Prohibits the manufacture, modification, sale, transfer, equipping, use, or operation of a robotic device or an uncrewed aircraft equipped or mounted with a weapon within the state.
NEW YORK STATE ASSEMBLY MEMORANDUM IN SUPPORT OF LEGISLATION submitted in accordance with Assembly Rule III, Sec 1(f)
BILL NUMBER: A399
SPONSOR: Vanel TITLE OF BILL:
An act to amend the general business law, in relation to prohibiting
robots and uncrewed aircraft equipped or mounted with weapons
PURPOSE OR GENERAL IDEA OF BILL:
Prohibits robots and uncrewed aircraft equipped or mounted with weapons.
SUMMARY OF PROVISIONS:
396-eeee(1): Defines important terms
396-eeee(2): Makes it unlawful for any person to manufacture, modify,
sell, transfer, equip, use, or operate a robotic device or an uncrewed
aircraft equipped or mounted with a weapon within the state.
396-eeee(3): Makes it unlawful to use a robotic device or uncrewed
aircraft to commit the crime of menacing or criminally harass another
person.
396-eeee(4): Makes it unlawful for any person to use a robotic device or
uncrewed aircraft to physically restrain or attempt to physically
restrain another.
396-eeee(5): Sets a penalty of not less than $25,000 and not more than
$100,000 for violating subdivisions two, three, or four of this section.
396-eeee(6): Exempts from the prohibitions of this section (1) defense
industrial companies within the scope of their contract with the U.S.
Department of Defense and (2) robotic device developers, manufacturers
or producers who operate robotic devices or uncrewed aircraft equipped
or mounted with a weapon for the sole purpose of developing or testing
technology intended to detect, prevent, and/or mitigate the unauthorized
weaponization of a robotic device or uncrewed aircraft.
396-eeee(7): States that it is not a violation of this section for a
government official acting within the public performance of their duties
to operate such prohibited devices for the purpose of the disposal of
explosives or for the destruction of property in cases where there is an
imminent, deadly threat to human life.
396-eeee(8): Requires that law enforcement obtain a warrant or other
legally required judicial authorization prior to deploying a robotic
device onto private property in any situation in which a warrant would
be required if entry would have been made by a human officer or prior to
deploying a robotic device to conduct surveillance or tracking where
judicial authorization would be required if such surveillance or track-
ing were conducted by a human officer or other technology.
396-eeee(9): States that any information regarding the use of a robotic
device by law enforcement shall be subject to release pursuant to arti-
cle six of the public officers law.
396-eeee(10): Permits the attorney general to bring an action to remedy
a violation of this section.
396-eeee(11): Permits any individual harmed by a violation of this
section to bring an action against the person who violated this section.
396-eeee(12): Requires that the attorney general promulgate rules and
regulations necessary to implement the provisions of this section.
JUSTIFICATION:
Advanced mobile robots have become enormously beneficial to workers in
many industries across the state and around the world, including energy,
conservation, entertainment, construction, manufacturing, and public
safety. These technologies keep people safe and help them do their jobs
more efficiently.
However, as these robots have become increasingly accessible to every-
one, there have been examples of people mounting dangerous weapons to
them, often with the goal of creating a sensational, viral social media
video. These videos have generated widespread fear and condemnation in
the press, academia, the robotics industry, and among online communi-
ties. Mounting weapons to robots or drones that are remotely or autono-
mously operated, widely available to the public, and capable of navigat-
ing within locations where people live and work, raises new risks of
harm and serious ethical issues. The development and use of such weapon-
ized robots will also harm public trust in the technology in ways that
damage the tremendous benefits they will bring to society.
Legislation on this issue is necessary in order to protect the public
from new risks of harm, to keep our communities safe, and to avoid
losing the benefits of these technologies that will arise from social
rejection if their misuse is not addressed.
This legislation prohibits the manufacture, sale, transfer, or operation
of a robotic device or drone that is equipped with a weapon, with
exceptions for operations that are in the public interest and not at
issue, such as bomb disposal activities conducted by government offi-
cials.
PRIOR LEGISLATIVE HISTORY:
05/21/24referred to codes
FISCAL IMPLICATIONS FOR STATE AND LOCAL GOVERNMENTS:
N/A
EFFECTIVE DATE:
This act shall take effect on the ninetieth day after it shall have
become law. Effective immediately, the addition, amendment and/or repeal
of any rule or regulation necessary for the implementation of this act
on its effective date are authorized to be made and completed on or
before such effective date.
STATE OF NEW YORK
________________________________________________________________________
399
2025-2026 Regular Sessions
IN ASSEMBLY(Prefiled)
January 8, 2025
___________
Introduced by M. of A. VANEL, LUNSFORD -- read once and referred to the
Committee on Codes
AN ACT to amend the general business law, in relation to prohibiting
robots and uncrewed aircraft equipped or mounted with weapons
The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem-bly, do enact as follows:
1 Section 1. The general business law is amended by adding a new section
2 396-eeee to read as follows:
3 § 396-eeee. Robots and uncrewed aircraft equipped or mounted with
4 weapons prohibited. 1. As used in this section, the following terms
5 shall have the following meanings:
6 (a) "Robotic device" means a mechanical device capable of locomotion,
7 navigation, or movement on the ground and that operates at a distance
8 from its operator or supervisor, based on commands or in response to
9 sensor data, artificial intelligence, or a combination thereof.
10 (b) "Uncrewed aircraft" means an aircraft that is operated without the
11 possibility of direct human intervention from within or on the aircraft.
12 (c) "Weapon" means any device designed to threaten or cause death,
13 incapacitation, or physical injury to any person, including but not
14 limited to stun guns, firearms, machine guns, chemical agents or irri-
15 tants, kinetic impact projectiles, weaponized lasers, flamethrowers and
16 explosive devices.
17 (d) "Law enforcement" means a lawfully established state or local
18 public agency that is responsible for the prevention and detection of
19 crime, the enforcement of local government codes and the enforcement of
20 penal, traffic, regulatory, game or controlled substance laws and
21 includes an agent of the law enforcement agency.
22 (e) "Defense industrial company" means a company that has a contract
23 with the United States department of defense to design, manufacture,
24 develop, modify, upgrade, or produce a robotic device, and includes any
EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[] is old law to be omitted.
LBD01109-01-5
A. 399 2
1 employees or agents authorized by that defense industrial company to
2 engage in activities relating to such a contract on its behalf.
3 (f) "Disrupter technology" means a class of devices designed to assist
4 in the disposal of explosives or suspected explosives.
5 2. It shall be unlawful for any person, whether or not acting under
6 color of law, to manufacture, modify, sell, transfer, equip, use, or
7 operate a robotic device or an uncrewed aircraft equipped or mounted
8 with a weapon within the state.
9 3. It shall be unlawful for any person, whether or not acting under
10 color of law, to use a robotic device or uncrewed aircraft to:
11 (a) commit the crime of menacing defined in section 120.15 of the
12 penal law, or
13 (b) criminally harass another person in violation of section 240.25,
14 240.26, 240.30, 240.31, or 240.32 of the penal law.
15 4. It shall be unlawful for any person, whether or not acting under
16 color of law, to use a robotic device or uncrewed aircraft to physically
17 restrain or to attempt to physically restrain a human being within the
18 state.
19 5. Any person who knowingly violates the provisions of subdivision
20 two, three or four of this section shall be liable for a civil penalty
21 of not less than twenty-five thousand nor more than one hundred thousand
22 dollars. Such fine shall be imposed in addition to any other penalty
23 prescribed by law.
24 6. The provisions of this section shall not apply to:
25 (a) a defense industrial company with respect to robotic devices and
26 uncrewed aircraft that are within the scope of its contract with the
27 United States department of defense; or
28 (b) a robotic device developer, manufacturer or producer who modifies
29 or operates a robotic device or uncrewed aircraft equipped or mounted
30 with a weapon for the sole purpose of developing or testing technology
31 that is intended to detect, prevent and/or mitigate the unauthorized
32 weaponization of a robotic device or uncrewed aircraft.
33 7. It shall not be a violation of this section for government offi-
34 cials acting in the public performance of their duties to operate a
35 robotic device or uncrewed aircraft equipped or mounted with a weapon,
36 explosive device, or disrupter technology, when used for the purpose of
37 the disposal of explosives or suspected explosives, for development,
38 evaluation, testing, education or training relating to the use of such
39 technologies for the purpose of disposing of explosives or suspected
40 explosives, or for the destruction of property in cases where there is
41 an imminent, deadly threat to human life.
42 8. Law enforcement shall be required to obtain a warrant, or other
43 legally required judicial authorization, prior to:
44 (a) deploying a robotic device onto private property in any situation
45 in which a warrant would be required if the entry onto that property
46 were made by a human officer; or
47 (b) deploying a robotic device to conduct surveillance or location
48 tracking in any situation in which a warrant or other legally required
49 judicial authorization would be required if such surveillance or track-
50 ing were conducted by a human officer or other technology.
51 9. Any information regarding the use of a robotic device by law
52 enforcement shall be subject to release pursuant to article six of the
53 public officers law, with such information to be made available to the
54 public on request, pursuant to the provisions thereof.
55 10. The attorney general may bring an action to remedy a violation of
56 this section.
A. 399 3
1 11. (a) Any individual alleging that a violation of this section or a
2 regulation promulgated under this section caused them injury or harm may
3 bring a civil action in any court of competent jurisdiction.
4 (b) A civil action brought pursuant to this subdivision shall be
5 directed to the agency alleged to have committed the violation or, in
6 the case of an individual, to the person alleged to have committed the
7 violation.
8 (c) In a civil action in which the plaintiff prevails, the court may
9 award:
10 (i) liquidated damages of not less than five hundred dollars nor more
11 than two thousand dollars;
12 (ii) punitive damages; and
13 (iii) any other relief, including but not limited to an injunction,
14 that the court deems to be appropriate.
15 (d) In addition to any relief awarded pursuant to the previous para-
16 graph, the court shall award reasonable attorney's fees and costs to any
17 prevailing plaintiff.
18 12. The attorney general shall promulgate any rules and regulations
19 necessary to implement the provisions of this section.
20 § 2. This act shall take effect on the ninetieth day after it shall
21 have become a law. Effective immediately, the addition, amendment and/or
22 repeal of any rule or regulation necessary for the implementation of
23 this act on its effective date are authorized to be made and completed
24 on or before such effective date.
