[Congressional Bills 114th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 2127 Engrossed in House (EH)]

114th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                H. R. 2127

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 AN ACT


 
      To direct the Administrator of the Transportation Security 
Administration to limit access to expedited airport security screening 
   at an airport security checkpoint to participants of the PreCheck 
  program and other known low-risk passengers, and for other purposes.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Securing Expedited Screening Act''.

SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

    Congress finds the following:
            (1) The Aviation and Transportation Security Act (Public 
        Law 107-71) authorized the Transportation Security 
        Administration to ``establish requirements to implement trusted 
        passenger programs and use available technologies to expedite 
        the security screening of passengers who participate in such 
        programs, thereby allowing security screening personnel to 
        focus on those passengers who should be subject to more 
        extensive screening.''.
            (2) In October 2011, the Transportation Security 
        Administration began piloting the PreCheck program in which a 
        limited number of passengers who were participants in the 
        frequent flyer programs of domestic air carriers were directed 
        to special screening lanes for expedited security screening.
            (3) In December 2013, the Transportation Security 
        Administration opened the PreCheck program to eligible 
        passengers who submit biographic and biometric information for 
        a security risk assessment.
            (4) Today, expedited security screening is provided to 
        passengers who, in general, are members of populations 
        identified by the Administrator of the Transportation Security 
        Administration as presenting a low risk to aviation security, 
        including members of populations known and vetted by the 
        Administrator or through another Department of Homeland 
        Security trusted traveler program, and to passengers who are 
        selected by expedited screening on a case-by-case basis through 
        the Transportation Security Administration's Managed Inclusion 
        process and other procedures.
            (5) According to the Transportation Security 
        Administration, the Managed Inclusion process ``combines the 
        use of multiple layers of security to indirectly conduct a 
        real-time assessment of passengers'' through the use of 
        Passenger Screening Canine teams, Behavior Detection Officers, 
        Explosives Trace Detection (ETD) machines, and other 
        activities.
            (6) In December 2014, the Comptroller General of the United 
        States concluded in a report entitled ``Rapid Growth in 
        Expedited Passenger Screening Highlights Need to Plan Effective 
        Security Assessments'' that ``it will be important for TSA to 
        evaluate the security effectiveness of the Managed Inclusion 
        process as a whole, to ensure that it is functioning as 
        intended and that passengers are being screened at a level 
        commensurate with their risk''.
            (7) On March 16, 2015, the Inspector General of the 
        Department of Homeland Security released a report entitled 
        ``Allegation of Granting Expedited Screening through TSA 
        PreCheck Improperly'', in which the Inspector General 
        determined that the Transportation Security Administration 
        granted expedited security screening at a PreCheck security 
        lane to a passenger who had served time in prison for felonies 
        committed as a member of a domestic terrorist group and who was 
        not a participant in the PreCheck program.

SEC. 3. LIMITATION; PRECHECK OPERATIONS MAINTAINED; ALTERNATE METHODS.

    (a) In General.--Except as provided in subsection (d), not later 
than 180 days after the date of the enactment of this Act, the 
Administrator of the Transportation Security Administration shall 
direct that access to expedited airport security screening at an 
airport security checkpoint be limited to only the following:
            (1) A passenger who voluntarily submits biographic and 
        biometric information for a security risk assessment and whose 
        application for the PreCheck program has been approved, or a 
        passenger who is a participant in another trusted or registered 
        traveler program of the Department of Homeland Security.
            (2) A passenger traveling pursuant to section 44903 of 
        title 49, United States Code (as established under the Risk-
        Based Security for Members of the Armed Forces Act (Public Law 
        112-86)), section 44927 of such title (as established under the 
        Helping Heroes Fly Act (Public Law 113-27)), or section 44928 
        of such title (as established under the Honor Flight Act 
        (Public Law 113-221)).
            (3) A passenger who did not voluntarily submit biographic 
        and biometric information for a security risk assessment but is 
        a member of a population designated by the Administrator of the 
        Transportation Security Administration as known and low-risk 
        and who may be issued a unique, known traveler number by the 
        Administrator determining that such passenger is a member of a 
        category of travelers designated by the Administrator as known 
        and low-risk.
    (b) PreCheck Operations Maintained.--In carrying out subsection 
(a), the Administrator of the Transportation Security Administration 
shall ensure that expedited airport security screening remains 
available to passengers at or above the level that exists on the day 
before the date of the enactment of this Act.
    (c) Minors and Seniors.--The Administrator of the Transportation 
Security Administration may provide access to expedited airport 
security screening at an airport security checkpoint to a passenger who 
is--
            (1) 75 years old or older; or
            (2) 12 years old or under and who is traveling with a 
        parent or guardian who is a participant in the PreCheck 
        program.
    (d) Frequent Fliers.--If the Administrator of the Transportation 
Security Administration determines that such is appropriate, the date 
specified in subsection (a) may be extended by up to 1 year to 
implement such subsection with respect to the population of passengers 
who did not voluntarily submit biographic and biometric information for 
security risk assessments but who nevertheless receive expedited 
airport security screening because such passengers are designated as 
frequent fliers by air carriers. If the Administrator uses the 
authority provided by this subsection, the Administrator shall notify 
the Committee on Homeland Security of the House of Representatives and 
the Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs and the 
Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation of the Senate of 
such phased-in implementation.
    (e) Alternate Methods.--The Administrator of the Transportation 
Security Administration may provide access to expedited airport 
security screening to additional passengers pursuant to an alternate 
method upon the submission to the Committee on Homeland Security of the 
House of Representatives and the Committee on Commerce, Science, and 
Transportation of the Senate of an independent assessment of the 
security effectiveness of such alternate method that is conducted by an 
independent entity that determines that such alternate method is 
designed to--
            (1) reliably and effectively identify passengers who likely 
        pose a low risk to the United States aviation system;
            (2) mitigate the likelihood that a passenger who may pose a 
        security threat to the United States aviation system is 
        selected for expedited security screening; and
            (3) address known and evolving security risks to the United 
        States aviation system.
    (f) Information Sharing.--The Administrator of the Transportation 
Security Administration shall provide to the entity conducting the 
independent assessment under subsection (c) effectiveness testing 
results that are consistent with established evaluation design 
practices, as identified by the Comptroller General of the United 
States.

SEC. 4. REPORTING.

    Not later than 3 months after the date of the enactment of this Act 
and annually thereafter, the Administrator of the Transportation 
Security Administration shall report to the Committee on Homeland 
Security of the House of Representatives and the Committee on Commerce, 
Science, and Transportation of the Senate on the percentage of all 
passengers who are provided expedited security screening, and of such 
passengers so provided, the percentage who are participants in the 
PreCheck program (who have voluntarily submitted biographic and 
biometric information for security risk assessments), the percentage 
who are participants in another trusted traveler program of the 
Department of Homeland Security, the percentage who are participants in 
the PreCheck program due to the Administrator's issuance of known 
traveler numbers, and for the remaining percentage of passengers 
granted access to expedited security screening in PreCheck security 
lanes, information on the percentages attributable to each alternative 
method utilized by the Transportation Security Administration to direct 
passengers to expedited airport security screening at PreCheck security 
lanes.

SEC. 5. RULE OF CONSTRUCTION.

    Nothing in this Act may be construed to--
            (1) authorize or direct the Administrator of the 
        Transportation Administration to reduce or limit the 
        availability of expedited security screening at an airport; or
            (2) limit the authority of the Administrator to use 
        technologies and systems, including passenger screening canines 
        and explosives trace detection, as a part of security screening 
        operations.

            Passed the House of Representatives July 27, 2015.

            Attest:

                                                                 Clerk.
114th CONGRESS

  1st Session

                               H. R. 2127

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 AN ACT

      To direct the Administrator of the Transportation Security 
Administration to limit access to expedited airport security screening 
   at an airport security checkpoint to participants of the PreCheck 
  program and other known low-risk passengers, and for other purposes.