# Understanding the COUNTER Act

The COUNTER Act gives the Department of Defense and Coast Guard broader authority to detect, track, and disable unmanned aircraft systems—basically drones—that pose a threat to U.S. military installations, personnel, and other critical assets. Right now, federal law has strict limits on what the military can do to stop threatening drones, partly because those same laws protect things like computer systems and aircraft from unauthorized interference. This bill loosens those restrictions specifically for military drone-defense operations.

The practical effect is that military commanders and other Defense Department officials can now take more aggressive action against threatening drones without worrying as much about violating federal laws that normally protect computer systems, communications networks, and aircraft. The bill allows them to use various methods to neutralize drone threats, including "remote identification broadcast or other means"—which could include jamming signals or other electronic countermeasures. The military also gets to keep the specific technology and procedures they use secret, so the public won't necessarily know exactly how they're stopping these drones.

There's an important geographic limit here: these expanded powers only apply to actions taken outside the United States. Inside U.S. borders, the military still faces the same legal restrictions as before. The bill also extends the timeline for reporting on these drone-defense efforts from 2026 to 2030, giving the military more time to develop and test these capabilities. Additionally, it clarifies that other federal agencies—like the Department of Homeland Security—can work with the military to address drone threats, and it expands the situations where the military can use these powers to include protecting military facilities and responding to emergencies involving weapons of mass destruction.