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19 May 2017
A Washington, D.C., federal court ruled today that you do not have to register your drone with the Federal Aviation Administration if you only fly it non-commercially. The FAA has required registration since 2015.
John Taylor, a model aircraft hobbyist, filed a petition with the court to continuing flying his model aircraft without registering.
The court found the FAA's rules were in violation of a 2012 law passed by Congress preventing "any rule or regulation regarding a model aircraft." The decision reads:
In short, Section 336 of the FAA Modernization and Reform Act prohibits the FAA from promulgating "any rule or regulation regarding a model aircraft." The Registration Rule is a rule regarding model aircraft. Therefore, the Registration Rule is unlawful to the extent that it applies to model aircraft.
For more information see the text of the decision.