a regulation, guide line or
policy adopted by the Office of the Chief Information Officer within
the Office of the Governor pursuant to NRS 242.111 and 242.115;
and
(d) Any other unmanned aerial vehicle or other equipment or
service relating to the operation of an unmanned a erial vehicle, as
determined by the Department.
8. A public agency or law enforcement agency may purchase
or acquire any unmanned aerial vehicle or other equipment or
service relating to the operation of an unmanned aerial vehicle
from a business or enti ty that is identified on the list established
pursuant to paragraph (a) of subsection 6 if:
(a) Any photograph, image, recording or other information
collected by the business or entity from the purchase, acquisition
or operation of the unmanned aerial vehicle or other equipment or
service relating to the operation of the unmanned aerial vehicle:
(1) Is stored and maintained exclusively within the United
States; and
(2) Is not accessible to any third party;
(b) Before the purchase or acquisition of the unmanned aerial
vehicle or other equipment or service relating to the operation of
the unmanned aerial vehicle, the public agency or law
– 4 –
- 83rd Session (2025)
enforcement agency has determined that the policies of the
business or entity comply with paragraph (a); and
(c) The purchase or acquisition complies with all requirements
of federal law, including, without limitation, any restrictions on
the use of federal funds.
9. The provisions of subsection 8 shall not be construed to
discourage the purchase or acquisition of any unmanned a erial
vehicle or other equipment or service relating to the operation of
an unmanned a erial vehicle that is manufactured in the United
States. To the extent authorized by chapter 332 or 333 of NRS, a
public agency or law enforcement agenc y is encouraged to
prioritize the purchase or acquisition of any unmanned a erial
vehicle or other equipment or service related to the operation of an
unmanned a erial vehicle that is manufactured in the United
States.
10. As used in this section, “third p arty” includes, without
limitation, a person that is domiciled in a foreign country or has
its principal place of business in, or is organized under the laws of,
a foreign country. The term does not include a governmental
entity of the United States.
Sec. 2. This act becomes effective on July 1, 2025.
20 ~~~~~ 25