Arizona did not wait for Part 108. On September 12, 2026 — the general effective date for bills signed at the close of the 2026 session — two amendments to A.R.S. 13-3729 became enforceable criminal law. Chapter 215 (SB 1160) added a one-mile keep-out for civil unmanned aircraft around gated, ticketed entertainment events. Chapter 236 (SB 1627) added a narrower school rule aimed at hobby flights that photograph or loiter over posted K-12 campuses.
A Remote Pilot Certificate still governs the federal side of the flight. It is no longer the only document that matters on a Phoenix Saturday.
What the statute now says
Chapter 215 inserted a new subsection C. It is unlawful to intentionally operate a civil unmanned aircraft within 5,280 feet of or 5,280 feet above a ticketed entertainment event unless one of four exceptions applies: written consent from a person with legal authority over the event; an employee of the property conducting official business; a utility employee conducting official business; or the operator flying that operator's own aircraft over that operator's own private property, consistent with federal law, and not for commercial purposes, commercial recording, or to monitor or interfere with the event.
A violation of subsection C is a class 1 misdemeanor (up to six months and $2,500).
Civil unmanned aircraft means any flight that is not strictly hobby or recreation, including commercial work and anything incidental to a business or media service.
Event definition and the FAA TFR
A ticketed entertainment event is a music, sporting, or performing-arts event with gated entries or barriers, issued tickets, that is outdoors, under a retractable roof, or in a facility of at least 1,000 attendees. The keep-out is a one-statute-mile cylinder.
The FAA standing stadium TFR under 14 CFR 99.7 still applies at covered 30,000-seat events (typically 3 NM, 3,000 ft AGL, one hour before until one hour after). LAANC is not venue consent.
Subsection E FAA savings clause is a defense argument, not a preflight plan. Get written consent.
Chapter 236 school rule is hobby photography/loitering at or below 200 feet above posted K-12 property under listed conditions (class 3 misdemeanor). Local operational ordinances remain preempted.
Pilot actions
Check B4UFLY/LAANC, then the event calendar inside one statute mile of the operating volume. If civil and inside the mile, obtain written consent or document another statutory exception. Keep it with the flight records.