,i #aadth ,,congress #b;d ,session ,h4 ,r4 #ddcb ,,in ,,the ,,house ,,of ,,representatives ,february #b1 #bjaf ,mr4 ,blumenauer introduced the following bill2 which was referred to the ,committee on ,transportation and ,infrastructure1 and in addition to the ,committee on ,science1 ,space1 and ,technology1 for a period to be subsequently determined by the ,speaker1 in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned ,a ,,bill ,to establish an interim rule for the operation of small unmanned aircraft for commercial purposes1 and for other purposes4 #a4 ,short title ,this ,act may be cited as the ,commercial ,,uas ,modernization ,act4 #b4 ,interim rule for the operation of small unmanned aircraft for commercial purposes 7a7 ,in general ,subtitle ,b of title ,,iii of the ,,faa ,modernization and ,reform ,act of #bjab 7,public ,law #aab-ie7 is amended by adding at the end the following3 #ccg4 ,operation of small unmanned aircraft for commercial purposes 7a7 ,in general ,an individual may operate a small unmanned aircraft for commercial purposes without an airworthiness certificate within the ,united ,states1 subject to the requirements under subsection 7b7 and the operating restrictions under subsection 7c7 during the period beginning on the date of the enactment of the ,commercial ,,uas ,modernization ,act and ending on the effective date of a final rule based on the notice of proposed rulemaking issued on ,february #bc1 #bjae1 entitled ,operation and ,certification of ,small ,unmanned ,aircraft ,systems 7#hj ,fed4 ,reg4 #iedd74 7b7 ,general requirements 7#a7 ,liability insurance ,a small unmanned aircraft may not be operated for commercial purposes during the period set forth in subsection 7a7 unless the ,administrator receives an attestation that the owner of such aircraft has a liability insurance policy covering the operation of such aircraft4 7#b7 ,registration ,a small unmanned aircraft may not be operated for commercial purposes unless the owner has registered the aircraft as required by the ,federal ,aviation ,administration4 7#c7 ,testing requirements 7,a7 ,exam development ,not later than #cj days after the date of the enactment of the ,commercial ,,uas ,modernization ,act1 the ,administrator of the ,federal ,aviation ,administration shall develop an initial aeronautical knowledge test that meets the requirements set forth in the notice of proposed rulemaking referred to in subsection 7a74 7,b7 ,requirements ,an individual may not operate a small unmanned aircraft for commercial purposes unless such individual has-- 7i7 received a passing grade on the test developed under subparagraph 7,a72 7ii7 passed a proficiency test administered by a test site selected pursuant to section #ccb7;c72 and 7iii7 demonstrated the ability to fly the aircraft in accordance with the operating restrictions set forth in subsection 7c74 7#d7 ,certification ,a small unmanned aircraft may not be operated for commercial purposes until the operator of a test site selected pursuant to section #ccb7;c71 in collaboration with a designated airworthiness representative1 certifies that the small unmanned aircraft-- 7,a7 meets the requirements for small unmanned aircraft set forth in the notice of proposed rulemaking referred to in subsection 7a72 and 7,b7 is capable of operating within the limits described in subsection 7c74 7c7 ,operating restrictions ,during the period set forth in subsection 7a71 small unmanned aircraft operated for commercial purposes-- 7#a7 may only be operated under visual line of sight rules2 7#b7 may not be operated higher than #ejj feet above ground level2 7#c7 may not be operated unless the operator has prior authorization from the air traffic control facility having jurisdiction over that airspace-- 7,a7 in ,class ,b1 ,class ,c1 or ,class ,d airspace2 or 7,b7 within the lateral boundaries of the surface area of ,class ,e airspace designated for an airport2 7#d7 may only be operated in daylight conditions2 7#e7 shall yield right of way to all other users of the ,national ,airspace ,system2 7#f7 may not be operated by any individual with any physical or mental condition that the individual knows1 or has reason to know1 would interfere with the safe operation of the aircraft2 and 7#g7 may only be operated after a preflight inspection 7as described in the notice of proposed rulemaking referred to in subsection 7a774 7d7 ,accident reporting ,the operator of a small unmanned aircraft that is involved in any accident causing personal injury or property damage1 other than to the small unmanned aircraft1 shall report such accident to the ,federal ,aviation ,administration not later than #b days after such accident4 #cch4 ,micro ,,uas operations 7a7 ,micro ,,uas classification ,the ,administrator of the ,federal ,aviation ,administration shall provide for a micro ,,uas classification of unmanned aircraft systems1 the aircraft component of which may not weigh more than #d4d pounds1 including payload4 7b7 ,micro ,,uas operational limitations ,the operation of a micro ,,uas shall be subject to the exemptions under subsection 7c7 only if the micro ,,uas is operated-- 7#a7 less than #djj feet above ground level2 7#b7 at an airspeed of not greater than #dj knots2 7#c7 within the visual line of sight of the operator2 7#d7 during daylight2 and 7#e7 at least #e statute miles from the geographic center of an airport as denoted on a current aeronautical chart published by the ,federal ,aviation ,administration1 except that upon notice to the airport operator and air traffic control tower1 such airport operator may allow an individual to operate a micro ,,uas within #e statute miles of a tower-controlled airport4 7c7 ,micro ,,uas exemptions 7#a7 ,an operator of a micro ,,uas that complies with the limitations of operation under subsection 7b7 shall not be required to pass any aeronautical knowledge test or meet any age or experience requirement1 including any requirements under section #ddgjc of title #di1 ,united ,states ,code1 part #fa of title #ad1 ,code of ,federal ,regulations1 and any other rule or regulation pertaining to airman certification4 7#b7 ,a micro ,,uas and the component parts and equipment of such micro ,,uas shall not be required to meet airworthiness certification standards or to obtain certificates of airworthiness4 4 7b7 ,clerical amendment ,the table of contents in section #a7;b7 of the ,,faa ,modernization and ,reform ,act of #bjab is amended by inserting after the item relating to section #ccf the following3 ,sec4 #ccg4 ,operation of small unmanned aircraft for commercial purposes4 ,sec4 #cch4 ,micro ,,uas operations4 4 #c4 ,deputy ,associate ,administrator for ,unmanned ,aircraft 7a7 ,in general ,subtitle ,b of title ,,iii of the ,,faa ,modernization and ,reform ,act of #bjab 7,public ,law #aab-ie71 as amended by section #b7;a71 is further amended by adding at the end the following3 #cci4 ,deputy ,associate ,administrator for ,unmanned ,aircraft 7a7 ,appointment ,the ,administrator of the ,federal ,aviation ,administration 7referred to in this section as the ,administrator7 shall appoint a ,deputy ,associate ,administrator for ,unmanned ,aircraft 7referred to in this section as the ,deputy ,associate ,administrator71 who shall report to the ,administrator and to the ,secretary of ,transportation4 7b7 ,principal duties ,the ,deputy ,associate ,administrator shall create an achievable comprehensive research and development plan for the safe integration of unmanned aircraft into the ,national ,airspace ,system that-- 7#a7 takes into account work being done at other ,federal agencies1 in conjunction with their industry collaborators2 7#b7 is based on an initial audit of current unmanned aircraft activity across the ,federal ,government in order to identify gaps and overlaps2 and 7#c7 allows for programmatic exemptions based on previous analysis4 7c7 ,other issues ,the ,deputy ,associate ,administrator1 in consultation with the ,administrator1 shall develop strategies for resolving-- 7#a7 unmanned aircraft spectrum issues2 7#b7 barriers to unmanned aircraft operating beyond line of sight2 7#c7 barriers to allowing payload carriage and the feasibility of developing a classification of small ,,uas air carriers2 and 7#d7 barriers to utilizing automated unmanned aircraft systems4 7d7 ,exemptions 7#a7 ,in general ,not later than #ij days after the date of the enactment of the ,commercial ,,uas ,modernization ,act1 the ,deputy ,associate ,administrator1 in consultation with the ,administrator1 shall expedite and expand exemptions from the interim operating restrictions otherwise applicable to unmanned aircraft under section #ccg4 7#b7 ,exemptions ,the exemptions authorized under paragraph 7#a7 may include-- 7,a7 beyond line of sight operations2 7,b7 programmatic exemptions based on previous analysis2 7,c7 extended visual line of sight and marginal visual flight rules weather conditions2 and 7,d7 heavier unmanned vehicles4 4 7b7 ,clerical amendment ,the table of contents in section #a7;b7 of the ,,faa ,modernization and ,reform ,act of #bjab is amended by inserting after the item relating to section #cch1 as added by section #b7;b71 the following3 ,sec4 #cci4 ,deputy ,associate ,administrator for ,unmanned ,aircraft4 4 #d4 ,joint ,aircraft ,system ,research and ,development ,data ,collection and ,analysis ,program 7a7 ,establishment ,the ,administrator of the ,federal ,aviation ,administration shall establish a joint aircraft system research and development data collection and analysis program at the ,william ,j4 ,hughes ,technical ,center 7referred to in this section as the ,center74 7b7 ,research and development priorities ,the ,director of the ,center shall set priorities for data collection1 analysis1 and research under the program established under subsection 7a71 including identifying safety standards for detect and avoid1 command and control1 autonomous aircraft systems1 and air traffic management for beyond visual line of sight operations for such aircraft4 7c7 ,use of test sites ,the program established under subsection 7a7 shall utilize the #f unmanned aircraft system test sites of the ,federal ,aviation ,administration to-- 7#a7 conduct research2 7#b7 collect data2 7#c7 develop quarterly milestones to expedite commercial unmanned aircraft system operations2 and 7#d7 work with other ,federal agencies1 the ,center of ,excellence for ,unmanned ,aircraft ,systems1 federally funded research and development centers1 industry1 academia1 and others1 as appropriate1 to implement commercial unmanned aircraft system operations4 7d7 ,air ,traffic ,management ,pilot ,program 7#a7 ,implementation ,the ,administrator of the ,federal ,aviation ,administration1 acting through the ,center1 and the ,administrator of the ,national ,aeronautics and ,space ,administration1 shall implement an air traffic management pilot program to research and test a new regulatory structure for commercial and other operations of small unmanned aircraft in controlled and uncontrolled airspace below #a1bjj feet above ground level4 7#b7 ,management testing ,the ,center shall partner with a neutral third party to test the management of small unmanned aircraft in the airspace described in paragraph 7#a74 7e7 ,report ,not later than #ahj days after the date of the enactment of this ,act1 and every #ahj days thereafter1 the ,director of the ,center shall submit a report that summarizes the actions taken under subsections 7b71 7c71 and 7d7 to-- 7#a7 the ,committee on ,commerce1 ,science1 and ,transportation of the ,senate2 7#b7 the ,committee on ,appropriations of the ,senate2 7#c7 the ,committee on ,transportation and ,infrastructure of the ,house of ,representatives2 and 7#d7 the ,committee on ,appropriations of the ,house of ,representatives4