U.S. Drone Restrictions Leave Police Departments Facing Higher Costs and Fewer Options

The administration has sought to bolster U.S. drone makers by banning many new foreign-made drones from the American market. It recently announced tariffs of 15% to 100% on some foreign-made drones, making it much more expensive for agencies to buy the devices.

In one case about three years ago in Ocean County, New Jersey, a man wanted by police for allegedly killing his ex-girlfriend was holed up with his new girlfriend as bullets tore through a home and hit neighboring houses and cars. As a SWAT team prepared to enter, Kevin Fennessy of the Ocean County Sheriff's Office sent a small camera-equipped drone through a blasted-in window while officers watched a monitor. Video viewed by NPR showed hallway walls and furniture riddled with bullet holes. In a back bedroom, the footage showed the man's body on the floor; he had killed himself. Police deployed two flash bangs into the room while the drone hovered, and the woman rushed out and surrendered.

"No one's hurt. Everyone's safe," said Fennessy, who heads the department's drone program. "Forty-one times they shot out the house at us. But at the end of the day, we were able to clear the house."

The Ocean County Sheriff's Office is one of an estimated 6,000 law enforcement agencies across the country that now have drones, according to the Law Enforcement Drone Association, or LEDA, which advises, trains and certifies police on drone programs. The drones are used for search and rescue, fire and traffic crash investigations, and tactical response. Ocean County's entire fleet is from DJI, a Chinese manufacturer. LEDA estimates that about 80% to 90% of law enforcement agencies flying drones use DJI devices. China controls a vast majority of the global drone market and is the dominant source for the minerals and raw materials needed to build them, researchers say.

Jon Beal, head of LEDA, said, "We're seeing lives being saved with the use of this technology." He said the organization supports efforts to boost the American drone industry, but reducing access to Chinese drones is not a good solution. "What that's going to do is cancel out perfectly viable drone programs that are doing great work out there," he said. "We don't want to cut off our nose to spite our face."

Agencies pay for drone programs in various ways, including grants and fundraising. The Ocean County Sheriff's Office uses profits from asset forfeiture and its municipal operating budget to cover its fleet of 25 drones. "We have to be cost-effective. And to do that, get the best product that's available to us," Sheriff Michael Mastronardy said. For the department, that has meant turning to DJI drones.

In early August, in the parking lot of the Ocean County Sheriff's Office, Fennessy broke down the costs of equipment one of his deputies carries in his vehicle. The items included a DJI Matrice 300 RTK at $13,699; two batteries at $1,400; a camera with infrared thermal imaging at $11,499; a remote controller at $1,600; a RESTUBE Automatic flotation device at $130.99; and a payload release system at $1,099. The total came to $29,427.99.

Fennessy acknowledged the investment is huge, but said the devices are well-used and worth it, especially in summer when Ocean County's population nearly doubles. Major events constantly pose a policing challenge, and the department has found drones help keep an eye on large crowds. In July, the department used a drone to drop flotation devices to two swimmers in distress, and rescuers brought them to shore.

Fennessy, who is passionate about drones professionally and as a hobbyist, has researched the American drone market. "All their stuff is good," he said. "I've flown almost all of them. And I like them. I do. They make good products, but probably about three times the cost" of DJI tools. Beal said his organization is "agnostic" about what drones departments use, and he thinks Chinese-made drones are far ahead of American drones.

Editor's Summary U.S. restrictions and tariffs on Chinese-made drones are raising costs and limiting options for police departments that rely on DJI equipment. Agencies and the Law Enforcement Drone Association say the drones are used in life-saving rescues and tactical operations, while critics argue American suppliers cannot yet match Chinese quality and price.