§124.9. Advance coordination, notification, and authorization. — Inbound Citations

(a) For operations in support of National Special Security Events, events rated Special Event Assessment Rating 1 through 3, or other events where Federal C-UAS operations are anticipated, an SLTT law enforcement or correctional agency should notify the local FBI field office of its intent to provide C-UAS coverage as early as practicable and before the 30-day advance notification standard of § 124.9. The designated Federal C-UAS coordination portal includes a notice-of-intent function that allows an agency to register its intent to cover a future event without completing the full advance notification. A notice of intent is informational only and does not trigger the advance coordination process, the Federal Aviation Administration or Federal Communications Commission review, or any timeline obligation.

(d) Mitigation actions that do not involve radio frequency-emitting systems do require notification under this section unless the Department of Transportation or Federal Aviation Administration's applicable notification procedures established under this section provide otherwise. Such actions remain subject to the advance coordination and post-operation reporting requirements of §§ 124.9 and 124.13.

(c) No per-operation (that is, for each individual deployment or activation of a C-UAS system) advance notification, Federal Aviation Administration coordination, or Federal Communications Commission coordination is required for detection and warning operations that employ only systems that do not emit radio frequency energy and do not affect aviation safety. Such operations must be authorized by a C-UAS Operations Plan under § 124.8, which documents operational authority, data handling and retention, and legal review. For detection and warning operations involving RF-emitting systems, such as active warning broadcast systems, the advance coordination requirements of § 124.9 apply, and the operation must be authorized by a C-UAS Operations Plan under § 124.8.

(b) An SLTT law enforcement or correctional agency, or its personnel authorized to take mitigation actions under 6 U.S.C. 124n(a)(2), that knowingly engages in such actions without Federal coordination as required by 6 U.S.C. 124n and the SAFER SKIES Act, including the advance coordination required by § 124.9, the real-time air traffic control notification required by § 124.11, and the post-action notification to the Attorney General and the Secretary of Homeland Security required by 6 U.S.C. 124n(d)(2)(C) and implemented by § 124.13(a), may be subject to a civil fine of up to $100,000 per violation, or suspension of C-UAS authority pending review by the Attorney General or the Secretary of Homeland Security, as provided in section 8605(f) of the SAFER SKIES Act. Civil penalties will be assessed in accordance with graduated penalty levels proportionate to the severity of the violation and the factors set forth in this part, including the agency's compliance history, the availability and quality of compliance assistance from Federal partners, whether the violation resulted in actual harm, and whether the agency took prompt corrective action. A civil penalty will not be assessed for a first violation of a procedural reporting or notification requirement when the agency demonstrates a good-faith effort to comply and voluntarily self-reports the deficiency. Violations of requirements of this part other than the Federal coordination requirements described in this paragraph do not give rise to civil penalties under section 8605(f) of the SAFER SKIES Act; they are addressed through the compliance audit program of this section, certification and accreditation suspension under § 124.5, and any other remedy available under law.

(2) This authority does not require Mitigation Certification, the use of systems on the Authorized Technologies List or Authorized Systems List, or advance coordination under § 124.9. However, personnel exercising confiscation authority under 6 U.S.C. 124n(b)(1)(E) must hold a current Detection and Warning Certification issued by the NCUTC. An officer who seizes an unmanned aircraft or any other UAS component under traditional law enforcement authority, including an abandoned or crashed unmanned aircraft, does not require Detection and Warning Certification.

(g) Before commencing mitigation operations at an event or facility, an agency may conduct pre-operational validation or equipment functional checks within the operational window and airspace restrictions already coordinated through the advance notification process under § 124.9. The C-UAS Operations Plan must document the pre-operational validation plan and required notifications. No separate authorization from the Department of Homeland Security or the Department of Justice beyond the advance notification is required.

(b) An SLTT law enforcement or correctional agency exercising authority under 6 U.S.C. 124n(a)(2) may deploy only systems within technology categories listed on the Authorized Technologies List. When the Authorized Systems List has been populated for a given technology category, the agency may deploy only specific systems listed on the Authorized Systems List within that category, subject to the advance coordination requirements of § 124.9. For technology categories on the Authorized Technologies List for which the Authorized Systems List has not yet been populated, the agency may deploy specific systems within those categories provided that an operator holds Mitigation Certification covering that technology category and has completed manufacturer or vendor training on the specific system to be deployed, subject to the advance coordination requirements of § 124.9.

(a) Each mitigation operation, and each detection and warning operation conducted under this part using systems that require the authority of, or relief from certain laws under, 6 U.S.C. 124n, must be authorized by a C-UAS Operations Plan signed by the agency's Agency Approving Official. Section 124.12 sets out the conditions specific to detection and warning operations. The signed C-UAS Operations Plan is the instrument authorizing the operation on behalf of the SLTT law enforcement or correctional agency and certifies that the operation is consistent with the agency's implementation or detection and warning policy, that the operators are agency personnel who hold the required training and certification, and that the risk-based assessment factors of paragraph (e) of this section have been addressed. The agency may not commence mitigation operations until both the advance coordination process under § 124.9 and the signed C-UAS Operations Plan are complete.

(h) Before conducting any operation under this part within a security or protection mission overseen by a Federal Government entity, or within an area, facility, waterway, or other area over which a Federal Government entity exercises a security or protection responsibility, the agency must coordinate with that Federal Government entity through the advance coordination process under § 124.9 before conducting the operation. The Federal Aviation Administration's general regulatory authority over the navigable airspace does not by itself trigger this requirement; airspace safety coordination is addressed in § 124.8 and § 124.11.

(2) For fixed-site facilities for which SLTT law enforcement and correctional agencies conduct ongoing persistent-protection operations, including correctional facilities, critical infrastructure sites, other permanent facilities with a continuing C-UAS mission, and venues where the agency expects to provide recurring C-UAS coverage within the authorization period, the Agency Approving Official may authorize a standing operational window of up to 365 calendar days, renewable upon submission of a renewal plan. The advance notification for a standing operational window must specify the venue and anticipated events or coverage periods; for a detection and warning operation not subject to the advance notification requirement of § 124.9, the C-UAS Operations Plan must specify the venue, the area covered, which may be stated as a radius around the site, and the anticipated coverage periods. Material changes, including a new event, new systems, or a changed threat environment, require an update to the advance notification under § 124.9(a) or, for such a detection and warning operation, an updated C-UAS Operations Plan. Federal coordination requirements continue to apply to each event within a standing window, including lead C-UAS agency coordination under § 124.10 and per-event coordination among the Department of Transportation, the Federal Aviation Administration, and the Federal Communications Commission.

(g) This section does not affect an SLTT agency's authority to respond to an imminent risk to human life under § 124.9(g), including at an event with a designated lead C-UAS agency; however, the agency must notify the lead C-UAS agency immediately upon taking emergency action and must coordinate with the lead agency as soon as practicable thereafter.

(e) Personnel holding only a Detection and Warning Certification are not authorized to take any mitigation action or any other action that affects an unmanned aircraft in flight, regardless of the operator's ultimate objective. If a detection operation identifies a credible threat requiring mitigation, this rule requires that the agency respond through mitigation-certified personnel operating under §§ 124.8 and 124.9 or through coordination with Federal C-UAS assets. This prohibition is absolute and is not subject to the emergency exception of § 124.9(g), which is available only to an agency with mitigation-certified personnel and authorized mitigation capability.

(f) During testing, training, and exercises, the agency may not intentionally mitigate any UAS or unmanned aircraft that is not a controlled test target, unless necessary to protect against an imminent risk to human life or as part of an approved C-UAS Operations Plan. An action taken to protect against an imminent risk to human life must comply with the emergency exception set forth in § 124.9(g).