S 663 119th Congress
DEFENSE Act
A bill to authorize the Secretary of Homeland Security or the Attorney General to deputize a State or local law enforcement officer to protect certain events with temporary flight restrictions, and for other purposes.
Official Title as Introduced Congress.gov
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Bill journey
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Introduction Congress.gov
Introduced
Introduced in the Senate.
Open bill recordOfficial action Congress.gov
Read twice and referred to the Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs.
Open bill recordOfficial action Congress.gov
Introduced in Senate
Open bill recordText version Congress.gov
Introduced in Senate
A dated text-version record is available.
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View the complete bill journey as an accessible table
| Date and time | Record | Official detail | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| IntroductionIntroduced | Introduced in the Senate. | Congress.gov | |
| Official actionRead twice and referred to the Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs. | No additional detail supplied.IntroReferral · Senate | Congress.gov | |
| Official actionIntroduced in Senate | No additional detail supplied.IntroReferral · Library of Congress · Code 10000 | Congress.gov | |
| Text versionIntroduced in Senate | A dated text-version record is available. | Congress.gov |
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Congressional Research Service
CRS summary
Disabling Enemy Flight Entry and Neutralizing Suspect Equipment Act or the DEFENSE ActThis bill allows the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) or the Department of Justice (DOJ) to deputize state or local law enforcement officers to take certain drone countermeasures to protect stadiums and other public gatherings.Specifically, DHS or DOJ may provide state or local law enforcement officers with the authority to identify, monitor, and track drones; warn drone operators; disrupt or take control of drones; or use reasonable force to disable, damage, and seize or destroy drones deemed to pose a threat.This authority applies for the purposes of protecting an event, stadium, or venue; certain large public gatherings (e.g., gatherings that are primarily outdoors with an estimated attendance of at least 100,000 people); or other public gatherings protected by specific temporary flight restrictions imposed by the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA).Prior to being deputized, a state or local law enforcement officer must complete training in the use of the drone countermeasure authority.DHS or DOJ, in coordination with the Department of Transportation and the FAA, must exercise oversight over the use of this authority by deputized state or local law enforcement officers.Finally, the bill limits the equipment authorized for detecting, identifying, monitoring, or tracking drones to systems or technologies that are included on a list of authorized equipment maintained by DHS, in coordination with DOJ, the FAA, the Federal Communications Commission, and the National Telecommunications and Information Administration.
Official documents
Text versions
- Introduced in SenateFeb 20, 2025