The Lead Agency Rule
UNGA-81 Falls Under State-Local Counter-Drone Authority, and the Rule That Governs It Puts a Federal Agency in Charge
Section 124.10(c) decides the practical value of the new state and local counter-drone authority at UNGA-81: where federal and SLTT operations overlap, the federal agency takes tactical lead and an agency that rejects that coordination may not operate inside the covered perimeter and window., Market access is then constrained by two non-public equipment lists, closed operational reporting until December, and a 180-day spectrum authorisation that lapses about 29 December 2026.-,
| ID | Statement | p | Made on | Resolves by | Status | Outcome |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| CLM-2026-275 | At least one mitigation action taken by a state, local, tribal or territorial law enforcement or correctional agency under its own authority at 6 U.S.C. 124n(a)(2), meaning conduct described at 6 U.S.C. 124n(b)(1)(C), (D) or (F) and not detection, warning or confiscation by hand, occurring anywhere in the United States between 18 and 28 September 2026 inclusive, is publicly reported by 31 October 2026. | 0.20 | 2026-09-11 | 2026-10-31 | Locked | |
| CLM-2026-276 | The Authorized Systems List or the Authorized Technologies List, or any portion of either identifying specific technology categories or specific systems, is published in a publicly readable form not requiring law-enforcement credentials, on or before 31 December 2026. | 0.55 | 2026-09-11 | 2026-12-31 | Locked | |
| CLM-2026-277 | The blanket special temporary authority granted to state, local, tribal and territorial agencies by FCC DA 26-656 on 2 July 2026 is renewed, extended, or replaced by a categorical or standing authorisation covering the same class of operations, with effect on or before 31 January 2027. | 0.75 | 2026-09-11 | 2027-01-31 | Locked |
A claim is entered in the brief's own words and carries its publication date and the day it entered the ledger: the register's briefs on 8 September 2026, when the standard was first applied; the forward benchmark on the day it was locked. It resolves only against a dated public source. The scoring rule is on the Methodology page.
The argument that the SAFER SKIES Act opened a door and the rulebook was late is finished. The rulebook arrived on 1 July 2026 and the authority is in use: 61 officers across roughly 46 agencies were certified by that date, an interim final rule at 91 FR 41466 codified the framework, and the New York City Police Department told reporters in August 2026 that it would conduct independent mitigation at the US Open. The question has moved from whether state and local agencies may act to what their authority is worth where it matters most.
Open-source intelligence current through 11 September 2026. The publication carries a 39-entry source registry, explicit confidence tags, limitations, and deterministic resolution rules for its forward claims.
The source tiers, estimative language, forward-claim rule, scoring, and corrections record are public on the Methodology page.