The University of Georgia has applied for an exemption from the Federal Aviation Administration’s current drone policy, and the administration will be returning a decision sometime within March.

In November of 2015, the Office of the Vice President for Research petitioned the FAA for exempt status from Section 333 of the FAA Modernization and Reform Act of 2012.

The petition includes allowances for, “research, precision agriculture and aerial data collection.” If it were successful it would permit the use of drones for a wide variety of research projects.

“There are lots of programs already using drone technology,” said assistant professor Zion Tse of the College of Engineering.

But, the predicted applications don’t limit themselves to research. The projects proposed in this petition would take drones out of the College of Engineering and into programs across campus from art to medicine.

“Electrical engineers inspect power plants, civil engineers create 3D models of bridges and other constructions, and agricultural engineers inspect cotton fields,” Tse said.

The application very carefully spells out the precise technical specifications for all the drones that would be used by the university, even specifying who can pilot them and under what conditions. What it doesn’t say is when they can and cannot be used.

“I think most people associate bad things with drones, but I think it’s a good step for UGA,” said Morgan Gano, a sophomore international affairs major from Bethlehem.

The university shares Gano’s view. The petition cites responsibilities as a land-grant and sea-grant institution to benefit Georgia, the United States and the globe.

“There are a lot of organizations that want to use drones, we need the FAA regulations, but they’re very strict and this is an important step forward,” Tse said.

The FAA has said that it will return a decision on the petition within 120 days, until then programs will continue as normal.

“I feel like it could offer a great opportunity to discover new technologies,” Gano said.