Fabio
76b8ec33a7
Ingested titles 12–51 and 54 from OLRC USLM XML @119-100 (the whole Code now, uniform edition; Title 53 is reserved/empty). LegalText 11,221 -> 59,740; repo total 105,704 records. Deterministic (byte-identical rerun, verified on Title 42's 8,356 sections); make check green. make legal-us-code default now covers every title. Co-Authored-By: Claude Opus 4.8 <noreply@anthropic.com>
46 lines
2.4 KiB
Markdown
46 lines
2.4 KiB
Markdown
---
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type: "LegalText"
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title: "18 U.S.C. § 40A"
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description: "Operation of unauthorized unmanned aircraft over wildfires"
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jurisdiction: "us"
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corpus: "united_states_code"
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kind: "code_section"
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title_number: 18
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title_name: "CRIMES AND CRIMINAL PROCEDURE"
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chapter_number: "2"
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chapter_name: "AIRCRAFT AND MOTOR VEHICLES"
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section: "40A"
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citation: "18 U.S.C. § 40A"
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status: "current"
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release_point: "119-100"
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release_date: "2026-06-26"
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source: "official"
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source_url: "https://uscode.house.gov/download/releasepoints/us/pl/119/100/xml_usc18@119-100.zip"
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source_identifier: "/us/usc/t18/s40A"
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source_file: "data/legal/raw/us/code/title-18/usc18.xml"
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source_hash: "e564f18464bdedf7bb275a825901d921b7ce35438be80a59ee737cf5913257ca"
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raw_snapshot_hash: "1a1bbbbdb59e376ada4eb7ad1056fd68d396679ee7ab59f0561af15006122708"
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text_hash: "d20cfe94eb05523ae5627aa53cc292e4d16955f476299375409dfd5bb557cbaf"
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retrieved_at: "2026-07-04"
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confidence: "official"
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tags: ["legal", "us-code"]
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---
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# 18 U.S.C. § 40A - Operation of unauthorized unmanned aircraft over wildfires
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## Text
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(a) In General.— Except as provided in subsection (b), an individual who operates an unmanned aircraft and knowingly or recklessly interferes with a wildfire suppression, or law enforcement or emergency response efforts 11 So in original. Probably should be “effort”. related to a wildfire suppression, shall be fined under this title, imprisoned for not more than 2 years, or both.
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(b) Exceptions.— This section does not apply to the operation of an unmanned aircraft conducted by a unit or agency of the United States Government or of a State, tribal, or local government (including any individual conducting such operation pursuant to a contract or other agreement entered into with the unit or agency) for the purpose of protecting the public safety and welfare, including firefighting, law enforcement, or emergency response.
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(c) Definitions.— In this section, the following definitions apply:
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(1) Unmanned aircraft.— The term “unmanned aircraft” has the meaning given the term in section 44801 of title 49, United States Code.
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(2) Wildfire.— The term “wildfire” has the meaning given that term in section 2 of the Emergency Wildfire Suppression Act (42 U.S.C. 1856m).
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(3) Wildfire suppression.— The term “wildfire suppression” means an effort to contain, extinguish, or suppress a wildfire.
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(Added Pub. L. 115–254, div. B, title III, § 382(a), Oct. 5, 2018, 132 Stat. 3320.)
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