We have been reporting on the progression of the Countering CCP Drones Act over the past few months. If the proposed law comes into force, it will ban the sale and use of all DJI drones in the United States. However, now there has been another twist to the story, as the Senate passed its version of the Defense Act without the drone ban.
Countering CCP Drones Act
The Countering CCP Drones Act was first introduced by two Republican members of the House of Congress in April last year. If it becomes law, the Act means that DJI will be listed by the FCC as a company that poses an unacceptable risk to U.S. national security. As a result, DJI won’t be able to sell any products in the U.S. In addition, the company’s existing FCC authorizations could be revoked. If this happens, then everyone in the U.S. could be banned from using their DJI drones.
House of Representatives
The Countering CCP Drones Act came a step closer to becoming law when it was passed by the House of Representatives last month. The Bill introducing the Act had been bundled with the 2025 National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA). It was also a close result, being passed by 217 votes for and 199 against. However, new laws have to be passed by both the House of Representatives and the Senate before the President can approve and sign them
Senate
The Senate’s Armed Services Committee (SASC) has now released its version of the NDAA. The NDAA was approved by 22 votes to 3 last month. However, the SASC’s version of the NDAA does not include the proposed ban on DJI’s products in the United States. This version of the NDAA will now be considered by the full Senate. If it’s passed, there will need to be further work to reconcile the differences between the two versions of the NDAA.
Opposition to the Countering CCP Drones Act
It’s not just DJI that oppose the proposed drone ban. The website DroneDJ reported that over 6,000 police and fire agencies with drone programs wrote to the SASC to oppose the ban. In addition, the AGFunderNews website said that the House version of the bill “sent shockwaves through the agricultural community.” U.S. farmers sprayed 3.7 million acres by drone in 2023 across 41 states and 50 crops. DJI claims that four out of every five drones utilized by U.S. farmers are its models.
What we think
DJI and the users of its drones can’t relax just yet. The Countering CCP Drones Act is far from dead. The SASC’s decision to exclude the ban on DJI’s products from its version of the NDAA is some good news. However, it will now come down to the debate between the Senate and the House of Representatives. It’s still possible that the Countering CCP Drones Act could be added back into the NDAA during those discussions. DJI is therefore continuing to lobby politicians and encouraging its users to do the same.
