On February 19, an FAA ruling that lists “regulatory and criminal sanctions" against those who are found guilty of willfully keeping their drones unregistered, came into effect. It assumes that violators can be punished either under civil or criminal legislation.
"The FAA may assess civil penalties up to $27,500," the agency announced in a FAQ post on its website. "Criminal penalties include fines of up to $250,000 and/or imprisonment for up to three years."
Other FAA drone registration requirements include being an American citizen, or permanent resident, and being older than 13.
By Monday, some 368,472 UAVs across the US were registered with the FAA, outpacing the number of recorded personal airplanes.
However, not everybody is as happy about the new legislation as Huerta. Drone users have repeatedly railed against what they see as a form of unlawful taxation by the FAA. In particular, TechFreedom, a nonprofit, has filed a lawsuit against the agency for violating a federal law that prohibits the FAA from regulating recreation drones.