Federal agencies’ power to take down dangerous drones expired overnight as lawmakers mired in government funding talks failed to pass an extension in time.
The lapsed law allowed the Justice and Homeland Security departments to disable threatening aerial devices in the US, a growing problem near airport runways, large sporting events, and the US-Mexico border.
The powers had been renewed through a series of short-term extensions in recent years. Republicans included another temporary measure in a broader stopgap government spending bill, but negotiations collapsed, sending the US government into a shutdown and ending federal counter-drone authorities.
The drone-fighting power is ...