[Federal Register Volume 80, Number 43 (Thursday, March 5, 2015)]
[Notices]
[Pages 11978-11980]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2015-05020]


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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

National Telecommunications and Information Administration

[Docket No. 150224183-5183-01]
RIN 0660-XC016


Privacy, Transparency, and Accountability Regarding Commercial 
and Private Use of Unmanned Aircraft Systems

AGENCY: National Telecommunications and Information Administration, 
U.S. Department of Commerce.

ACTION: Request for public comment.

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SUMMARY: The National Telecommunications and Information Administration 
(NTIA) is requesting comment on privacy, transparency, and 
accountability issues regarding commercial and private use of unmanned 
aircraft systems (UAS). On February 15, 2015, President Obama issued 
the Presidential Memorandum ``Promoting Economic Competitiveness While 
Safeguarding Privacy, Civil Rights, and Civil Liberties in Domestic Use 
of Unmanned Aircraft Systems,'' which directs NTIA to establish a 
multistakeholder engagement process to develop and communicate best 
practices for privacy, accountability, and transparency issues 
regarding commercial and private UAS use in the National Airspace 
System (NAS).

[[Page 11979]]

Through this notice NTIA commences this process.

DATES: Comments are due on or before 5 p.m. Eastern Time on April 20, 
2015.

ADDRESSES: Written comments may be submitted by email to 
[email protected]. Comments submitted by email should be machine-
readable and should not be copy-protected. Written comments also may be 
submitted by mail to the National Telecommunications and Information 
Administration, U.S. Department of Commerce, 1401 Constitution Avenue 
NW., Room 4725, Attn: UAS RFC 2015, Washington, DC 20230. Responders 
should include the name of the person or organization filing the 
comment, as well as a page number on each page of their submissions. 
All comments received are a part of the public record and will 
generally be posted to http://www.ntia.doc.gov/category/internet-policy-task-force without change. All personal identifying information 
(for example, name, address) voluntarily submitted by the commenter may 
be publicly accessible. Do not submit Confidential Business Information 
or otherwise sensitive or protected information. NTIA will accept 
anonymous comments.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: John Verdi or John Morris, National 
Telecommunications and Information Administration, U.S. Department of 
Commerce, 1401 Constitution Avenue NW., Room 4725, Washington, DC 
20230; telephone (202) 482-8238 or (202) 482-1689; email 
[email protected] or [email protected]. Please direct media 
inquiries to NTIA's Office of Public Affairs, (202) 482-7002.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Background: Congress recognized the 
potential wide-ranging benefits of UAS operations within the United 
States in the FAA Modernization and Reform Act of 2012 (Public Law 112-
95), which requires a plan to safely integrate civil UAS into the NAS 
by 2015. Compared to manned aircraft, UAS may provide lower-cost 
operation and augment existing capabilities while reducing risks to 
human life. Estimates suggest the positive economic impact to U.S. 
industry of the integration of UAS into the NAS could be substantial 
and likely will grow for the foreseeable future.\1\ UAS may be able to 
provide a variety of commercial services less expensively than manned 
aircraft, including aerial photography and farm management, while 
reducing or eliminating safety risks to aircraft operators. In 
addition, UAS may be able to provide some commercial services that 
would be impossible for manned aircraft. For example, improvements in 
technology may allow small UAS to deliver packages to homes and 
businesses where manned aircraft cannot land, and high-altitude UAS 
could provide Internet service to remote areas by remaining aloft for 
months at a time--far longer than manned aircraft.
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    \1\ Presidential Memorandum, ``Promoting Economic 
Competitiveness While Safeguarding Privacy, Civil Rights, and Civil 
Liberties in Domestic Use of Unmanned Aircraft Systems,'' (Feb. 15, 
2015), available at: http://www.whitehouse.gov/the-press-office/2015/02/15/presidential-memorandum-promoting-economic-competitiveness-while-safegua.
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    On February 15, 2015, President Obama issued the Presidential 
Memorandum ``Promoting Economic Competitiveness While Safeguarding 
Privacy, Civil Rights, and Civil Liberties in Domestic Use of Unmanned 
Aircraft Systems.'' The Presidential Memorandum states: ``[a]s UAS are 
integrated into the NAS, the Federal Government will take steps to 
ensure that the integration takes into account not only our economic 
competitiveness and public safety, but also the privacy, civil rights, 
and civil liberties concerns these systems may raise.'' \2\ The 
Presidential Memorandum establishes a ``multi-stakeholder engagement 
process to develop and communicate best practices for privacy, 
accountability, and transparency issues regarding commercial and 
private UAS use in the NAS.'' \3\ The process will include stakeholders 
from industry, civil society, and academia, and will be initiated by 
the Department of Commerce, through NTIA, and in consultation with 
other interested agencies.
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    \2\ Presidential Memorandum at 1.
    \3\ Presidential Memorandum at 4.
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    The NTIA-convened process is intended to help address privacy 
concerns raised by commercial and private UAS. UAS can enable aerial 
data collection that is more sustained, pervasive, and invasive than 
manned flight; at the same time, UAS flights can reduce costs, provide 
novel services, and promote economic growth. These attributes create 
opportunities for innovation, but also pose privacy challenges 
regarding collection, use, retention, and dissemination of data 
collected by UAS. NTIA encourages stakeholders to identify safeguards 
that address the privacy challenges posed by commercial and private UAS 
use.
    The NTIA-convened process is intended to promote transparent UAS 
operation by companies and individuals. Transparent operation can 
include identifying the entities that operate particular UAS, the 
purposes of UAS flights, and the data practices associated with UAS 
operations. Transparent UAS operation can enhance privacy and bolster 
other values. Transparency can help property owners identify UAS if an 
aircraft erroneously operates or lands on private property. 
Transparency can also facilitate reports of UAS operations that cause 
nuisances or appear unsafe. NTIA encourages stakeholders to identify 
mechanisms, such as standardized physical markings or electronic 
identifiers, which could promote transparent UAS operation.\4\
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    \4\ Such standardized physical marking would be in addition to 
the markings required by the FAA for purposes of registration.
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    The NTIA-convened process is intended to promote accountable UAS 
operation by companies and individuals. UAS operators can employ 
accountability mechanisms to help ensure that privacy protections and 
transparency policies are enforced within an organization. 
Accountability mechanisms can include rules regarding oversight and 
privacy training for UAS pilots, as well as policies for how companies 
and individuals operate UAS and handle data collected by UAS. 
Accountability programs can also employ audits, assessments, and 
internal or external reports to verify UAS operators' compliance with 
their privacy and transparency commitments. Accountability mechanisms 
can be implemented by companies, model aircraft clubs, UAS training 
programs, or others. NTIA encourages stakeholders to identify 
mechanisms that can promote accountable UAS operation.
    NTIA will convene stakeholders in an open and transparent forum to 
develop consensus best practices for utilization by commercial and 
private UAS operators. For this process, commercial and private use 
includes the use of UAS for commercial purposes as civil aircraft, even 
if the use would qualify a UAS as a public aircraft under 49 U.S.C. 
40102(a)(41) and 40125. The process will not focus on law enforcement 
or other noncommercial governmental use of UAS.
    NTIA will convene the first public meeting of the multistakeholder 
process in the Washington, DC metro area. The meeting will be open to 
the public, webcast, and NTIA will provide an audio conference bridge. 
NTIA asks that stakeholders who plan to attend the first meeting 
express their interest at: http://www.ntia.doc.gov/2015-privacy-multistakeholder-meeting-expression. Expressions of interest will 
assist NTIA in approximating the number of

[[Page 11980]]

attendees and identifying an appropriate venue for the meeting.
    Request for Comment: NTIA invites public comment on the following 
issues from all stakeholders, including the commercial, academic, and 
public interest sectors, lawmakers, and governmental consumer 
protection and enforcement agencies. NTIA will use the comments to help 
establish an efficient, effective structure for the multistakeholder 
engagement and identify the substantive issues stakeholders wish to 
discuss.

General

    1. The Presidential Memorandum asks stakeholders to develop best 
practices concerning privacy, transparency, and accountability for a 
broad range of UAS platforms and commercial practices. How should the 
group's work be structured? Should working groups address portions of 
the task?
    2. Would it be helpful to establish three working groups with one 
focusing on privacy, one on transparency, and one on accountability? 
Should such groups work in serial or parallel?
    3. Would it be helpful for stakeholders to distinguish between 
micro, small, and large UAS platforms (e.g., UAS under 4.4 lbs., UAS 
between 4.4 lbs. and 55 lbs., and UAS over 55 lbs.)? Do smaller or 
larger platforms raise different issues for privacy, transparency, and 
accountability?
    4. What existing best practices or codes of conduct could serve as 
bases for stakeholders' work?

Privacy

    5. UAS can be used for a wide variety of commercial and private 
purposes, including aerial photography, package delivery, farm 
management, and the provision of Internet service. Do some UAS-enabled 
commercial services raise unique or heightened privacy issues as 
compared to non-UAS platforms that provide the same services? For 
example, does UAS-based aerial photography raise unique or heightened 
privacy issues compared to manned aerial photography? Does UAS-based 
Internet service raise unique or heightened privacy issues compared to 
wireline or ground-based wireless Internet service?
    6. Which commercial and private uses of UAS raise the most pressing 
privacy challenges?
    7. What specific best practices would mitigate the most pressing 
privacy challenges while supporting innovation?

Transparency

    8. Transparent UAS operation can include identifying the entities 
that operate particular UAS, the purposes of UAS flights, and the data 
practices associated with UAS operations. Is there other information 
that UAS operators should make public?
    9. What values can be supported by transparency of commercial and 
private UAS operation? Can transparency enhance privacy, encourage 
reporting of nuisances caused by UAS flights, or help combat unsafe UAS 
flying? Can transparency support other values?
    10. How can companies and individuals best provide notice to the 
public regarding where a particular entity or individual operates UAS 
in the NAS?
    11. What mechanisms can facilitate identification of commercial and 
private UAS by the public? Would standardized physical markings aid in 
identifying UAS when the aircraft are mobile or stationary? \5\ Can UAS 
be equipped with electronic identifiers or other technology to 
facilitate identification of UAS by the public?
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    \5\ Such standardized physical markings would be in addition to 
the markings required by the FAA for purposes of registration.
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    12. How can companies and individuals best keep the public informed 
about UAS operations that significantly impact privacy, anti-nuisance, 
or safety interests? Would routine reporting by large-scale UAS 
operators provide value to the public? What might such reporting 
include? How might it be made publicly available?
    13. What specific best practices would promote transparent UAS 
operation while supporting innovation?

Accountability

    14. UAS operators can employ accountability mechanisms to help 
ensure that privacy protections and transparency policies are enforced 
within an organization. How can companies, model aircraft clubs, and 
UAS training programs ensure that oversight procedures for commercial 
and private UAS operation comply with relevant policies and best 
practices? Can audits, assessments, or reporting help promote 
accountability?
    15. What rules regarding conduct, training, operation, data 
handling, and oversight would promote accountability regarding 
commercial and private UAS operation?
    16. What specific best practices would promote accountable 
commercial and private UAS operation while supporting innovation?

    Dated: February 27, 2015.
Lawrence E. Strickling,
Assistant Secretary for Communications and Information.
[FR Doc. 2015-05020 Filed 3-4-15; 8:45 am]
 BILLING CODE 3510-60-P