Council approves $1.445M counter-drone grant after privacy debate

Council members debated whether to accept a counter-unmanned-aircraft (C-UAS) grant during the Sept. 2 meeting and ultimately approved the motion to accept the award, subject to solicitor review.

Councilwoman Phillips urged caution, citing privacy and surveillance risks and long-term costs. "I'm looking at this more as a Trojan horse, not a gift horse," she said, arguing that the vendor could obtain broad access to data and that the county might become tied to recurring subscription or compliance obligations.

Members opposing Phillips' position said they supported the Department of Emergency Services' justification and cited recent incidents requiring aerial identification. One council member described a nearby unauthorized-drone incident and said county emergency services need the capability to discern authorized from unauthorized devices. Proponents emphasized the department's pledge not to deploy any infrastructure without written policies covering handling, storage and access to collected data.

The motion approved acceptance of a C-UAS grant award not to exceed $1,445,000 for the period specified in the grant application, subject to solicitor approval. Council members said they expect clear policy language before deployment to address privacy, training, oversight, data access and potential ongoing costs.