[Congressional Record Volume 170, Number 190 (Friday, December 20, 2024)]
[Senate]
[Pages S7252-S7253]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                  COUNTER-UAS AUTHORITY EXTENSION ACT

  Mr. PETERS. Mr. President, as if in legislative session and 
notwithstanding rule XXII, I ask unanimous consent that the Senate 
proceed to the immediate consideration of S. 5639, which was introduced 
earlier today.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The clerk will report the bill by title.
  The senior assistant legislative clerk read as follows:

       A bill (S. 5639) to extend the authority for the protection 
     of certain facilities and assets from unmanned aircraft.

  There being no objection, the Senate proceeded to consider the bill.
  Mr. PETERS. I ask unanimous consent that the bill be considered read 
three times and passed and that the motion to reconsider be considered 
made and laid upon the table.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.
  The bill (S. 5639) was ordered to be engrossed for a third reading, 
was read the third time, and passed, as follows:

                                S. 5639

       Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of 
     the United States of America in Congress assembled,

     SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

       This Act may be cited as the ``Counter-UAS Authority 
     Extension Act''.

     SEC. 2. EXTENSION OF COUNTER-UAS AUTHORITIES OF THE 
                   DEPARTMENT OF HOMELAND SECURITY AND THE 
                   DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE.

       Section 210G(i) of the Homeland Security Act of 2002 (6 
     U.S.C. 124n(i)) is amended by striking ``December 20, 2024'' 
     and inserting ``September 30, 2025''.

  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Michigan.
  Mr. PETERS. Mr. President, as we near the deadline to fund the 
government tonight without a clear path from my Republican colleagues 
in the House, it appears that we are once again on the brink of a 
government shutdown. When the clock runs out at midnight, the current 
authorities that the Department of Homeland Security and the FBI have 
to safely disable drones that pose a security threat will also expire, 
and we simply cannot let that happen.
  I just received unanimous consent to pass a bill that will extend the 
current authorities for 1 year. I appreciate my Senate colleagues for 
joining me in passing this legislation so that our Federal law 
enforcement Agencies can continue to protect against dangerous drones 
while giving us additional time

[[Page S7253]]

to work on bipartisan legislation that Senator Johnson and I have 
authored to strengthen counterdrone efforts.
  There are now more than 1 million drones currently registered in the 
United States, and the overwhelming majority of them are used for 
hobby, commercial, or law enforcement purposes and in a responsible and 
legal way, but we have also seen many instances where drones can pose a 
serious threat to the safety of the public, our critical 
infrastructure, our airports, and our communities.
  From the reports of drone sightings in New Jersey that have led to 
airport runway closures and caused alarm in multiple cities to drone 
incursions at NFL games that put fans and teams' safety at risk, we 
need to be able to take the appropriate actions to identify, track, and 
safely disable drones that could be a threat.
  Earlier this week, I called on the Senate to pass strong bipartisan 
legislation that would not only extend the current authorities we have 
in place to take down threatening drones but that would also help 
address the current concerns we are seeing from communities all across 
our country by helping to provide State and local law enforcement with 
the authority to use technology to identify and disarm risky drones so 
that they can protect our own communities. Unfortunately, that 
legislation was blocked from passing, and that is why it is so 
important that we just passed this 1-year extension so that the FBI and 
the DHS will be able to disable any drones that pose a danger to public 
service.
  So I want to thank my colleagues for joining me in passing this 1-
year extension so that we can ensure we will be able to protect our 
communities from any immediate drone threats. I hope my colleagues on 
both sides of the aisle will continue to work with me in the months 
ahead, along with Senator Johnson, on a larger piece of legislation 
that will allow us to more effectively address the risks posed by 
increasing numbers of drones in our country.
  I yield the floor.

                          ____________________