Utah | 2023 State Drone Scorecard

Utah ranks 35th in its readiness for commercial drone services

Rank: 35 (tied)

Utah tied with Florida, Pennsylvania, and Maine for 35th place in the 2023 State Drone Commerce Scorecard rankings. The state scored 32 out of 100 possible points in how prepared it is for commercial drone services.

The Six Factors Contributing to the Overall Score

A Score in Gray Indicates a Score Below the Median of All States

0 / 30

Airspace Lease Law
Utah law does not allow public authorities to lease low-altitude airspace above state and local roads. An airspace lease law would allow state or local officials to create drone highways above these roadways. 

0 / 25

Avigation Easement Law
Utah law does not create an avigation easement, which means drone operators may be subject to nuisance and trespass laws, even if their drones do not disturb people on the ground.

20 / 20

Task Force or Program Office
The Utah Department of Transportation has a drone program office within its Division of Aeronautics. The program office aims to educate the public about drone technology and encourage commercial drone services. 

0 / 10

Sandbox
Utah does not have a drone sandbox. However, in 2023, Governor Spencer Cox signed a law requiring the Utah Department of Transportation to study the designation of drone sandboxes. 

10 / 10

Law Vesting Landowners with Air Rights
Utah law expressly provides air rights to landowners, which reduces litigation risk for drone operators. 

2 / 5

Jobs Estimate
Utah is in the fourth quintile when it comes to the number of drone-related jobs per 100,000 people.

How Utah Scored Relative to Its Peers

Commercial drone-readiness scores vary across the nation. To give state leaders and residents insight into how their state compares, we have provided the scores of four state peers. In this case, these peers are selected because of their geographic and political similarities.

Chart showing how Utah scored relative to its peers

Utah scored 32 of out 100 possible points. The top ranked state in 2023 was Arkansas, which scored 90 points.

Chart showing how Utah scored relative to its peers

Get in Touch With the Author

Brent Skorup regularly briefs policymakers on his research and has appeared as a guest for news outlets like C-SPAN, NPR, CBS News, ABC News, and CNBC Asia.

Dive Deeper

Access the full 2023 report to learn more about the methodology, download the data, and see how the scorecard has changed since last year.