Federal efforts to formulate a series of rules governing the commercial use of drones, or unmanned aircraft systems (“UAS”), took another step forward on March 5, 2015, when the National Telecommunications and Information Administration (“NTIA”), an agency of the U.S. Department of Commerce officially kicked off a multistakeholder process to develop privacy, transparency and accountability best practices for the commercial and private use of UAS in the national airspace. This NTIA-convened process is the result of a recent Presidential Memorandum. The President issued his directive to the NTIA in conjunction with issuance by the Federal Aviation Administration (“FAA”) of proposed rules on the operation of small UAS (those that weigh less than 55 pounds). When proposing those rules, the FAA said it would not address drone-related privacy issues, instead leaving those issues to the NTIA. As companies work through the FAA’s proposal, they should also be mindful of (and consider participating in) this NTIA process to develop best practices to address drone privacy issues.

To get this important multistakeholder process underway, the NTIA has requested public comment regarding how the process should be structured, as well as the various privacy, transparency and accountability issues associated with the commercial use of drones. Comments in response to the NTIA’s request are due by April 20, 2015. In its request, the NTIA indicated that the first public meeting of the multistakeholder process will take place in the Washington, D.C. area. Although a date has yet to be determined, the meeting will be open to the public. Stakeholders who are interested in attending (whether in person or by webcast) can express their interest at the following website...