1.Short
title; table of contents
(a)This Act may be cited
as the Air Travelers' Bill of Rights
Act of 2012
.
(b)The table of contents for this Act is as follows:
Sec. 1. Short title; table of
contents.
Sec. 2. Definitions.
Sec. 3. Establishment of air travelers' bill of
rights.
Sec. 4. Mandatory approval of applications under screening
partnership program.
Sec. 5. Expansion of PreCheck program.
Sec. 6. Availability of canine teams for screening.
Sec. 7. Prohibition on use of random computer-generated
screening.
Sec. 8. Limitations on screening using pat-downs.
Sec. 9. Prevention of humiliating searches.
Sec. 10. Liability of manufacturers of advanced imaging
technology.
Sec. 11. Implementation of additional elements of air
travelers' bill of rights.
Sec. 12. Passenger Privacy Protection Award.
2.In this Act:
(1)Advanced
imaging technologyThe term advanced imaging
technology has the meaning given that term in section 44901(l) of title
49, United States Code.
(2)The term air transportation means air
transportation and intrastate air transportation (as those terms are defined in
section 40102 of title 49, United States Code).
(3)Appropriate
congressional committeesThe term appropriate congressional
committees means—
(A)the Committee on
Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs and the Committee on Commerce,
Science, and Transportation of the Senate; and
(B)the Committee on
Homeland Security and the Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure of the
House of Representatives.
(4)The term Assistant Secretary means the
Assistant Secretary of Homeland Security (Transportation Security
Administration).
(5)Commercial
service airport; primary airportThe terms commercial
service airport and primary airport have the meanings given
those terms in section 47102 of title 49, United States Code.
(6)The terms screen and
screening refer to the process of screening a passenger traveling
in air transportation at a commercial service airport for weapons, explosives,
and incendiaries before the passenger enters the sterile area of an
airport.
(7)The term sterile area has the meaning given
that term in section 1540.5 of title 49, Code of Federal Regulations (as in
effect on June 1, 2012).
3.Establishment of
air travelers' bill of rights
(a)Not later than 90 days after the date of the enactment of
this Act, the Assistant Secretary shall—
(1)establish a list
of the rights of passengers traveling in air transportation that are screened
at a primary airport (to be known as the air travelers' bill of
rights
); and
(2)distribute the
air travelers' bill of rights as required by subsection (c).
(b)The
air travelers' bill of rights shall include, at a minimum, the
following:
(1)A passenger has
the right to be presumed innocent before, during, and after screening.
(2)A passenger has
the right to choose to depart from an airport that has the freedom to choose to
have screening conducted by employees of a private security screening company
or Federal employees, depending on the needs of the airport.
(3)A passenger who
has been verified by the Transportation Security Administration as a low-risk
or frequent traveler has the right to be screened through a process that is
more expeditious and less intrusive than the standard screening process.
(4)A passenger has
the right to make a video recording of the screening of the passenger using
recording devices approved by the Transportation Security Administration for
that purpose.
(5)A passenger has
the right to be screened by a canine screening team if the passenger requests
screening by such a team before beginning the screening process and such a team
is available.
(6)A passenger has
the right to decline to be screened using a device that uses backscatter
x-rays.
(7)A passenger has
the right to be free from searches and screening procedures not implemented for
cause or because the passenger is the subject of suspicion, including searches
and screening procedures resulting from the random selection of the passenger
by a computer.
(8)A passenger has
the right to be screened by a method other than a pat-down unless—
(A)the passenger has
failed to be cleared to enter the sterile area of the airport after being
screened using a metal detector or advanced imaging technology multiple times;
or
(B)the individual
conducting the screening has a specific reason to suspect that the passenger is
carrying items that are prohibited in the sterile area of the airport.
(9)A passenger who
is selected to be screened using a pat-down has the right to request that the
pat-down be administered using the back, rather than the palm, of the hand of
the individual conducting the screening.
(10)A passenger who
is 12 years of age or younger or 75 years of age or older has the right to be
screened by a method other than a pat-down unless the individual conducting the
screening has a high degree of suspicion that the passenger is carrying items
that are prohibited in the sterile area of the airport.
(11)A passenger who
is 75 years of age or older, is dependent on a wheelchair for mobility, or is
dependent on an approved medical device for the treatment of a chronic
condition has the right to be screened in a private area out of the view of
other passengers.
(12)A passenger who
is traveling with minor children has the right to accompany those minor
children through the screening process.
(13)A passenger has
the right—
(A)to have the
privacy of any image of the passenger generated during the screening process
maintained; and
(B)to have all
copies of any such image (other than a video recording described in paragraph
(4) or generated by a surveillance camera) deleted immediately after the
passenger is cleared to enter the sterile area of the airport.
(14)A passenger has
the right to have the passenger's baggage inspected—
(A)by an individual
conducting the inspection under the supervision of another individual;
or
(B)in an area
visible to passengers or recorded by a surveillance camera.
(15)A passenger has
the right to be screened—
(A)by individuals
who are subject to liability for mistreatment or misconduct during screening;
and
(B)using
technologies the manufacturers of which are subject to liability for harm
caused by the use of those technologies.
(16)A passenger who
believes the passenger has been subjected to mistreatment during the screening
process has the right to peacefully express the passenger's concerns to a
supervisor of the individual who conducted the screening.
(17)A passenger who
is removed from or detained during the screening process has the right to
contact an attorney promptly.
(c)The
Assistant Secretary shall—
(1)post the air
travelers' bill of rights on the website of the Transportation Security
Administration; and
(2)provide the air
travelers' bill of rights to passengers before they are subjected to screening
at primary airports by—
(A)posting the air
travelers' bill of rights on a sign that is easily visible to passengers;
or
(B)distributing
brochures that contain the air travelers' bill of rights to passengers.
4.Mandatory
approval of applications under screening partnership programSection 44920 of title 49, United States
Code, is amended—
(1)in subsection (a), by striking Under
Secretary
the first place it appears and inserting Assistant
Secretary (Transportation Security Administration) (in this section referred to
as the Assistant Secretary
)
;
(2)by striking Under Secretary
each place it appears and inserting Assistant Secretary
;
and
(3)by amending subsection (b) to read as
follows:
(b)The Assistant Secretary shall approve all
applications submitted under subsection
(a).
.
5.Expansion of
PreCheck programThe Assistant
Secretary shall take such actions as are necessary to expand the expedited
screening initiative of the Transportation Security Administration known as
PreCheck
—
(1)not later than one year after the date of
the enactment of this Act, to all commercial service airports with more than
250,000 passenger boardings annually;
(2)not later than 2
years after such date of enactment, to all commercial service airports with
more than 100,000 passenger boardings annually; and
(3)not later than 3
years after such date of enactment, to any other commercial service airport the
operator of which requests to have PreCheck expanded to the airport.
6.Availability of
canine teams for screening
(a)Increase in
number of canine teamsNot later than 90 days after the date of
the enactment of this Act, the Assistant Secretary shall increase the number of
canine teams from the National Explosives Detection Canine Team Program of the
Transportation Security Administration placed at each commercial service
airport in the United States with more than 2,500,000 passenger boardings each
year to a number that is sufficient to ensure that at least one canine team can
be tasked exclusively with screening passengers during the operating hours of
the airport.
(b)Prohibition on
diversion of existing teamsThe Assistant Secretary may not
divert canine teams already placed at an airport from duties other than
screening passengers to fulfill the requirement of subsection (a).
(c)
(1)The Assistant Secretary, in consultation with the
operator of an airport at which a canine team is required to be placed under
subsection (a), shall determine appropriate procedures for deploying canine
teams for screening passengers at that airport.
(2)At
least one canine team shall be available to screen passengers during the
operating hours of an airport, but a canine team is not required to be present
at each passenger screening location.
(d)Treatment of
private security screening companiesIf screening at an airport
described in subsection (a) is conducted by a private security screening
company pursuant to section 44920 of title 49, United States Code, the
Assistant Secretary shall provide the private security screening company with a
canine team if the company does not employ canine teams.
(e)Not later than one year after the date of the enactment
of this Act, the Assistant Secretary shall submit to the appropriate
congressional committees a report on the implementation of this section that
includes—
(1)the number of
canine teams deployed pursuant to subsection (a);
(2)the barriers, if
any, to the full implementation of this section;
(3)an assessment of
the impact of the implementation of this section on—
(A)the privacy of
passengers during the screening process; and
(B)the efficiency of
the screening process; and
(4)an assessment of
the effectiveness of canine teams deployed pursuant to subsection (a) in
identifying suspicious items.
7.Prohibition on
use of random computer-generated screening
(a)On and after the date
of the enactment of this Act, passengers traveling in air transportation that
are screened at a commercial service airport may not be screened using a device
that uses advanced imaging technology if that device is programmed to randomly
indicate that some passengers have failed to be cleared to enter the sterile
area of the airport or uses a computer-based program for randomly selecting
passengers to be screened.
(b)Not
later than 30 days after the date of the enactment of this Act, the Assistant
Secretary shall certify to Congress that no devices described in subsection (a)
are in use at any commercial service airport.
8.Limitations on
screening using pat-downsNot
later than 30 days after the date of the enactment of this Act, the Assistant
Secretary shall prescribe regulations relating to the screening of passengers
using pat-downs that prohibit the screening at a commercial service airport
of—
(1)a passenger who is 12 years of age or
younger or 75 years of age or older using a pat-down unless the individual
conducting the screening has a high degree of suspicion that the passenger is
carrying items that are prohibited in the sterile area of the airport;
(2)any other passenger using a pat-down
unless—
(A)the passenger requests to be screened using
a pat-down;
(B)the passenger has
failed to be cleared to enter the sterile area of the airport after being
screened using a metal detector or advanced imaging technology multiple times;
or
(C)the individual
conducting the screening has a specific reason to suspect that the passenger is
carrying items that are prohibited in the sterile area of the airport;
and
(3)any passenger
using a pat-down conducted using the palm of the hand of the individual
conducting the screening if the passenger requests that the pat-down be
conducted using the back of the hand.
9.Prevention of
humiliating searches
(a)Not later than 30 days after the date of the enactment of
this Act, the Assistant Secretary shall prescribe regulations to ensure that a
passenger traveling in air transportation who is screened at a commercial
service airport and uses a prosthetic limb, a breast pump, adult diapers, a
wheelchair, an insulin pump, or any other medical device that requires special
accommodations during the screening process is screened in a private area out
of the view of other passengers if the passenger requests to be screened in a
private area.
(b)Termination of
screeners for conducting humiliating searchesNot later than 30
days after the date of the enactment of this Act, the Assistant Secretary shall
prescribe regulations to ensure that any individual employed by the
Transportation Security Administration or a private security screening company
to conduct screening at a commercial service airport is terminated if the
individual—
(1)commits a gross
violation of the privacy of a passenger in a manner that is not supported by
the policies of the Transportation Security Administration; or
(2)violates
subsection (a) or the policies of the Transportation Security Administration
with respect to the screening of a passenger with a medical or other condition
that requires special accommodations during the screening process, such as a
passenger who is dependent on a wheelchair or another medical device.
10.Liability of
manufacturers of advanced imaging technologySection 865 of the Support Anti-terrorism by
Fostering Effective Technologies Act of 2002 (6 U.S.C. 444) is amended—
(1)in paragraph
(1)—
(A)by striking For purposes of this
subtitle, the
and inserting the following:
(A)Except as provided in subparagraph (B),
the
;
and
(B)by adding at the
end the following:
(B)The
term qualified anti-terrorism technology does not include—
(i)advanced imaging
technology; or
(ii)any technology
developed or acquired on or after the date of the enactment of the
Air Travelers' Bill of Rights Act of
2012 for use in the screening of passengers at
airports.
;
and
(2)by adding at the
end the following:
(7)Advanced
imaging technologyThe term advanced imaging
technology—
(A)means a device
used in the screening of passengers at airports that creates a visual image of
an individual showing the surface of the skin and revealing other objects on
the body; and
(B)includes devices
using backscatter x-rays or millimeter waves and devices referred to as
whole-body imaging technology
or body scanning
machines
.
.
11.Implementation
of additional elements of air travelers' bill of rightsNot later than 30 days after the date of the
enactment of this Act, the Secretary of Homeland Security shall take all
appropriate actions within the authority of the Secretary to implement any
elements of the air travelers' bill of rights required by section 3 that are
not included in the policies and practices of the Transportation Security
Administration on the day before such date of enactment.
12.Passenger
Privacy Protection Award
(a)The Assistant Secretary shall provide an award (to be
known as the Passenger Privacy Protection Award
) for improving
the privacy of passengers at airports each year to—
(1)not fewer than 2
and not more than 4 primary airports; and
(2)not more than one
individual who is a citizen or legal permanent resident of the United
States.
(b)Criteria for
airport awardsThe Assistant Secretary shall provide a Passenger
Privacy Protection Award to a primary airport based on the following
criteria:
(1)Most innovative
improvements to the privacy of passengers.
(2)Best facilities,
or most improved facilities, for the promotion of the privacy of
passengers.
(3)Most courteous
employees.
(4)Commitment to
advancing passenger privacy.
(5)Advancement and
promotion of passengers' rights.
(c)Criteria for
individual awardsThe Assistant Secretary shall provide a
Passenger Privacy Protection Award to an individual based on the following
criteria:
(1)Most innovative
idea to improve the privacy of passengers.
(2)The feasibility
of implementing the idea without the acquisition of a product by the
Transportation Security Administration.
(3)Advancement and
promotion of passengers' rights.
(d)Except
as provided in subsection (e)(1)(B), an airport or individual seeking a
Passenger Privacy Protection Award shall submit an application at such time, in
such manner, and containing such information as the Assistant Secretary may
require.
(e)The Assistant Secretary shall—
(1)establish a
website that—
(A)contains
information relating to the Passenger Privacy Protection Award,
including—
(i)the
airports and individuals that received the Award; and
(ii)the ideas and
actions for which those airports and individuals received the Award; and
(B)provides a
mechanism for the submission of applications under subsection (d); and
(2)include a link to
the website required by paragraph (1) on the website of the Transportation
Security Administration.
(f)
(1)Section 44945 of title 49, United States Code is amended
to read as follows:
44945.Disposition
of unclaimed moneyNotwithstanding section 3302 of title 31,
unclaimed money recovered at any airport security checkpoint shall be disposed
of as follows:
(1)Not more than 10 percent of the unclaimed
money shall be retained by the Transportation Security Administration during
fiscal year 2013 and each fiscal year thereafter to provide Passenger Privacy
Protection Awards under section 12 of the Air
Travelers' Bill of Rights Act of 2012.
(2)The remainder of the unclaimed money shall
be deposited in the general fund of the Treasury and used for deficit
reduction.
.
(2)Of the amount made available to the Assistant Secretary
under section 44945 of title 49, United States Code (as amended by paragraph
(1)) for a fiscal year—
(A)not more than
$30,000 may be used to provide Passenger Privacy Protection Awards to airports,
not more than $15,000 of which may be provided to one airport; and
(B)not more than
$5,000 may be used to provide a Passenger Privacy Protection Award to an
individual.