The Mercatus Center report, released this month, is the second version of a document released last March. The authors, Brent Skorup and Connor Haaland, rank all 50 states by their level of drone preparedness based on five factors: airspace lease laws, air rights laws, avigation easement laws, state drone programs and number of drone-related jobs. In the new report, North Dakota ranks No. 1, while Kentucky came in last place.

Skorup, a senior research fellow at George Mason University’s Mercatus Center, said he was reluctant about the concept of drone highways at first. However, once he looked at the situation from a legal perspective, he realized the potential for lawsuits can be high if drones fly over non-public areas.
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