Bill Text: MS HB1282 | 2016 | Regular Session | Introduced

Mississippi House Bill 1282 (Prior Session Legislation)

Introduced

Bill Title: "Drones Prohibition Near or Above State and Private Correctional Facilities Act;" create.

Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Republican 1-0)

Status: (Failed) 2016-02-23 - Died In Committee [HB1282 Detail]

Download: Mississippi-2016-HB1282-Introduced.html

MISSISSIPPI LEGISLATURE

2016 Regular Session

To: Judiciary B

By: Representative Kinkade

House Bill 1282

AN ACT TO CREATE THE "DRONE PROHIBITION NEAR OR ABOVE STATE AND PRIVATE CORRECTIONAL FACILITIES ACT"; TO REGULATE THE USE OF DRONES NEAR AND ABOVE CORRECTIONAL FACILITIES; TO PROVIDE CERTAIN DEFINITIONS; TO PROHIBIT ANY PERSON FROM USING A DRONE TO INTRODUCE CONTRABAND INTO OR ON THE GROUNDS OF A CORRECTIONAL FACILITY; TO PROVIDE PENALTIES FOR VIOLATIONS OF THIS ACT; AND FOR RELATED PURPOSES.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MISSISSIPPI:

SECTION 1. This act shall be known and hereinafter referred to as the "Drone Prohibition Near or Above State and Private Correctional Facilities Act."

     SECTION 2. For purposes of this act, the following words shall have the meaning ascribed herein unless the context shall otherwise require:
          (a) "Airspace" means the space above the ground on which a state correctional institution or private correctional facility, including community work centers and technical violation centers, is sited.
          (b) "Drone" means any unmanned airborne device that is operated without an individual in or on the device.
          (c) "Contraband" means coin or currency, money orders, traveler�s checks, promissory notes, credit cards, personal checks or other negotiable instruments, knives, sharpened instruments, tools, explosives, ammunition and drug paraphernalia.
          (d) "Image" means any capturing or sound waves, thermal, infrared, ultraviolet, visible light, or other electromagnetic waves, odor, or other conditions existing on or about real property in this state or an individual located on that property.
          (e) "Person" means any individual, corporation, organization, and for-profit or not-for- profit entities.
          (f) "Private correctional facility" means the following private prisons: East Mississippi Correctional Facility, Marshall County Correctional Facility, Walnut Grove Correctional Facility, and Wilkinson County Correctional Center.
          (g) "State correctional facility" means the following state institutions: Mississippi State Penitentiary, Central Mississippi Correctional Facility and South Mississippi Correctional Institution.
          (h) "Unmanned airborne device" means an aircraft that is operated without the possibility of direct human intervention from within or on the aircraft.
     SECTION 3. No person shall operate a drone within one hundred (100) yards from the boundaries of a state correctional institution or private correctional facility, including community work centers and technical violation centers, for the purpose of capturing unauthorized images or videos.

     SECTION 3. No person shall operate a drone in the airspace above a state correctional institution or private correctional facility, including community work centers and technical violation centers, for the purpose of introducing contraband or prohibited items.
     SECTION 5. The provisions of this act shall not apply to:
          (a) Any person who is conducting professional or scholarly research and development and acting on behalf of an institution of higher learning, if such person is a professor, employee, or student of the institution, or under contract with or otherwise acting under the direction of or on behalf of the institution;
          (b) Any unmanned airborne device that is in the airspace designated as a test site or range authorized by the Federal Aviation Administration for the purpose of integrating unmanned aircraft systems into the national airspace;
          (c) Any unmanned airborne device that is used as part of an operation, exercise, or mission of any branch of the United States military;
          (d) Any image that is captured by a satellite for the purposes of mapping;
          (e) Any image captured by or for an electric or natural gas utility:
              (i) For operations and maintenance of utility facilities for the purpose of maintaining utility system reliability and integrity;
              (ii) For inspecting utility facilities to determine repair, maintenance, or replacement needs during and after construction of such facilities;
          (f) For assessing vegetation growth for the purpose of maintaining clearances on utility easements;
          (g) For utility facility routing and siting for the purpose of providing utility service;
          (h) With the consent of the Mississippi Department of Corrections;
          (i) By authorized law enforcement officers for law enforcement purposes;
          (j) If the image is captured by state or local law enforcement authorities, or a person who is under contract with or otherwise acting under the direction or on behalf of state authorities, for purposes of:
              (i) Surveying the scene of a catastrophe or other damage to determine whether a state of emergency should be declared;

              (ii) Preserving public safety, protecting property, or surveying damage or contamination during a lawfully declared state of emergency; or
              (iii) Conducting routine air quality sampling and monitoring, as provided by state or local law;
          (k) At the scene of a spill, or a suspected spill, of hazardous materials;
          (1) For the purpose of fire suppression;
          (m) For the purpose of rescuing a person whose life or well-being is in imminent danger;
          (n) If the image is captured by a Mississippi licensed real estate broker in connection with the marketing, sale, or financing of real property, provided that no individual is identifiable in the image;
          (o) Of public real property or a person on that property;
          (p) If the image is captured by the owner or operator of an oil, gas, water, or other pipeline for the purpose of inspecting, maintaining, or repairing pipelines or other related facilities, and is captured without the intent to conduct surveillance on an individual or real property located in this state;
          (q) In connection with oil and gas pipeline and well safety and protection;
          (r) In connection with port authority surveillance and security; or
          (s) An image captured by a state or local government agency, or by a person who is under contract with or otherwise acting under the direction or on behalf of such agency, and shall not be used for any purpose other than the lawful purpose for which the image was captured as permitted by this section.
     SECTION 4. A law enforcement officer investigating an alleged violation of this act shall seize and transfer to the Department of Corrections any photograph, motion picture, other visual representation, or data that represents a visual image that was created or recorded by a drone during an alleged violation of the act.
     SECTION 7. A law enforcement officer investigating an alleged violation of this act shall seize and transfer to the Department of Corrections any contraband or prohibited items as defined in Section 47-5-193.
     SECTION 8. Any person violating the provisions of this act shall be guilty of a misdemeanor and shall be punished by imprisonment for not more than one (1) year or by a fine of not more than One Thousand Dollars ($1,000.00), or both. Each image captured in violation of this act will be a separate offense. The amount of the fine for any subsequent violation of this act shall be no less than One Thousand Five Hundred Dollars ($1,500.00). The time for imprisonment for any subsequent violation of this act shall be at least twelve (12) months in the State Penitentiary.
     SECTION 9. The provisions of this act shall apply unless preempted by applicable federal law or by regulations adopted by the Federal Aviation Administration.
     SECTION 10. This act shall take effect and be in force from and after July 1, 2016.