1.  The Department shall, to the extent that money is available for this purpose, establish and maintain a registry of unmanned aerial vehicles that are operated by public agencies in this State. The Department shall include on its Internet website the information that is maintained in the registry.

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2.  A public agency shall, for each unmanned aerial vehicle the public agency intends to operate, submit to the Department, on a form provided by the Department, for inclusion in the registry:

(a) The name of the public agency;

(b) The name and contact information of each operator of the unmanned aerial vehicle;

(c) Sufficient information to identify the unmanned aerial vehicle; and

(d) A statement describing the use of the unmanned aerial vehicle by the public agency.

3.  The Department shall, on or before February 1 of each year, prepare and submit to the Director of the Legislative Counsel Bureau for submission to the Legislature, or to the Legislative Commission when the Legislature is not in regular session, a report outlining the activities of public agencies with respect to the operation of unmanned aerial vehicles in this State.

4.  The Department shall adopt regulations prescribing the public purposes for which a public agency may operate an unmanned aerial vehicle that is registered with the Department pursuant to this section, including, without limitation:

(a) The provision of fire services.

(b) The provision of emergency medical services.

(c) The protection of a critical facility that is public property.

(d) Search and rescue operations conducted for persons and property in distress.

5.  The regulations adopted by the Department pursuant to subsection 4 must include provisions that:

(a) Authorize, as a public purpose, a public agency to operate an unmanned aerial vehicle that is registered with the Department in order to conduct a scheduled inspection to ensure compliance with building or fire codes or laws, ordinances, regulations or rules adopting or establishing building or fire codes that are enforced by the public agency.

(b) Prohibit a public agency from collecting any photograph, image or recording through the operation of an unmanned aerial vehicle during a scheduled inspection described in paragraph (a). If any photograph, image or recording is collected in violation of such a regulation or if any other information is collected through the operation of an unmanned aerial vehicle during such a scheduled inspection, the photograph, image, recording or other information:

(1) Is not admissible and must not be disclosed in any judicial, administrative or other adjudicatory proceeding other than a proceeding relating to the purpose of the scheduled inspection; and

(2) May not be used to establish reasonable suspicion or probable cause as the basis for the investigation or prosecution of a crime or other offense.