Key Points: 

• Bill would block drones over ticketed entertainment events

• Cardinals, D-Backs support measure

• GOP lawmaker raises First Amendment issues

It’s being promoted as a measure to protect public safety.

Sen. Tim Dunn said the operators of Phoenix International Raceway came to him with concerns that drones over their events could become a hazard if they fell into a crowd. So the Yuma Republican agreed to sponsor legislation making it illegal to fly a drone within 400 feet — altitude or distance — from any “ticketed entertainment event.”

Now the legislation, which has picked up the support of NASCAR, the Arizona Cardinals, the Arizona Diamondbacks, and Live Nation Entertainment, has been expanded to create a one-mile bubble around sporting events, concerts and any other paid event. And that includes any event that is outdoors or at a venue with a retractable roof.

And House Majority Leader Michael Carbone acknowledged that change was made to keep drone operators from “stealing” the show.

“We do respect property rights,” said the Buckeye Republican. He said it’s aimed for situations when “there’s a willful intent … to take information that’s from someone else’s property.”

Dunn said there is precedent for what he is seeking.

The Federal Aviation Authority already prohibits drones within three miles of major sporting events which seat 30,000 or more people for an hour before and after an event under its authority to declare a “National Defense Airspace.” All this measure does, he said, is extend that coverage to smaller events like concerts and other outdoor events.

But Rep. Alexander Kolodin said he fears what’s in Senate Bill 1160 is overly broad.

“This bill is a significant threat to our First Amendment rights and threatens to turn a lot of our fellow Arizonans, including members of the media, into criminals,” said the Scottsdale Republican.

That goes to the zone around events where drones could not fly at all.

“If the intent of this bill was to prevent people from recording live performances at ticketed events, it’s very simple,” he said. “You say ‘You can’t use a drone to record a live performance at a ticketed event without the consent of the organizer.’ ”

But that, said Kolodin, is neither what the bill says or does.

It says any person flying a drone within a mile of any such event — and not just vertically — is guilty of a Class 1 misdemeanor. That would include anyone, media or otherwise, who was simply flying around to look at the traffic or anything else.

And that carries a penalty of up to six months in jail and a $2,500 fine.

Kolodin said he was surprised the Arizona Media Association has not weighed in on the legislation. Its membership includes radio and TV stations, newspapers and digital operations.

Lisa Simpson, senior vice president of the association, said she had no comment.

But Kolodin said this isn’t just about reporters. He said that, as written, others could be affected.

Consider, Kolodin said, anyone who happens to live within a mile of one of these events.

As crafted, the measure would allow those people to fly their drones — but only above their own property. And even then, he noted, the drone operators could not use their aircraft for commercial purposes, something that presumably would keep them from sending any message that people, including those at the event, should buy something.

But Kolodin said it’s even more insidious than that.

The prohibition against what drone owners who live within a mile of the event could do above their own personal property would also include conveying or communicating a message. 

“We could think of a situation where we have a speaker on the drone, obviously keeping within city noise limits, is broadcasting a political message, a social message, something like that,” Kolodin said. “That is expressly prohibited under the bill, which is a clear First Amendment violation.”

That message, he said, could be even more creative.

He said there are people who know how to program drones to create patterns where their lights paint a picture or spell out a message.

“I’m sure if I knew more about drones, I’m sure there’s a way I could get them to say ‘MAGA’ if I wanted,” Kolodin said. “That’s expressly prohibited under the bill.”

Kolodin also said he sees something ironic with the state seeking to make criminals out of some drone operators.

He said it comes at a time “where the government is using drones more and more to spy on citizens.” And Kolodin also noted that some of his colleagues are supporting a measure that would formalize the ability of police and cities to use cameras at intersections and elsewhere to “create a surveillance state where every move of a citizen is monitored.”

Yet Kolodin said SB 1160 would restrict the ability of Arizonans to use the same tools.

And he had some words for those who are pushing lawmakers to enact these new restrictions.

“I could see how the Cardinals, Ticketmaster, whoever, would want a bill that prohibits recording their live events,” Kolodin said.

“It’s understandable,” he said. “But I can’t understand how they would not look at this and realize that it is far too broad for that ostensible purpose. It doesn’t make any sense to me.”

Dunn said despite the fact that both the Senate and House have approved versions of his plan, this may not be the last word.

He said he is open to some tweaking of the language — but only as long as the measure retains what he says should be the focus of the bill — crowd safety.