NEW JERSEY – The Pentagon has rejected a congressman’s claim that an Iranian “mother ship” is behind large drones spotted over New Jersey in recent weeks, while officials in the state called for a stronger federal response and transparency surrounding the mysterious, unexplained sightings demand.

Since mid-November, large drones of uncertain origin have been repeatedly spotted in the skies over central and northern New Jersey at night, including near a military installation.

State and local officials met with Department of Homeland Security officials in a closed session Wednesday morning at New Jersey State Police headquarters to discuss the matter, according to several officials in attendance.

RELATED: Homeland Security officials meet with lawmakers about mysterious drone flights in New Jersey

It remains unclear who is operating the drones, according to a DHS handout released by Montvale Mayor Mike Ghassali, who attended the meeting.

“According to the FBI, there are currently no known specific or credible threats associated with these sightings,” the handout states.

There were reports of four to 180 sightings per night, according to New Jersey Rep. Dawn Fantasia, who attended the meeting. The drones are “operating in a coordinated manner” and have not been identified as hobbyist drones or those associated with DHS, she said.

Several officials said after the meeting that they were not reassured by DHS’s response.

Ghassali said it only “increased my concerns about the federal government’s approach to this critical issue.”

“The message conveyed was that there is no credible threat, but they are flying over critical infrastructure and their origin and destination remain unknown,” he said in a statement. “Eventually they’ll find out, but right now we don’t know anything else.”

New Jersey state Sen. Holly Schepisi called the DHS response “disastrous.”

“(It) In fact, if anything, I felt less confident in our federal government’s response to this issue,” she said in a statement. “That the federal government is not devoting all necessary defense resources to ascertain as accurately as possible the origin and purpose of these drones.” The nation’s populous state is inexplicable and completely unacceptable.

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Fantasia said, “We know nothing” and “to claim that there is no known or credible threat is incredibly misleading, and I have informed all officials of this opinion.”

Following the meeting, New Jersey State Senator Jon Bramnick called on the Defense Department to investigate and reiterated his call for a limited state of emergency in the state.

“The Ministry of Defense must investigate and until then we must close the airspace to drones. This would require a limited state of emergency and cooperation with the FAA,” he said in a statement.

A spokesman for the FBI, the lead agency investigating the sightings, said it was “doing everything we can.” (To) Find out what’s going on.

“The public can still call our 800 hotline or submit a tip online. We respond to every material tip we receive,” the FBI spokesman said.

In response to the drone activity, the Federal Aviation Administration has imposed flight restrictions at Picatinny Arsenal in Morris County and Trump National Golf Club Bedminster in Somerset County.

“Safely integrating drones into the national airspace system is the FAA’s top priority,” the agency said in a statement earlier this month. “We review all reports of unauthorized drone operations and, if necessary, investigate.”

New Jersey Rep. Jeff Van Drew criticized the FAA for its inability to locate the drones during a House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee hearing on Wednesday.

“We have a serious problem with our aerospace. “The recent sightings of unidentified drones in the state of New Jersey, my home state, are rightly causing great public concern,” he said.

RELATED: The FBI is asking the public for help after reports of drones flying in Morris County, New Jersey

Van Drew said the drones were “large” and “sophisticated” and claimed that an “Iranian mothership” was responsible for them, although he provided no evidence to support his claims.

“I actually learned that there is circumstantial evidence that there is an Iranian mother ship off the east coast of the United States that is launching these drone strikes,” he said.

He said he was currently in the process of identifying his sources but said they were “people who are reputable, people who speak with authority.”

The Pentagon has rejected Van Drew’s claim.

“There is no truth to this – there is no Iranian ship off the coast of the United States and there is no so-called mother ship launching drones towards the United States,” Pentagon deputy press secretary Sabrina Singh told reporters on Wednesday.

Singh said there was no evidence that the drone activity came from a foreign company or was the work of an adversary.

“We will continue to monitor what happens,” she said, adding: “At no time were our facilities threatened when this activity occurred.”

Van Drew doubled down in an interview with ABC News after the Pentagon briefing, saying there was a “real possibility it was a foreign company.” He said his “well-informed” sources believe the drones may have come from Iran and that there could be a mother ship hundreds of miles off the U.S. coast.

“They tell us there is nothing to fear, but we have no idea who it is, where it comes from, what it is about and what it can do,” he said.

Van Drew proposed imposing flight restrictions over New Jersey airspace and “issuing an order to neutralize any drone aircraft violating these restrictions” in a letter addressed to President Joe Biden on Wednesday.

“In neutralizing these drones, we must ensure the safety of people on the ground and should also try to keep the drones intact so we can study their capabilities,” he wrote.

New Jersey Rep. Chris Smith has called on Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin to help detect and combat widespread drone activity over the state.

“As you are no doubt also aware, there have been numerous instances of unmanned aerial systems (UAS) flying over New Jersey, including in close proximity to sensitive locations and critical infrastructure, including military installations in my district,” he explained in a letter to Lloyd on Tuesday.

He noted that Joint Base McGuire-Dix-Lakehurst (JBMDL) has the capability to identify and disable unauthorized unmanned aerial systems.

“I urge that all Department of Defense capabilities, particularly those utilized by JBMDL, be immediately deployed to identify and address the potential threats that UAS pose to the state of New Jersey,” he said.

During a congressional hearing on Tuesday, Smith said an official saw “50 drones” landing from the sea in Ocean County earlier this week. He also said a U.S. Coast Guard commanding officer stationed at Barnegat Light reported that “between 12 and 30” drones tracked a USCG motor rescue boat over the weekend.

New Jersey Senator Cory Booker called for more transparency from federal authorities about unexplained drone activity in a letter to DHS Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas, FBI Director Christopher Wray and Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg on Tuesday.

“I recognize that the operational security of ongoing investigations must be maintained and that this situation requires complex interagency coordination. However, there is a growing sense of uncertainty and urgency across the state – among both voters and local officials – despite assurances that the drones being used pose no known threats to public safety,” he stated in the letter. “Therefore, I urge you to share any relevant information about these drone sightings with the public. Without transparency, I believe rumors, fear and misinformation will continue to spread.”

The public should be “immediately informed of what they know” by federal agencies, including the FBI, FAA and DHS, said New Jersey Rep. Josh Gottheimer.

“I think people have a right to know what’s going on,” he told ABC News Live host Kayna Whitworth on Wednesday.

Gottheimer, a member of the House Intelligence Committee, said based on the information he received that he was “not concerned that there are any imminent security threats in New Jersey or DC.”

“That means you can’t just fly drones anywhere,” he said. “It can’t just be that way. We need to know who owns these drones and where they come from. And if they’re not welcome, we have to take them out.”

Police in Warren County, New Jersey, also expressed frustration over the “lack of transparency” about drone activity.

“We are shocked by the lack of response or update from federal and state officials,” Chief Scott D. Robb, president of the Warren County Police Chief’s Association, said in a statement Wednesday. “We disagree with their response that there is currently no known threat to the public. Our position is that the unidentified drone flying overhead alone is a threat in itself.”

DHS said in its guidance on drones in New Jersey that there have been other drone sightings “of this nature” both nationally and internationally.

Biden has been briefed on the drones and is “closely monitoring the activity” and “coordinating closely” with DHS and the FBI to continue the investigation into these incidents, the White House said Tuesday.

“This is something that DHS and FBI are following very, very closely,” White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre told reporters on Tuesday.

The US Northern Command (NORTHCOM) is also monitoring reports of “unauthorized drone flights near military installations in New Jersey,” a spokesman said.

“Local law enforcement and the FBI are currently investigating,” the spokesman said in a statement Wednesday, adding that NORTHCOM has not been asked to assist with the events at this time but is ready to respond “if asked or if so.” “Should the situation escalate” threaten any DoD installations.”

ABC News’ Jay O’Brien, Alexandra Faul, Ayesha Ali and Matthew Seyler contributed to this report.