MONTGOMERY, Alabama --- Sen. Roger Bedford said he thought it was a joke when he first heard that drones had been used to harass hunters.

“I was at a legislative conference with some fellow legislators that hunt and fish like I do,” said Bedford, a Democrat from Russellville. “It came up in a conversation that one of the states had been having problems with this. At first I thought they were kidding.

“But animal rights activist groups are using this to disrupt people who are legally and ethically hunting and fishing and that’s just wrong. And as a lifelong hunter, I don’t want to see that happening in Alabama. “

The Alabama Senate today passed SB 240 by Bedford, which would make it a misdemeanor to intentionally use a drone to harass someone who is legally hunting or fishing.

The bill defines a drone as any aerial vehicle without a human operator.

Read SB 240.pdf

Bedford said he thought about eight other states had passed similar laws. He said he had not heard of any Alabama hunters being harassed by drones.

“But I think it’s just a matter of time if we don’t get something enacted into the law,” the veteran lawmaker said.

Bedford said the law was narrowly written so that it would not affect the use of drones for other purposes, such as showing real estate or inspecting power lines.

“This is just a classic case of the law catching up with technology," Bedford said. "As these drones have become more and more sophisticated you can operate them further and further away.”