The US Homeland Security secretary has said states need the power to shoot down drones following criticisms of the government’s response to sightings across the East Coast.
Alejandro Mayorkas made the comments after state officials in New York and New Jersey said that Joe Biden’s administration had failed to get a grip on the issue.
Kathy Hochul, the New York governor, said drone activity had closed down the runways at Stewart International Airport.
“We want state and local authorities to also have the ability to counter drone activity under federal supervision,” Mr Majorkas told ABC News programme This Week on Sunday.
“That is one important element that we have requested, and we’ve heard it echoed by the state and local officials themselves.”
It appeared to be an admission by Mr Mayorkas, who noted there were more than one million drones registered in the US, that the federal government could not tackle the issue alone.
State and local law enforcement agencies do not have the power to counter drone technology. Only a select number of agencies under the Department of Homeland Security, such as the US Secret Service, are authorised to take action.
Mr Mayorkas and the Biden administration have previously been criticised for seemingly downplaying the drone sightings and for a lack of transparency.
The Homeland Security secretary said he wanted to “assure the American public that we are on it”. Although aircraft had been mistaken for drones, “there’s no question that drones are being sighted”, he added.
Allowing states to shoot down drones would require congressional approval.
On Saturday, Ms Hochul said Stewart International Airport, about 60 miles north of New York City, had closed its runways for an hour after a drone had been spotted on Friday around 9.30pm.
“This has gone too far,” the Democrat said, calling on Mr Biden to send “additional federal law enforcement to New York and the surrounding region to ensure the safety of our critical infrastructure and our people”.
