To impose criminal penalties for the unsafe operation of unmanned aircraft.

SA 3623. Mr. WHITEHOUSE (for himself and Mr. Inhofe) submitted an
amendment intended to be proposed to amendment SA 3464 submitted by Mr.
Thune (for himself and Mr. Nelson) to the bill H.R. 636, to amend the
Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to permanently extend increased expensing
limitations, and for other purposes; as follows:

At the end of subtitle A of title II, add the following:

PART IV--OPERATOR SAFETY

SEC. 2161. SHORT TITLE.

This part may be cited as the ``Drone Operator Safety
Act''.

SEC. 2162. FINDINGS; SENSE OF CONGRESS.

(a) Finding.--Congress finds that educating operators of
unmanned aircraft about the laws and regulations that govern
such aircraft helps to ensure their safe operation.
(b) Sense of Congress.--It is the sense of Congress that
the Administrator of the Federal Aviation Administration
should continue to prioritize the education of operators of
unmanned aircraft through public outreach efforts like the
``Know Before You Fly'' campaign.

SEC. 2163. UNSAFE OPERATION OF UNMANNED AIRCRAFT.

(a) In General.--Chapter 2 of title 18, United States Code,
is amended--
(1) in section 31--
(A) in subsection (a)--
(i) by redesignating paragraph (10) as paragraph (11); and
(ii) by inserting after paragraph (9) the following:
``(10) Unmanned aircraft.--The term `unmanned aircraft' has
the meaning given such term in section 44801 of title 49.'';
and
(B) in subsection (b), by inserting `` `airport','' before
`` `appliance' ''; and
(2) by inserting after section 39A the following:

``Sec. 39B. Unsafe operation of unmanned aircraft

``(a) Offense.--Any person who operates an unmanned
aircraft and, in so doing, knowingly or recklessly interferes
with, or disrupts the operation of, an aircraft carrying 1 or
more occupants operating in the special aircraft jurisdiction
of the United States, in a manner that poses an imminent
safety hazard to such occupants, shall be punished as
provided in subsection (b).
``(b) Penalty.--
``(1) In general.--Except as provided in paragraph (2), the
punishment for an offense under subsection (a) shall be a
fine under this title, imprisonment for not more than 1 year,
or both.
``(2) Serious bodily injury or death.--Any person who
attempts to cause, or knowingly or recklessly causes, serious
bodily injury or death during the commission of an offense
under subsection (a) shall be fined under this title,
imprisoned for any term of years or for life, or both.
``(c) Operation of Unmanned Aircraft in Close Proximity to
Airports.--
``(1) In general.--The operation of an unmanned aircraft
within a runway exclusion zone shall be considered a
violation of subsection (a) unless such operation is approved
by the airport's air traffic control facility or is the
result of a circumstance, such as a malfunction, that could
not have been reasonably foreseen or prevented by the
operator.
``(2) Runway exclusion zone defined.--In this subsection,
the term `runway exclusion zone' means a rectangular area--
``(A) centered on the centerline of an active runway of an
airport immediately around which the airspace is designated
as class B, class C, or class D airspace at the surface under
part 71 of title 14, Code of Federal Regulations; and

[[Page S1871]]

``(B) the length of which extends parallel to the runway's
centerline to points that are 1 statute mile from each end of
the runway and the width of which is \1/2\ statute mile.''.
(b) Clerical Amendment.--The table of sections for chapter
2 of title 18, United States Code, is amended by inserting
after the item relating to section 39A the following:

``39B. Unsafe operation of unmanned aircraft.''.
______