House committee advances bill requiring drone operators to acknowledge safety rules at first power-on

The House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee approved an amended version of the Drone Safety Statement Modernization Act (H.R. 10304) by voice vote on September 15, 2026.¹ The bill would require small drone manufacturers to present a safety statement to the "initial operator when that person first activates the system," replacing current law's lighter requirement that the statement merely be available at delivery.¹ Operators would have to "electronically acknowledge reading and understanding each part of the statement," which the FAA would define and update to cover drone rules, temporary flight restrictions, airspace limits, how to verify lawful flight areas, and the consequences of unsafe or unlawful flying.¹ Within 120 days of enactment the FAA would have to "publish an example statement," though manufacturers could use their own alternative as long as it meets the requirements; the bill repeals the existing 2016 provision (Section 2203 of the FAA Extension, Safety, and Security Act) that it replaces.¹ The bill does not touch the separate TRUST knowledge-test requirement for recreational flyers.¹ Having passed committee, its next step is consideration by the full House, followed by the Senate.¹

Why it matters: moving the safety acknowledgment from "in the box" to "before the drone can power on" closes a real compliance gap — a statement a buyer never has to read isn't a safeguard, and the ability to point to an electronic acknowledgment record shifts the FAA's enforcement leverage over first-time operators.