– Drone Use Takes Off on the Home Front (Wall Street Journal, April 20, 2012):
Organizations That Have Sought to Use Drones
Police departments and universities nationwide have obtained licenses from the FAA to use drones, according to data obtained via Freedom of Information Act requests by the Electronic Frontier Foundation, an advocacy group. See a list of what groups have requested licenses, and the status of that request. Click on column headers to sort.
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U.S. Air Force
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Active
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Arlington (Texas) Police Department
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Active
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U.S. Army
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Active
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CAL FIRE (California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection)
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Expired
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City of Herington, Kan.
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Active
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City of Houston Police Department
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Expired
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City of North Little Rock, Ark., Police Department
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Active
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Cornell University
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Expired
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DARPA (Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency)
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Active
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DHS (Department of Homeland Security) / CBP (Customs and Border Protection)
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Active
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DHS (Department of Homeland Security) / Science and Technology
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Active
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DOE (Department of Energy) – Idaho National Laboratory
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Active
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DOE (Department of Energy) – National Energy Technology Laboratory
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Expired
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Department of Agriculture – US Forest Service
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Disapproved
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Department of Agriculture – US Forest Service
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Expired
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Department of Agriculture – Agricultural Research Service
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Disapproved
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Department of Agriculture – Agricultural Research Service
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Active
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Department of the Interior – National Business Center/Aviation Management Directorate (NBC/AMD)
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Active
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DOJ (Department of Justice) – Queen Anne’s County Office of the Sheriff (State unknown)
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Expired
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Eastern Gateway Community College
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Active
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FBI (Federal Bureau of Investigation)
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Active
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Gadsden Police Department (State unknown)
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Active
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Georgia Tech Police Department, Office of Emergency Preparedness
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Disapproved
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Georgia Tech Research Institute
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Active
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Hays County Emergency Service Office (State unknown)
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Expired
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Kansas State University
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Active
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Mesa County (Colo.) Sheriff’s Office
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Active
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Miami-Dade Police Department
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Active
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Middle Tennessee State University
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Active
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Mississippi Department of Marine Resources
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Active
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Mississippi State University
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Active
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Montgomery County Sheriff’s Office (State unknown)
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Expired
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NASA (National Aeronautics and Space Administration)
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Active
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U.S. Navy
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Active
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New Mexico Tech
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Active
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New Mexico State University Physical Sciences Laboratory (NMSU-PSL)
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Active
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Nicholls State University
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Expired
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NOAA (National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration)
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Expired
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Ogden (Utah) Police Department
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Active
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Ohio University
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Active
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Orange County Sheriff’s Office (State unknown)
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Active
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Otter Tail County (State unknown)
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Disapproved
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Polk County Sheriff’s Office (State unknown)
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Active
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Seattle Police Department
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Active
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Texas A&M University Corpus Christi
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Active
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Texas A&M University – TEES (Texas Engineering Experiment Station)
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Active
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Texas Department of Public Safety
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Expired
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Texas State University
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Active
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University of Alaska Fairbanks
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Active
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University of Arizona
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Expired
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University of Colorado
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Active
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University of Connecticut
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Active
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University of Florida
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Active
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University of Michigan
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Expired
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University of North Dakota
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Active
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University of Wisconsin
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Expired
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USMC (United States Marine Corps)
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Active
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Utah State University
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Active
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Virginia Commonwealth University
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Expired
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Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University
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Active
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Washington State Department of Transportation
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Expired
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Source: Federal Aviation Administration, Electronic Frontier Foundation