Pasco County, FL Drone Rules: Park Drone Restrictions (2026)
Key Facts
- Rule
- No flying motorized objects without permission
- Citation
- Code § 70-18(e)
- Applies to
- All PRNR parks, trails, preserves, conservation lands
- Size/altitude threshold
- None specified
- Enforcement
- Removal, citation, or trespass
Summary
Flying a drone or any other motorized object over a Pasco County park, preserve, or trail requires advance permission from PRNR personnel under Code § 70-18(e); without it, the flight itself is a Code violation enforceable by removal, citation, or trespass.
Vehicles, vessels, and watercraft shall be driven and/or parked only in designated areas. ... Vessels and vehicles, whether motorized or non-motorized, on PRNR property shall be operated in safe manner and shall not be operated in a manner that endangers or causes a nuisance to PRNR patrons. Motorized vessels and watercraft shall not be operated so as to produce a wake. Motorized objects may not be flown on PRNR property without prior permission from PRNR personnel.
Official source re-checked September 7, 2026: no newer edition of the code had been published (publisher’s edition: Code of Ordinances: Supplement 94 Update 1 | Land Development Code: Supplement 20).
Full Breakdown
Pasco County's PRNR chapter folds drone use into its broader vehicle-and-vessel section, Sec. 70-18, which applies wherever the chapter applies: active and passive parks, trails, and ELAMP conservation lands (Sec. 70-2). ' The text doesn't carve out a size, weight, or altitude threshold, so it reaches any motorized flying object, not just something marketed as a 'drone,' whenever PRNR staff haven't authorized the flight. Because the rule sits in the same chapter as the county's general PRNR violation clause, flying without authorization is treated the same as any other unapproved use: Sec.
70-3 makes 'performing any act prohibited by this chapter' a Code violation, and Sec. 70-4 lets PRNR respond with a request to leave, a citation under Sec. 1-11, or an injunction. A visitor who won't stop or leave when asked can be formally trespassed from PRNR property under Sec. 70-5 and Chapter 60, Article VI of the county code.
Violations & Fines
Flying an unauthorized drone on PRNR property violates Sec. 70-3 (performing a prohibited act). PRNR staff can order the operator to land and leave, issue a citation under Sec. 1-11, or, for repeat or willful violators, initiate a Sec. 70-5 trespass action barring the person from PRNR property under Chapter 60, Article VI.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I fly a drone in a Pasco County park?
Does the drone rule apply to preserves and trails too, or just parks?
What happens if I fly a drone without permission and refuse to stop?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Pasco County
Florida rules heatmap·Compare Pasco County to another location·View the Florida drone rules overview
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