H.C.R. 3 Enrolled
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8 LONG TITLE
9 General Description:
10 This concurrent resolution of the Legislature and the Governor expresses support for
11 the development of Unmanned Aircraft Systems, technologies, and businesses in the
12 state of Utah.
13 Highlighted Provisions:
14 This resolution:
15 . expresses support for the development of Unmanned Aircraft Systems,
16 technologies, and businesses in the state;
17 . urges the Governor's Office of Economic Development to evaluate the feasibility of
18 assisting in the creation of an Unmanned Aircraft System test site to increase
19 economic opportunities, further solidify Utah's role in the aerospace and defense
20 ecosystem, and serve as a stimulus to create additional economic opportunities for
21 the state of Utah;
22 . urges that, if it identifies a feasible solution for securing an Unmanned Aircraft
23 System test site, the Governor's Office of Economic Development exercise all
24 options at its disposal to facilitate the creation of a test site;
25 . recognizes the significant economic benefits that Unmanned Aircraft Systems and
26 their technological development can bring to the state; and
27 . recognizes the importance of protecting Utahns' rights to privacy, as guaranteed in
28 the Fourth Amendment to the Constitution of the United States, as Unmanned
29 Aircraft Systems and technologies develop in the state.
30 Special Clauses:
31 None
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33 Be it resolved by the Legislature of the state of Utah, the Governor concurring therein:
34 WHEREAS, the state of Utah has excellent resources that can be used to further
35 advance the research, development, and use of technology to benefit and support Utahns and
36 Americans with the safe use of Unmanned Aircraft Systems (UAS);
37 WHEREAS, UAS can be designed for gathering information necessary to protect
38 human life in search and rescue operations; aiding in the management of resources, including
39 marine mammal and fisheries research; providing humanitarian assistance; providing a
40 platform for scientific research; and other private and public sector activities;
41 WHEREAS, for example, the Alaska Center for Unmanned Aircraft Systems
42 Integration used UAS to assist the United States Coast Guard Cutter Healy and the Russian
43 tanker Renda in delivering fuel to Nome, Alaska, in 2012;
44 WHEREAS, since the 1990s, the list of potential uses for UAS has expanded
45 exponentially;
46 WHEREAS, approximately 90% of the known commercial uses of UAS are for
47 agriculture and public safety;
48 WHEREAS, some of the uses of UAS will be disaster response, critical infrastructure,
49 law enforcement, and natural resource monitoring;
50 WHEREAS, the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) restricts the use of UAS by
51 public agencies to conduct routine flights over urban or populated areas, heavily trafficked
52 roads, or open-air assemblies of people, as well as the discharge or dropping of objects while in
53 flight, and the operation of UAS without the capability of pilot intervention;
54 WHEREAS, the FAA has set up a roadmap for integration of UAS into the National
55 Airspace System (NAS);
56 WHEREAS, in order to integrate UAS safety into the NAS, four main components of
57 UAS operation will need to be researched: pilot and crew requirements; control station
58 functionality and certification; data link certification requirements and operability; and
59 unmanned aircraft certification requirements, airworthiness standards, measures of
60 performance, and continued airworthiness standards;
61 WHEREAS, Utah, with the various academic levels of expertise in these areas, is well
62 positioned to help the FAA develop these standards;
63 WHEREAS, the state of Utah is prepared to work with the FAA to promote the
64 establishment of safe UAS ranges in Utah;
65 WHEREAS, these efforts will help develop procedures for the safe operation of UAS in
66 the NAS;
67 WHEREAS, it is estimated that integration of UAS into NAS will have a significant
68 positive impact on the national economy, including the creation of more than 34,000
69 manufacturing jobs and more than 70,000 new jobs in the first three years;
70 WHEREAS, by 2025, total job creation is estimated at 103,776;
71 WHEREAS, the manufacturing jobs created will be high paying and require technical
72 baccalaureate degrees;
73 WHEREAS, in addition to direct jobs created by the manufacturing process, income
74 generated through newly created jobs will be spread to local communities;
75 WHEREAS, as new jobs are created, additional money is spent at the local level,
76 creating additional demand for local services and creating more jobs;
77 WHEREAS, tax revenue to the states from 2015-2025, the first 11 years following
78 integration, are estimated at $635 billion;
79 WHEREAS, Utah has a very strong relationship with the national UAS industry players
80 already working within the state;
81 WHEREAS, Utah has a strong and established history with defense integration
82 initiatives;
83 WHEREAS, the United States Army has located its UAS technology center at Utah's
84 Dugway Proving Ground;
85 WHEREAS, the United States Air Force has chosen Hill Air Force Base's Ogden Air
86 Logistics Center as its Maintenance, Repair, and Overhaul (MRO) center for the Air Force's
87 Predator UAS;
88 WHEREAS, Utah has a substantial academic UAS body of expertise among its five
89 universities that partnered together for the FAA's UAS Site Award bid;
90 WHEREAS, this academic partnership, with its diverse levels and types of expertise, is
91 unparalleled by another state;
92 WHEREAS, Utah State University's Space Dynamic Lab has a 50-year history of
93 developing satellite imaging and mapping technologies that can serve UAS civil and
94 commercial applications;
95 WHEREAS, Utah Valley University (UVU) brings expertise in aviation science and has
96 one of the largest aviation programs in the United States;
97 WHEREAS, UVU's College of Aviation and Public Services is located at the Provo
98 Airport and is a natural place to start the development and evaluation of the civil applications
99 of UAS;
100 WHEREAS, the University of Utah brings expertise in computer and visualization
101 technology and is a leading research and development institution supporting data collection,
102 management, and presentation technologies;
103 WHEREAS, Utah State University brings expertise in imaging and mapping
104 capabilities and spaceflight technologies through its Space Dynamics Lab and research;
105 WHEREAS, Weber State University brings expertise in aerospace industries applied
106 sciences through its Utah Center for Aeronautical Innovation and Design;
107 WHEREAS, Brigham Young University brings expertise in UAS guidance and control
108 technologies;
109 WHEREAS, at the forefront of such research are two academic spin-out companies,
110 Lockheed Martin Procerus Technologies and SAR, which provide autopilots and miniature
111 Synthetic Aperture Radars for UAS;
112 WHEREAS, the FAA has yet to determine and set its certification requirements for
113 civil and commercial UAS operators;
114 WHEREAS, working in collaboration with the Utah academic partners, and with its
115 expertise in aviation and public services curriculum and training, UVU can assist the FAA in
116 establishing its UAS operator certification requirements and program;
117 WHEREAS, Utah's university partners could collaboratively establish a certification
118 and training center to help the FAA determine a suitable commercial application of UAS into
119 the NAS;
120 WHEREAS, Utah is uniquely positioned to help the FAA meet some of its initiatives
121 and challenges, including data collection and management;
122 WHEREAS, the FAA needs comprehensive data on safe integration of UAS into the
123 NAS in a variety of environments;
124 WHEREAS, Utah, with its diverse topography, geography, climates, and infrastructure
125 of proven research and development is optimally positioned to provide the FAA the rich,
126 meaningful, and diverse data it seeks to successfully integrate UAS into NAS;
127 WHEREAS, Utah provides operational conditions in congested airspace, in various
128 climate conditions, at various altitudes, all in a diversity of geographical terrain;
129 WHEREAS, the Governor's Office of Economic Development should evaluate the
130 feasibility of assisting in the creation of a UAS test site to increase economic opportunities,
131 further solidify Utah's role in the aerospace and defense ecosystem, and serve as a stimulus to
132 create additional economic opportunities for the state of Utah;
133 WHEREAS, if the Governor's Office of Economic Development identifies a feasible
134 solution for securing a UAS test site, it should exercise all options at its disposal to facilitate
135 the creation of a test site;
136 WHEREAS, to address privacy concerns, Utah will extend principles contained in the
137 Fourth Amendment to the Constitution of the United States to the application of UAS to
138 protect its citizens' privacy rights from unlawful intrusion;
139 WHEREAS, in any criminal prosecution or proceeding within the state of Utah,
140 information from UAS is not admissible as evidence unless the information was obtained
141 pursuant to the authority of a search warrant or in accordance with a judicially recognized
142 exception to the warrant requirement;
143 WHEREAS, any test site developed and approved in the state of Utah will be required
144 to report use data, including frequency of use, equipment, organizations or agencies applying to
145 use the site, and any other information requested by the Governor's UAS Board;
146 WHEREAS, use data will be regularly reported to the Governor's UAS Board;
147 WHEREAS, a representative from the Governor's UAS Board will report this same
148 information to the Transportation Interim Committee on an annual basis;
149 WHEREAS, the UAS Advisory Board, appointed by the Governor, is addressing issues
150 and concerns of responsible management and privacy;
151 WHEREAS, Utah's legislative and executive branches are supportive of UAS initiatives
152 and their application among other industries and government agencies;
153 WHEREAS, with an already established UAS infrastructure and a complex of potential
154 launch and recovery areas that could match the complexity and maturity of the intended UAS
155 applications, Utah has the ability to expand and respond quickly to FAA needs now and in the
156 future; and
157 WHEREAS, it is expected that Utah will provide a national model for other states to
158 follow:
159 NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED that the Legislature of the state of Utah, the
160 Governor concurring therein, expresses support for the development of Unmanned Aircraft
161 Systems, technologies, and businesses in the state.
162 BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Legislature and the Governor recognize the
163 significant economic benefits that Unmanned Aircraft Systems and their technological
164 development can bring to the state.
165 BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Legislature and the Governor urge the
166 Governor's Office of Economic Development to evaluate the feasibility of assisting in the
167 creation of an Unmanned Aircraft System test site to increase economic opportunities, further
168 solidify Utah's role in the aerospace and defense ecosystem, and serve as a stimulus to create
169 additional economic opportunities for the state of Utah.
170 BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Legislature and the Governor urge that, if it
171 identifies a feasible solution for securing an Unmanned Aircraft System test site, the
172 Governor's Office of Economic Development exercise all options at its disposal to facilitate the
173 creation of a test site.
174 BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Legislature and the Governor recognize the
175 importance of protecting Utahns' rights to privacy, as guaranteed in the Fourth Amendment to
176 the Constitution of the United States, as Unmanned Aircraft Systems and technologies develop
177 in the state of Utah.
178 BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that a copy of this resolution be sent to the Federal
179 Aviation Administration and the members of Utah's congressional delegation.
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