Missouri push to curb Chinese-made drones receives objections from law enforcement 

ST. JOSEPH, Mo. (News-Press NOW) -- A proposed Missouri law aiming to ban law enforcement from purchasing drones manufactured in China has stirred controversy from officials who worry about the impact on their operations. 

Senate Bill 296, sponsored by Missouri State Rep. Sen. Rick Brattin, R-Harrisonville, addresses matters such as who can fly drones, how they can be used and safeguards to protect public safety.  

"There's always the concern that data ends up in the wrong hands," said Sgt. Jeremy Peters with the St. Joseph Police Department. "It's something that we take into consideration as well, but we've taken some safeguards to make sure that kind of thing isn't happening." 

The St. Joseph Police Department uses DJI drones manufactured by a Chinese company. As a precaution, the department has changed its drone flight log to telemetry data that goes directly to a U.S.-based server that avoids foreign entities. 

Law enforcement agencies across the state have concerns with the bill’s interference when it comes to performing lifesaving tasks, including search and rescues and standoffs. 

“We use these drones in a lot of instances,” Peters said. “Say, for instance, a child goes missing in the cold winter, we can put the drone up ahead and cover a lot more ground. And for our special response team, when we're on the scene where somebody is barricaded inside, we can fly that drone inside of a structure and search for that person before we put people inside in harm's way.” 

Another issue entities face is that drones made in the United States are eight to 12 times more expensive than those made by DJI. 

A hearing was conducted in early March by the Senate’s Transportation and Infrastructure Committee.  

If passed, the bill would go into effect in August.