LAS VEGAS (KLAS) — Nevada Reps. Susie Lee and Mark Amodei joined other lawmakers Tuesday in introducing a bill aimed at better protecting nuclear sites from drones.
Lee, a Democrat representing part of Southern Nevada, said the U.S. Department of Energy lacks the authority to protect some of its nuclear facilities, including the Nevada National Security Site, from unmanned aerial systems.
The bipartisan proposal, the Nuclear Ecosystem Drone Defense Act, has a companion bill in the U.S. Senate from Democratic Michigan Sen. Gary Peters.
“Unauthorized drones pose a serious threat to America’s nuclear resources related to national security, including at the Nevada National Security Site where we maintain America’s nuclear weapons ecosystem,” Lee said in a statement. “Our bipartisan NEDD Act bill will give the Department of Energy the tools it needs to defend all its nuclear and national security assets from unauthorized enemy drones.”
“In recent years, there has been a growing threat from both foreign and domestic unmanned aerial systems (UAS) targeting our nation’s nuclear sites, including six reported incidents at the Nevada National Security Site,” said Amodei, a Republican representing Northern Nevada. “At present, the Department of Energy lacks the authority to intercept these drones and investigate their origins and intentions, allowing them to freely gather sensitive data for malign purposes. This bill empowers us to counter these threats in real-time and ensure they are not equipped to undermine our national security.”
The proposal would give the department authority to buy its own drone technology to test counter-drone measures.
