Unmanned aerial vehicles: Department of Public Safety required to establish and maintain registry of such vehicles operated by public agencies; public agencies required to submit certain information for inclusion in registry; annual reports to Legislature; regulations; establishment by Department of certain lists; authority to purchase or acquire vehicles, equipment or services from entities identified on list.
Nev. Rev. Stat. § 493.118
in effect1. 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.
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.
6. In addition to the regulations adopted pursuant to subsection 4, the Department shall adopt regulations to establish:
(a) A list of countries, businesses and entities from which a public agency or law enforcement agency, except as otherwise provided in subsection 8, shall not purchase or acquire any unmanned aerial vehicle or other equipment or service relating to the operation of an unmanned aerial vehicle; and
(b) A list of unmanned aerial vehicles and other related equipment or services that a public agency or law enforcement agency shall not operate, purchase or acquire.
7. The lists established pursuant to subsection 6 must include:
(a) Any business or entity identified by the Secretary of Defense of the United States Department of Defense pursuant to Section 1260H of the William M. (Mac) Thornberry National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2021, Public Law 116-283, any amendments thereto or any subsequent federal law establishing such a list;
(b) Any unmanned aerial vehicle or other equipment or service relating to the operation of an unmanned aerial vehicle sold, manufactured or distributed by an entity identified by the Secretary of Defense of the United States Department of Defense pursuant to Section 1260H of the William M. (Mac) Thornberry National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2021, Public Law 116-283, any amendments thereto or any subsequent federal law establishing such a list;
(c) Any hardware, software, vendor or service prohibited from being used by a state agency in Nevada by a regulation, guideline or policy adopted by the Governors Technology Office within the Office of the Governor pursuant to NRS 242.111 and 242.115 ; and
(d) Any other unmanned aerial vehicle or other equipment or service relating to the operation of an unmanned aerial vehicle, as determined by the Department.
8. A public agency or law enforcement agency may purchase or acquire any unmanned aerial vehicle or other equipment or service relating to the operation of an unmanned aerial vehicle from a business or entity that is identified on the list established pursuant to paragraph (a) of subsection 6 if:
(a) Any photograph, image, recording or other information collected by the business or entity from the purchase, acquisition or operation of the unmanned aerial vehicle or other equipment or service relating to the operation of the unmanned aerial vehicle:
(1) Is stored and maintained exclusively within the United States; and
(2) Is not accessible to any third party;
(b) Before the purchase or acquisition of the unmanned aerial vehicle or other equipment or service relating to the operation of the unmanned aerial vehicle, the public agency or law enforcement agency has determined that the policies of the business or entity comply with paragraph (a); and
(c) The purchase or acquisition complies with all requirements of federal law, including, without limitation, any restrictions on the use of federal funds.
9. The provisions of subsection 8 shall not be construed to discourage the purchase or acquisition of any unmanned aerial vehicle or other equipment or service relating to the operation of an unmanned aerial vehicle that is manufactured in the United States. To the extent authorized by chapter 332 or 333 of NRS, a public agency or law enforcement agency is encouraged to prioritize the purchase or acquisition of any unmanned aerial vehicle or other equipment or service related to the operation of an unmanned aerial vehicle that is manufactured in the United States.
10. As used in this section, third party includes, without limitation, a person that is domiciled in a foreign country or has its principal place of business in, or is organized under the laws of, a foreign country. The term does not include a governmental entity of the United States.
Source: NV Statutes (Official Site)URL: https://www.leg.state.nv.us/nrs/NRS-493.htmlFetched: 10/4/2026