# Plain Language Summary: Drone Safety and Efficiency Act

This bill is about making it easier and faster for companies and individuals to get permission from the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) to operate drones in ways that normally wouldn't be allowed. Right now, if you want to fly a drone beyond the standard rules—like flying it over people, at night, or beyond your line of sight—you have to apply for a special waiver. The FAA reviews each application individually, which can take a long time. This bill tells the FAA to streamline that process by using a smarter, more efficient approach based on safety risks rather than treating every application like it's brand new.

The bill makes several specific changes to speed things up. First, it requires the FAA to simplify the waiver application form so applicants don't have to write long, open-ended descriptions for every question—instead, they'd fill out more straightforward forms, with space for unusual situations. Second, the FAA should use data from past approved waivers and computer analysis to identify patterns, so similar applications can be approved faster without starting from scratch each time. Third, if someone owns or controls all the property where the drone will operate, the FAA should recognize that as a safety advantage. Fourth, the FAA must publish all approved waivers on its website so people can see what's been allowed before and companies can learn from previous approvals.

The practical effect is that drone businesses—whether they're doing real estate photography, construction inspections, or agricultural surveys—should face shorter wait times and more predictable approval processes. For the general public, this could mean more drone services becoming available sooner and at lower costs, since companies won't spend as much time and money navigating the approval process. The bill also includes safeguards to protect proprietary business information when waivers are published and makes clear that the FAA shouldn't penalize applicants just because they don't own all the land below their drone's flight path.

Drone Safety and Efficiency Act

Molinaro, Marcus J.

Drone Safety and Efficiency ActThis bill directs the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) to adopt a performance-based and risk-based approach in reviewing specific waiver requests for the operation of small unmanned aircraft systems (UAS), also known as drones. (A small unmanned aircraft weighs less than 55 pounds on takeoff.)The FAA must improve the current established process to submit small UAS waiver requests. The bill prohibits the FAA from requiring the use of open-ended descriptive prompts that must be filled out by an applicant, with exceptions.Further, the FAA must leverage data gathered from previous waiver requests. If the FAA determines that a waiver application is substantially similar to a previously approved application, the FAA may streamline approval of the waiver application; the new waiver application and the previously approved application must include substantially similar conditions and limitations. In determining whether to issue a waiver certificate, the FAA must (1) consider whether the waiver applicant has control over access to all real property on the ground within the area of the UAS's operation, and (2) account for the safety enhancements of such access.The FAA must also establish an expedited review process for a request to modify or renew a waiver.The FAA must publish all issued waivers on the FAA website.&nbsp;