Georgia Facing Scrutiny Over School Security Spending and Drone Pilot Program

A local news investigation revealed a multi-million dollar contract with a governor-linked company alongside a new indoor drone initiative.

• By Jesse Jacobs
• June 01, 2026

The state of Georgia is facing intense scrutiny over its school safety expenditures following a local news investigation into a multimillion-dollar security contract and the approval of a controversial indoor attack drone pilot program.

According to a local news investigation by 11Alive, Georgia has directed $27 million in minimally competitive state funding to Centegix, a school security company that manufactures panic button systems. The state subsequently mandated the installation of these panic buttons in public schools statewide. The investigation revealed that the owner of Centegix is a childhood friend and political donor of Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp.

School security researcher David Riedman, PhD, creator of the K-12 School Shooting Database, raised significant concerns regarding the efficacy of the mandate. Riedman, who has analyzed more than 3,400 K-12 school shootings dating back to the 1960s, stated that delayed notification to emergency services is rarely the primary issue during an active shooter event.

Following the 2024 shooting at Apalachee High School, Georgia officials publicly credited the Centegix system for a rapid police response. However, Riedman noted that systemic failures occurred across the public safety spectrum prior to the attack, including law enforcement officials being inside a bathroom with the suspect just minutes before the shooting began.

Furthermore, Riedman's analysis of the Apalachee High School timeline revealed that traditional 911 calls from the school were processed two minutes faster than the automated Centegix alerts. Computer-aided dispatch systems typically prioritize human emergency calls over automated building alarms, which can delay the triage of actionable information. Riedman stated that Centegix executives refused to answer specific questions regarding the alert timeline.

Simultaneously, the Georgia legislature approved $550,000 for a pilot program to deploy attack drones inside five public high schools during the 2026-27 academic year. The program aims to utilize drones to navigate school hallways and neutralize active shooters.

Riedman previously criticized the indoor drone concept, citing severe operational and safety limitations. A one-kilogram drone flying at 60 mph carries roughly 360 joules of kinetic energy, an impact equivalent to a 100-mph fastball that could cause severe injury to students or staff.

In his research, Riedman questioned how automated or remotely piloted drones would navigate structural barriers. Most school shootings take place inside classrooms, and international building and fire codes require automatic fire doors to compartmentalize hallways during lockdowns, effectively trapping a drone in a single corridor.

Riedman also raised concerns regarding identification errors, questioning how a remote pilot operating a drone at high speeds could accurately differentiate an active shooter from an armed teacher, a security guard or a plainclothes police officer.

If the drone initiative expands from a five-school pilot to a statewide mandate similar to the Centegix panic buttons, Riedman estimated it could represent a $254.5 million annual market opportunity for security vendors.