DHS/FEMA/PIA-055 FEMA Response Use of Unmanned Aircraft System (UAS) Derived Imagery

The Department of Homeland Security (DHS), Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), Office of Response and Recovery (ORR), Response Directorate (RD) uses imagery from Unmanned Aircraft Systems (UAS) to assist FEMA in fulfilling disaster response requirements with less cost, less environmental impact, and enhanced safety when compared to other conventional methods. FEMA RD does not own or operate UAS; instead FEMA RD uses mission assignment of other federal agencies (e.g., Civil Air Patrol, U.S. Customs and Border Protection) to obtain UAS-derived imagery. UAS-derived imagery enhances the common operational picture and supports FEMA situational awareness and decision-making. FEMA RD will not use the data provided by UAS operations to identify individuals, monitor an individual or group’s movement, or intentionally gather personally identifiable information (PII); any PII collected is incidental and will be obfuscated or deleted prior to use or storage. DHS/FEMA is conducting this PIA to evaluate the privacy impact of the use of UAS-derived imagery. May 2020