DC CIRCUIT DISMISSES PRIVACY GROUP’S CHALLENGE OF DRONE RULES
July 25, 2018
This month, the United States Court of Appeals for the DC Circuit issued a unanimous decision to dismiss a petition by the Electronic Privacy Information Center (EPIC), which sought a review of the FAA’s small drone regulations by arguing that the regulations failed to include privacy safeguards. EPIC’s petition was rejected by the Court due to its lack of standing to bring such a challenge.
As part of the FAA Modernization and Reform Act of 2012, Congress required the FAA to develop a regulatory framework for “small” drones. In 2015, the FAA created regulations for drones weighing less than 55 pounds. The FAA focused its attention on safety issues and declined to address privacy concerns, believing they were outside of its purview.
EPIC attempted to justify its standing by submitting affidavits from members of its advisory boards in Florida and Massachusetts. They argued that the increase of drone use would harm their privacy rights as drones would be equipped with cameras and sensors that would record private citizens in a way that would constitute an injury under Article III of the Constitution, a requirement for standing. The Court found their argument to be too speculative to support standing, and also noted that EPIC failed to submit any evidence that would justify organization standing.
Because the petition was dismissed on standing, the Court did not address the substance of EPIC’s arguments.
If you have any questions, please contact Evelyn Sahr (esahr@eckertseamans.com or 202-659-6622); Drew Derco (dderco@eckertseamans.com or 202-659-6665), or Alexander Matthews (amatthews@eckertseamans.com or 202-659-6633).
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