Montana UAS Laws

 
 
Note on Federal vs State Laws:

Federal airspace laws take precedence over state drone laws. If a state or local law directly conflicts with FAA regulations, the state or local law is likely to be invalidated.

 

Definitions:

“Unmanned aerial vehicle” means an aircraft that is:

  1. capable of sustaining flight; and
  2. operated with no possible direct human intervention from on or within the aircraft.
 

“Unmanned aerial vehicle system” means the entire system used to operate an unmanned aerial vehicle, including:

  1. the unmanned aerial vehicle;
  2. communications equipment;
  3. navigation equipment;
  4. controllers;
  5. support equipment; and
  6. autopilot functionality.
 
 
 
Statutes/Bills:

46-5-109. - Limitations on unmanned aerial vehicles. 

1. In any prosecution or proceeding within the state of Montana, information from an unmanned aerial vehicle is not admissible as evidence unless the information was obtained:

            1. pursuant to the authority of a search warrant; or
            2. in accordance with judicially recognized exceptions to the warrant requirement.
            3. during the investigation of a motor vehicle crash scene that occurs on or involves a public roadway.
              2. Information obtained from the operation of an unmanned aerial vehicle may not be used in an affidavit of probable cause in an effort to obtain a search warrant unless the information was obtained under the circumstances described in subsection (1)(a), (1)(b), or (1)(c).
              3. For the purposes of this section, "unmanned aerial vehicle" means an aircraft that is operated without direct human intervention from on or within the aircraft. The term does not include satellites.

7-32-401. - Limitations on excess property provided to local law enforcement — definitions.

Law enforcement may not acquire armored or weaponized drones from military surplus.

 

76-13-214.- Obstruction of aerial wildfire suppression effort — penalty — exceptions.

Establishes legal penalties for drone flights that interfere with wildfire response efforts. 

 

   
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