The Vermont Statutes Online
The Statutes below include the actions of the 2024 session of the General Assembly.
NOTE: The Vermont Statutes Online is an unofficial copy of the Vermont Statutes Annotated that is provided as a convenience.
Title 20 : Internal Security and Public Safety
Chapter 205 : Drones
(Cite as: 20 V.S.A. § 4626)-
§ 4626. Drones; operation over private property without consent of owner; civil penalty
(a) A person shall not fly a drone for hobby or recreational purposes at an altitude of less than 100 feet above privately owned real property unless the person has obtained prior written consent from the property owner.
(b) A person shall not, without the prior written consent of the property owner or occupant, use a drone to record an image of privately owned real property or of the owner or occupant of the property with the intent to conduct surveillance on the person or the property in violation of the person’s reasonable expectation of privacy. For purposes of this subsection, a person is presumed to have a reasonable expectation of privacy on the person’s privately owned real property if the person is not observable by another person located at ground level in a place where the other person has a legal right to be, regardless of whether the person is observable from the air using a drone.
(c) A person engaged in the business of selling drones shall provide written notice to each purchaser of a drone required to be registered by the U.S. Department of Transportation about the requirements under subsections (a) and (b) of this section for flying a drone above privately owned real property without the property owner’s prior written consent.
(d) A person who violates this section shall be assessed a civil penalty of not more than:
(1) $50.00 for a first violation; or
(2) $250.00 for a second or subsequent violation.
(e) As used in this section:
(1) “Property owner” means a person who owns, leases, licenses, or otherwise controls ownership or use of land, or an employee or agent of that person.
(2) “Surveillance” means:
(A) with respect to an owner or occupant of privately owned real property, the observation of the person with sufficient visual clarity to be able to obtain information about the person’s identity, habits, conduct, movements, or whereabouts; or
(B) with respect to privately owned real property, the observation of the property’s physical improvements with sufficient visual clarity to be able to determine unique identifying features about the property or information about its owners or occupants.
(f) This section shall not apply to the use of drones by:
(1) distribution or transmission utilities or their contractors for purposes of ensuring system reliability and resiliency; or
(2) a law enforcement officer for legitimate law enforcement purposes. (Added 2023, No. 161 (Adj. Sess.), § 40, eff. June 6, 2024.)
