LaLota, Ruppersberger, Giménez, Thanedar, Higgins, Garcia, and Lee Introduce Bipartisan Bill to Promote Aviation Security
WASHINGTON DC - Today, Reps. Nick LaLota (NY-01), Dutch Ruppersberger (MD-02), Carlos Giménez (FL-28), Shri Thanedar (MI-13), Clay Higgins (LA-03), Robert Garcia (CA-42), and Laurel Lee (FL-15) introduced the bipartisan Stop the Scam Act. This legislation would end the diversion of the Passenger Security Fee (PSF), also known as the September 11th Security Fee, to the general Treasury. Additionally, this legislation would establish a new specific fund derived from the PSF, which airlines already collect when customers buy an airline ticket originating in the U.S., to allow for the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) to acquire new and modernized technology, including Credential Authentication Technology (CAT) machines and Computing Tomography (CT).
“The Passenger Security Fee is a total scam being perpetrated on American families that must come to an immediate end. Despite the name of the fee collection program, over $1 billion of that revenue collected under the guise of more security has been diverted to the Treasury for expenditures having zero to do with keeping our skies safe,” said LaLota. “We have a duty to the American people to be truthful about where this revenue is going and ensure our airports remain safe and secure for decades. With bipartisan support, it’s time to end the diversion and pass the Stop the Scam Act.”
“Our Transportation Security Administration already screens more than 2 million people per day at airports around the country,” said Ruppersberger. “More passengers mean more threats. This bill will shorten wait times for passengers and, more importantly, make them safer by ensuring funds designated for airport security are not diverted for other purposes.”
“Proud to join my friend & colleague on the Homeland Security Committee, Rep. Nick LaLota in introducing this legislation to protect Americans at our nation’s airports,” said Giménez, Chair of the Subcommittee on Transportation and Maritime Security. “As Mayor of Miami-Dade County, I oversaw operations at one of America’s busiest airports and understand firsthand how we must streamline the passenger experience and prioritize security at our airports across the country.”
To read the full text of the legislation, click HERE.
Background:
The Passenger Security Fee is $5.60 for a one-way ticket originating in the U.S. and $11.20 for a round-trip ticket. The revenue does not derive from taxpayer dollars but rather from the fee passengers pay when they purchase a plane ticket. Revenue from the Passenger Security Fee, which totaled nearly $3.8 billion in 2022, is deposited into the Aviation Security Capital Fund, which has historically been used to offset security expenses. However, language included in the Bipartisan Budget Act of 2013 allowed one-third of the revenue raised to be diverted to the general Treasury for deficit reduction.
Last year, TSA told the Transportation and Maritime Security Subcommittee that based on past, present, and current projected funding, it is not until 25 years from now, in 2049, that TSA will meet full operational capability for Credential Authentication Technology (CAT) machines; and 18 years from now, in 2042, we will meet the standard for Checkpoint Property Screening Systems, including Computing Tomography (CT). Unfortunately, in the FY24 Appropriations bill, the funding for security checkpoint technology was more than halved, from $80 million to $35 million.
This legislation would end the diversion established in the Bipartisan Budget Act of 2013 and ensure that the second $250 million raised from the PSF goes towards the newly established Aviation Security Checkpoint Technology Fund (ASCT) to be used specifically for modernizing and maintaining checkpoint security technology. The bill would not raise any fees or taxes.
LaLota has consistently and vocally called out the PSF as a scam and called for Congress to act to reform the broken system. In May 2023, LaLota and Ruppersberger introduced the Aviation Security Checkpoint Technology Fund Act which would establish an Aviation Security Checkpoint Technology Fund in the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) to fund investments in aviation security checkpoint technology.
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