[House Hearing, 112 Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
BIOMETRIC IDs FOR PILOTS
AND TRANSPORTATION WORKERS:
DIARY OF FAILURES
=======================================================================
(112-26)
HEARING
BEFORE THE
COMMITTEE ON
TRANSPORTATION AND INFRASTRUCTURE
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
ONE HUNDRED TWELFTH CONGRESS
FIRST SESSION
__________
APRIL 14, 2011
__________
Printed for the use of the
Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure
Available online at: http://www.gpo.gov/fdsys/browse/
committee.action?chamber=house&committee=transportation
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COMMITTEE ON TRANSPORTATION AND INFRASTRUCTURE
JOHN L. MICA, Florida, Chairman
DON YOUNG, Alaska NICK J. RAHALL II, West Virginia
THOMAS E. PETRI, Wisconsin PETER A. DeFAZIO, Oregon
HOWARD COBLE, North Carolina JERRY F. COSTELLO, Illinois
JOHN J. DUNCAN, Jr., Tennessee ELEANOR HOLMES NORTON, District of
FRANK A. LoBIONDO, New Jersey Columbia
GARY G. MILLER, California JERROLD NADLER, New York
TIMOTHY V. JOHNSON, Illinois CORRINE BROWN, Florida
SAM GRAVES, Missouri BOB FILNER, California
BILL SHUSTER, Pennsylvania EDDIE BERNICE JOHNSON, Texas
SHELLEY MOORE CAPITO, West Virginia ELIJAH E. CUMMINGS, Maryland
JEAN SCHMIDT, Ohio LEONARD L. BOSWELL, Iowa
CANDICE S. MILLER, Michigan TIM HOLDEN, Pennsylvania
DUNCAN HUNTER, California RICK LARSEN, Washington
ANDY HARRIS, Maryland MICHAEL E. CAPUANO, Massachusetts
ERIC A. ``RICK'' CRAWFORD, Arkansas TIMOTHY H. BISHOP, New York
JAIME HERRERA BEUTLER, Washington MICHAEL H. MICHAUD, Maine
FRANK C. GUINTA, New Hampshire RUSS CARNAHAN, Missouri
RANDY HULTGREN, Illinois GRACE F. NAPOLITANO, California
LOU BARLETTA, Pennsylvania DANIEL LIPINSKI, Illinois
CHIP CRAVAACK, Minnesota MAZIE K. HIRONO, Hawaii
BLAKE FARENTHOLD, Texas JASON ALTMIRE, Pennsylvania
LARRY BUCSHON, Indiana TIMOTHY J. WALZ, Minnesota
BILLY LONG, Missouri HEATH SHULER, North Carolina
BOB GIBBS, Ohio STEVE COHEN, Tennessee
PATRICK MEEHAN, Pennsylvania LAURA RICHARDSON, California
RICHARD L. HANNA, New York ALBIO SIRES, New Jersey
STEPHEN LEE FINCHER, Tennessee DONNA F. EDWARDS, Maryland
JEFFREY M. LANDRY, Louisiana
STEVE SOUTHERLAND II, Florida
JEFF DENHAM, California
JAMES LANKFORD, Oklahoma
VACANCY
(ii)
CONTENTS
Page
Summary of Subject Matter........................................ iv
TESTIMONY
Furlani, Cita M., Director, Information Technology Laboratory,
National Institute of Standards and Technology, Department of
Commerce....................................................... 5
Gilligan, Margaret, Associate Administrator for Aviation Safety,
Federal Aviation Administration................................ 5
PREPARED STATEMENTS SUBMITTED BY WITNESSES
Furlani, Cita M.................................................. 22
Gilligan, Margaret............................................... 30
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BIOMETRIC IDs FOR PILOTS
AND TRANSPORTATION WORKERS:
DIARY OF FAILURES
----------
THURSDAY, APRIL 14, 2011
House of Representatives,
Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure,
Washington, DC.
The committee met, pursuant to notice, at 9:30 a.m. in Room
2253, Rayburn House Office Building, Hon. John L. Mica
(Chairman of the committee) presiding.
Mr. Mica. I would like to call this hearing of the House
Transportation and Infrastructure Committee to order this
morning. I welcome you. This is an Oversight and Investigations
hearing that will focus on the issue of the use of biometric
credentials for airline pilots and other transportation
workers. And this is, again, part of our investigations and
oversight of our committee, and being handled this morning at
the full committee level. And I appreciate the participation of
other Members this morning. I think we will be joined by a few
more. There are conflicting schedules; I apologize for the
delay in beginning this. We had our governor in town, so we
ended up with a triple booking this morning, and I appreciate
everyone's courtesy in allowing us to start a little bit late
this morning.
The topic and--the order of business will be opening
statements by Members, and then we will go to our witnesses.
And if anyone would like to submit comments or additional
information to the record, without objection that will be so
ordered.
Again, the purpose for us being here this morning is to
review the progress and sometimes the lack of progress in
producing a pilot's license that has both information that
identifies the pilot in a manner that we prescribed some time
ago--I think 6 or 7 years ago--by law. At that particular
juncture, when we found the pilot's license looked like it sort
of came out of a Cracker Jack box, it was just a little folded
piece of paper, could easily be duplicated, we passed a law
that said we should have a biometric measure, we should have a
photograph, and that we should have a durable identification
card. That was enacted by law some time ago, and we still don't
have that particular card available.
Do we have a copy of one of the--may I? If you want to
bring that up here, and maybe just put it in front, this is
what we have ended up with, is--here, let me just take this,
here. You can see, again, the only pilots that are on the
license that has been produced at millions of taxpayer dollars,
the only pilots on the license that is now in use is--happened
to be Wilbur and Orville Wright. And the back of this
particular license has a metallic strip. And, unfortunately, it
does not have the biometric capability that we asked for in
law.
So, they spent millions of dollars in producing this
pilot's license that, again, does not meet what we believe is
required by law, and does not provide us with identification.
And although we do not have anyone from TSA here today to
testify, in fact, TSA will not accept this as an identification
card.
What is even more disturbing is we spent about $420
million, we will be approaching half-a-billion dollars on
producing a transportation worker identification card. We have
passed in law requirements on a number of occasions, and I
believe at least four times into Federal law, the production of
a transportation identification card that would have a
biometric measure, capable of having several measures, both
thumbprint, iris, and then also, of course, a photograph of the
transportation worker.
Having spent nearly a half-a-billion dollars on this, we
have produced a card. They have been distributed. We do have
biometric capability, we do have a photograph. However, we do
not have a reader, and we have yet to establish a standard or
agree on a standard for a biometric measure of iris.
So, in both of the programs, while the pilot license is
almost a complete disaster, what concerns me is that TSA has
now embarked on two programs, one in, I think, 2007--one was a
crew access program, and--creating several pilot programs
working, I think probably with good intentions, with some of
the pilot associations. But in 2007 they worked on CrewPASS and
in 2010 the administrator announced his intent to expand a new
program, and that is Known Crewmember, to seven airports at the
end of last year.
So, we have a pilot's license that TSA will not accept as
identification, it doesn't meet the criteria set forth in law.
We have a transportation worker--and we spent millions of
dollars on that--we have a transportation worker identification
card which is in use now, but we don't have the use or
acceptable reader, nor do we have iris standard developed. So,
that is where we find ourselves.
I am disappointed that TSA again has declined this
committee's invitation to testify on their action and their
current work in developing a biometric crewmember credential
and pilot's license. I don't believe that the industry should
be responsible for setting a standard or developing a pass that
should be--that would be used and would be acceptable. I
believe that is clearly the responsibility of the Federal
Government, and something that we have attempted to do by law.
Now, since TSA has decided not to show up here today, I
have consulted with the chairman of the Homeland Security
Committee and also with an investigative panel on which I also
serve, and I can assure you that we will have TSA testifying,
either at a joint future hearing with one of those two
committees to, again, try to get some responsiveness from an
agency that, for some reason, does not want to respond, nor
participate in developing an identification card, both for
transportation workers or for pilots or for the many
individuals who are involved in transportation work and do so
in a cost-effective and timely manner.
So, that is where we find ourselves today. Very
disappointed. A huge amount of taxpayer money has been
expended. You would think that we could also have some better
response from the agency that is primarily charged with this.
Come on in, Mr. Farenthold. We can put Members right up
here, too. We are a little squeezed for space today, but those
arriving a little bit late will get the front row. We haven't
used this hearing room too much because, again, the size of the
committee. But we have--every bit of space in the Capitol that
we, I think, the Transportation and Infrastructure Committee,
has available is being used today.
Mr. Boswell, come up and join us up here. And staff is
welcome to just put a chair up here. I want to make sure all of
our Members are accommodated.
But again, I thank the Members for joining us today. I wish
it could be under different circumstances, and we could have
the cooperation of TSA, but we do not have it today. But we
will get it in the future, as I said, one way or the other.
With that, I would like to recognize any other Members for
opening statements. Mr. Long? Mr. Cravaack?
Mr. Cravaack. Thank you, Mr. Chairman, and thank you for
all the people that have come out today. This is a very
important issue, and kind of near and dear to my heart, so I
appreciate you coming here today.
I would like to welcome the witnesses on our panel. I look
forward to hearing your testimony regarding the FAA and TSA's
biometric transportation credential efforts. I am very
disappointed that TSA is not here today. I had some very
pointed questions that I wanted to ask them, and I am very
disappointed they are--for them not being here today.
As you know, the United States transportation system
remains a target and a means through which the terrorists seek
to attack our homeland. I appreciate your efforts taken in the
wake of 9/11 to protect our transportation system from attack.
A number of bills have been enacted to direct a cost-effective,
risk-based approach in protecting our credentialing system.
To date, a number of our statutory directives requiring the
issuance of biometric credentials have not been implemented, or
have been partially implemented. To me, this is very
disappointing.
I look forward to hearing from our witnesses about what is
presently being done to comply with the law, and why there has
been such a delay to this point. I thank you again, and I look
forward to hearing your testimony, and I yield back, sir.
Mr. Mica. Thank you. And I would like to recognize any
other Members that may have opening statements. You are
recognized, Mr. Landry.
Mr. Landry. Thank you. It is good to be so close to you
all.
[Laughter.]
Mr. Landry. I thank the Chairman for calling this hearing
today. I certainly want to ensure that our transportation
system is as secure as possible. Every day our transportation
system moves more than 1.4 million shipments of hazardous
materials, any of which could potentially be used to harm
Americans. Securing all this cargo is daunting. No one doubts
that fact. But it is also achievable.
Unfortunately, some of our security interests--security
entities have lost sight of an important part of the
transportation security system feasibility. I wish that the
Transportation Security Administration had accepted our
invitation to come to today's hearing, because they need to
hear this. Right now, TSA is worried about their own
feasibility, what is easiest for them. I think that TSA needs
to worry more about what is feasible for the worker.
To me, TSA's requirement that a worker--for a worker to
make two visits to the TWIC enrollment center, one to enroll
for their TWIC card and another to pick up the card is the
definition of an unnecessary burden. Now, I know that TSA has
said that a TWIC card must meet the FIPS 201 standard, and must
be in the worker's possession at all times, and I know that the
soon-to-be-released GAO report will probably say that mailing
is not an option, but what about other solutions? Are we
honestly telling transportation workers, ``Sorry, guys, your
government has thought long and hard about this situation and
the entire universe of possible solutions we have been able to
brainstorm, and all we can come up with is to get''--I am
sorry--``we have been able to brainstorm is you come to get the
card or we mail it to you, and our accountant tells us that the
last one is no good,'' meaning mailing it to you.
Come on. We are all smart people here. We can figure out a
way that the worker does not have to make a second trip just to
pick up the card. For some TWIC workers, this means a trip of
hundreds of miles, and they have to make this trip twice. We
need to do better than that.
I also have another issue with the TWIC card. Recently a
company in my district got in trouble with DHS because they did
not have I-9's on file for all of its employees, even though
the company had a record of all of these employees' driver's
licenses, birth certificates, Coast Guard licenses, and a TWIC
card. Considering the fact that everyone would have to have--
considering the fact that everything one would have to have to
secure a TWIC card is at least that stringent, if not more
stringent, than the information one needs to secure an I-9,
can't we change the law to ensure that a TWIC card can serve as
an I-9, thereby lessening the paperwork that companies such as
the one in my district are required to comply with?
Again, I wish that the TSA were here to address these
issues, but I do not know--but I do know they are watching this
hearing. So I just wanted to put them on notice about the
concerns on the TWIC card.
Thank you, Mr. Chairman.
Mr. Mica. Thank you. Any other Members seek recognition?
[No response.]
Mr. Mica. Well, again, the order of business will be we
will turn to our witnesses. And, as you can see, Mr. Pistole
has the--the administrator of TSA--has refused to appear. It
also concerns me that Mr. John Schwartz, who is the TWIC
program manager, transportation worker identification
credential program manager of--and he is with the Department of
Homeland Security--has also refused to appear before the
committee today.
For those Members who have joined us just lately, we are
consulting with both the Homeland Security Committee, Oversight
and Government Reform Investigative Committee, and we will have
them appear one way or the other, either in a joint hearing or
through the other committees. Because, again, I thought it was
not unreasonable for us to ask them to comment on this.
And since they now are involved in two pilot--have been
involved in two pilot programs to develop pilot licenses and--
or identification cards that they would be using in lieu of a
pilot's license, and we are producing a pilot's license at
great public cost, I thought the least that they could do is
come and provide us with a status of both of those programs:
TWIC, which is the transportation worker identification card;
and the pilot's license issue.
We also tried to meet with them behind closed doors. The
intent of the committee's work is not to embarrass any agency.
And we did conduct a meeting. Some of you participated in that
behind closed doors. And we, unfortunately, had the same
response and unwillingness to work with the committee from TSA.
So I can say to all the Members they are not building a very
good strong warm, fuzzy relationship in their effort to assist
us.
And I know they have been distracted this week. If you just
watch television and--you see the current issues of an agency
that is struggling to gain control of itself and its important
security mission.
So with that being said, we are pleased to have two
witnesses this morning who can shed some highlights and review
with the committee the progress both of the pilot's license,
which was mandated by law, prescribed by law to FAA, and they
had undertaken that mission with some difficulty, as we learned
in both the closed door meeting, and we will hear more about
today. So we have Peggy Gilligan, who is associate
administrator for the--for aviation security of FAA. And Ms.
Cita Furlani, the director of Information Technology Laboratory
of the National Institute of Standards and Technology, who sets
some of the standards that are required for these
identification documents.
So, with that, maybe we could--I could recognize first Ms.
Gilligan, and you could give us sort of a history of the
problems we have encountered with the pilot's license and also
the status of where we are going from here.
So, welcome, and you are recognized.
TESTIMONY OF MARGARET GILLIGAN, ASSOCIATE ADMINISTRATOR FOR
AVIATION SAFETY, FEDERAL AVIATION ADMINISTRATION; AND CITA M.
FURLANI, DIRECTOR, INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY LABORATORY, NATIONAL
INSTITUTE OF STANDARDS AND TECHNOLOGY, DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE
Ms. Gilligan. Thank you, Mr. Chairman. Thank you, Chairman
Mica, Congressman Rahall, and members of the committee. I want
to thank you for the opportunity to appear before you today on
the issue of embedding biometric identifiers on pilot
certificates.
I know that this issue has been of significant interest to
you, Mr. Chairman, because, as you mentioned, we have had
several meetings on the topic. In these meetings, it has been
clear that FAA has not acted as directed by this committee, not
as quickly nor as comprehensively as intended. But I would like
to outline what FAA has done in the area, and how we intend to
move forward.
The purpose of the pilot certificate for many years was
simply to document that the holder met the required
aeronautical knowledge and experience standards to fly an
airplane. For decades, paper certificates worked effectively
for that intended purpose.
Starting in the late 1980s, law enforcement agencies, with
mandates other than aviation safety, began to see potential
misuse of pilot certificates as they engaged in activities
related to the war against drugs. In 1988, the Drug Enforcement
Assistance Act required FAA to phase out paper certificates and
replace them with tamper-resistant certificates. As of April
2010, all pilots have received enhanced plastic certificates.
Those certificates were at a cost of $2.7 million for all of
the 700,000 pilots that we have in our registry. We continue to
replace certificates for mechanics, dispatchers, and other
certificate holders, and those will be completed by March of
2013.
Mr. Chairman, I know you question the value of our new
certificates, but I can assure you that the colors, holograms,
and even the images of Orville and Wilbur Wright have made it
very difficult for our new certificates to be forged.
After the tragic events of September 11, 2001, with
aviation playing such a central role in the disaster,
additional risks were identified for pilot certificates. In
October 2002, we required all pilots to carry a government-
issued photo ID any time they were exercising their pilot
privileges. This way, any FAA inspector who asked for pilot
credentials, and every fixed-base operator who leased an
aircraft, could confirm the person's identity, as well as their
qualifications to fly.
The Intelligence Reform and Terrorism Prevention Act of
2004 imposed additional requirements on the certificate, beyond
just being tamper-resistant. It called for a photograph and
that it be capable of accommodating a digital photo or other
biometric identifiers. We did not act right away. We did not
act quickly. Without any experience in the area of----
Mr. Mica. If I could interrupt the witness for just a
second, some of the Members came in late, and Mr. Boswell just
gave us his pilot's license. And, as you just heard the witness
testify, Congress required that there be a photo on the ID, a
biometric measure, and it be durable. Well, the license that
was produced actually meets one of those requirements. It is
durable. The only pilots to appear on the license that was
issued--and this is Mr. Boswell--is Wilbur and Orville Wright.
And although I guess he looks a little bit like Wilbur----
[Laughter.]
Mr. Mica. This is the ID that millions of dollars has
produced. And the biometric strip, or the metallic strip here,
does not have the biometric capability that was required in
law.
So, thank you for loaning us this. And it is Exhibit A. We
had another one here, but you can see what was issued. Yes,
yes, that was a bigger one. But this is the real one. And thank
you, Mr. Boswell, for handing that to the Chair.
And I apologize for interrupting, but it does show what has
been produced. You may continue.
Ms. Gilligan. Thank you, sir. Without any experience, or
expertise in the area of biometrics, we understood that other
government agencies such as NIST were developing biometric
standards. And at that time the newly formed Transportation
Security Administration was looking at what would be the
appropriate identifiers for transportation workers. We were
hopeful not to duplicate or otherwise interfere with those
efforts and, in fact, to take advantage of them.
After waiting far too long, in November of 2010 we issued a
notice of proposed rulemaking that proposed to require that all
pilots, including student pilots, possess certificates with a
digital photo, which is generally considered to be a biometric
identifier. The comment period for that rulemaking closed in
February.
Due to the broad scope and the economic impact of the rule
on over 700,000 certificated pilots, we proposed to phase in
the requirement over a 5-year period. FAA recognizes that this
timeframe is not consistent with the act's direction, which
called for us to begin modifying certificates in 2005. But we
are working hard to finalize that rulemaking.
While we proposed the requirement for the digital photo, we
didn't know what other type of biometric information to include
on the certificate, or how to set up the infrastructure to
collect and protect fingerprints or other biometric data from
700,000 pilots. So we did not move forward, as the committee
expected.
We all support the goal of enhancing aviation security and
maximizing resources in order to achieve a single, universal
security credential, incorporating biometric data that meets
common standards. To meet this goal we will continue to work
with TSA on its proposal to establish a universal ID for
transportation workers.
We need to understand how best to move forward to improve
the use of biometric data to ensure the security of the pilot
community and enhance aviation security. This requires
coordination among government agencies and cooperation with
airlines, industry trade associations, and aviation labor
organizations. We recognize the advantages of developing
security-enhancing uses for airmen biometrics, and we look
forward to working with this committee as our efforts progress.
Mr. Chairman, I will take whatever questions.
Mr. Mica. Thank you. And we will hold questions. We have
got another witness that we want to hear from first, and that
is the director of the information technology laboratory, at
the National Institute of Standards and Technology, who helped
develop some of those standards and requirements for these
identification documents, and that is Cita Furlani.
Welcome, and you are recognized.
Ms. Furlani. Thank you, Chairman Mica and Ranking Member
Rahall and members of the committee. I am Cita Furlani,
director of the Information Technology Laboratory at the
Department of Commerce's National Institute of Standards and
Technology. Thank you for the opportunity to appear before you
today to discuss our role in standards and testing for
biometrics and identity management.
NIST's mission is to promote U.S. innovation and industrial
competitiveness by advancing measurement science, standards and
technology in ways that enhance economic security and improve
our quality of life.
Founded in 1901, NIST is a non-regulatory Federal agency.
We have more than four decades of experience in improving the
quality, usability, and consistency of human identification
systems, responding to government and market requirements. We
perform research and collaborate with other Federal agencies,
academia, and industry partners to support timely development
of biometric standards and to develop required conformance
testing architectures and testing tools.
NIST has developed standards to support Federal agencies'
information security requirements for many years beginning in
the early 1970s, with the enactment of the Brooks Act. Through
the Federal Information Security Management Act, or FISMA, of
2002, Congress reaffirmed this leadership role in developing
standards for cyber security. FISMA provides for the
development and promulgation of Federal Information Processing
Standards, or FIPS, that are compulsory and binding for Federal
computer systems other than national security systems.
The responsibility for the development of FIPS rests with
NIST. The authority to promulgate mandatory FIPS is given to
the Secretary of Commerce. NIST develops FIPS when there are
compelling Federal Government requirements such as for security
and interoperability and there are no acceptable industry
standards or solutions.
To satisfy the requirements of Homeland Security
Presidential Directive 12, NIST developed FIPS 201, entitled,
``Personal Identity Verification,'' or PIV, ``of Federal
Employees and Contractors.'' It was approved by the Secretary
of Commerce and issued in 2005. 6.2 million cards that comply
with FIPS 201 have been issued to Federal employees and
contractors. In addition, the Department of Defense Common
Access Cards are conformant.
FIPS 201 incorporates in NIST Special Publication 800-76,
which describes technical specifications for the biometric
credentials of the PIV system, including the PIV card itself.
This document is currently being updated to include optional
use of compact iris image records, with iris records required
in the absence of fingerprints. This update is an important
step forward in the use of biometric data for PIV.
NIST is engaging the public in the development and review
of this document, which is expected to be released soon for
public comment. Under the provisions of the National Technology
Transfer and Advancement Act, and OMB Circular A-119, NIST is
tasked with the role of encouraging and coordinating Federal
agency use of voluntary consensus standards, and participation
in the development of such relevant standards.
In fact, United States-led international efforts have
produced standards publicly adopted by the European community
and by Australia. We continue to work with these standards
committees to ensure compatibility with Federal credentials,
and to address the needs of non-Federal communities.
Conformance testing to biometric standards measures whether
a product's implementation faithfully implements the
specification. NIST actively contributes to the development of
these conformance testing methodologies. The usability and ease
of use of biometric systems is an overarching need for deployed
biometric systems within the Federal Government. We have
applied our expertise in usability and biometrics to study
biometric systems in border security and airport environments.
With NIST's extensive experience and broad array of
expertise both in its laboratories and its successful
collaborations with the private sector and other government
agencies, we are actively pursuing the standards and
measurement research necessary to deploy reliable, usable,
interoperable, and secure identity management systems.
Thank you for the opportunity to testify today on NIST's
activities in biometrics and identity management. I would be
happy to answer any questions you may have.
Mr. Mica. Well, thank you, and I thank both of our
witnesses. We are, again, disappointed that TSA would not show
up.
We are right now engaged in producing a transportation
worker identification card and making certain it is properly
deployed, and also involved in creating a credential for pilots
that would be used instead of current pilot's licenses for
identification, since the pilot's license that we now have is
not acceptable to TSA.
Let me just ask Peggy Gilligan, who is with FAA and
overseeing aviation security and documentation for the pilots,
if that is, in fact, the case, do you know that TSA will accept
the pilot's license for identification purposes that you have
produced?
Ms. Gilligan. You are correct, sir. It is not used as an
identification method at this point. Again, as I testified----
Mr. Mica. Because it does not have a photograph. Is that--I
guess that is the principle reason.
Ms. Gilligan. I would assume so. Again, right now, the
certificate demonstrates what your qualifications are, as a
pilot, which is historically the reason that we issued it. We
issued it so that we would know that, in fact, someone was
competent and qualified to fly an airplane.
Certainly, as we look at the biometric requirements, it may
be able to fill the role of an identification card, and that is
part of what we are coordinating with TSA. We want to assure we
don't have a proliferation of identification cards, to your
point, sir.
Mr. Mica. How much have we spent on the program so far?
Ms. Gilligan. For the FAA licenses?
Mr. Mica. Yes.
Ms. Gilligan. It has cost us about $2.7 million to replace
all of the pilot certificates, and we have about 700,000 active
pilots.
Mr. Mica. And are they all--have all of the pilots received
the new license now?
Ms. Gilligan. As of April 2010, this month, they will have
completed that. Yes, sir.
Mr. Mica. And the reason for not having either the
biometric standard or--well, the photograph would be sort of a
simple thing. Was there any reason that they didn't include the
photograph as, I thought we directed fairly clearly by law? Is
there any reason for not having the--at least the pilot's
photograph, instead of Wilbur and Orville?
Ms. Gilligan. Yes, sir. When we began the program to
replace the certificates with the plastic tamper-proof
certificates, that was in response to a different legislative
direction that we had received earlier. That process was
already underway, and we allowed that to go forward and it was
completed.
We have now, as you know--and I will acknowledge and take
responsibility for being way too late in the process--but we
have now proposed to require digital photographs, as well as to
try to develop a process for the 700,000 pilots to be able to
provide those photographs in a convenient way around----
Mr. Mica. How long will it be, and how much is--is that
going to be another $2.7 million to also get out new--or is it
going to cost more or less?
Ms. Gilligan. The notice of proposed rulemaking has already
been out for comment. The comment period has closed. And so now
we are considering the comments from the pilots about the
program. We will issue the final rule within about a year, and
then we will set a timeframe for that replacement process.
Because, again, there are----
Mr. Mica. So it will be a year before you establish the
rule, and then you start replacing those cards after that. And
what is the estimated cost?
Ms. Gilligan. We had proposed a 5-year time period for
completely replacing all of the pilot certificates. We will
consider that time period as we go to the final rule. That may
change. And I apologize, sir, I don't have the number off the
top of my head. The notice of proposed rulemaking did have the
proposed cost, or----
Mr. Mica. So that would take us----
Ms. Gilligan [continuing]. The anticipated cost. I can
provide that.
Mr. Mica [continuing]. To 2012 before we get a decision on
which way we are going, and with what kind of card. And then it
will take us another 5 years to get the new cards out, and I am
sure at least another 2.7--2017, that would be about a decade
to get the cards out, as they should be produced.
Ms. Gilligan. I understand your frustration, sir.
Mr. Mica. OK.
Ms. Gilligan. But we do have a community of 700,000 pilots.
It will take a while for us to be able to replace those
certificates.
Mr. Mica. And finally, when you do the card--now the
standards have been in place for some time. At least for part
of the biometric measure, which is the fingerprint, and also
the information and data arranged in an order set by the--what
do you call it, NIST----
Ms. Gilligan. NIST.
Mr. Mica. National Institute of Standards and Technology. I
should say the whole thing, so people know what we are talking
about. But they have, in fact, set the standards. Other
agencies have adopted the cards.
When we did our little roundtable behind closed doors we
saw the cards that most of the other agencies have produced.
What prompted some of this, Members, is we also have received a
Coast Guard--one of the Coast Guard officers showed me his
identification card, which is in compliance with the standards
that have been set, and has incredible capabilities, including
computer access from anywhere, and is encoded with, again, all
of the information that is necessary for that individual, both
for identification and then for certain types of access. But
those standards are available. And the new card, I would
imagine, would meet those standards. And it would have a
photograph.
And just a final question to Ms. Furlani. The biometric
standard for iris, that is still in progress. And while we have
some readers, we have 1.5 million TWIC cards that have been
issued, but we really don't have readers that are being used on
a regular basis. Some, I learned, were approved, but they are
not being used. So, we have identification card, which has part
of the biometrics.
Your--so it is a twofold question, two-part question. When
will you finish the iris capability? And then, when would we
have a reader that could actually be used and employ both iris,
fingerprint, and of course, it would have the photo?
Ms. Furlani. The iris standard will be--the draft
publication will be published in the next--very soon, within
days.
Mr. Mica. In the next very soon?
[Laughter.]
Ms. Furlani. Well, hopefully before next week.
Mr. Mica. All right.
Ms. Furlani. But it is in progress. And what that is, of
course, has been worked with the industry partners who do
develop the cameras that collect the iris information. And one
reason that the standard will be so readily adopted is because
there are many vendors producing those cameras. So they are
available, and they will agree with--be able to use the
standard.
Mr. Mica. And when would this standard be issued?
Ms. Furlani. In about--well, we put it out for public
comment, we review all those comments, and if there are
significant changes that come in, then we would put out a
second draft. So it is over a period of months, but it is to
be----
Mr. Mica. By the end of the year?
Ms. Furlani. Oh, yes, yes.
Mr. Mica. Oh, yes. OK. So we will have a card that we have
asked for by law, or--and standards for identification card. I
think we have asked for it at least four times in law, various
legislation, some time this year. And we will have all those
requirements and a standard. And you will also be adopting
those standards, Ms. Gilligan, for FAA for the pilot's license.
Ms. Gilligan. Yes, sir. We certainly look at those. Again,
I think the infrastructure necessary to use----
Mr. Mica. OK. Well, that might be a--Mr.--we have a vice
chairman of the aviation subcommittee, may be in conference. We
could be very specific about what they should do, at least
adopting the standards.
And when we held this behind-closed-doors meeting, we had
all the agencies and DOD and others, except for TSA and
Homeland Security, of course, but--and even the House Sergeant
at Arms, because we thought it would be good for House Members
to have a card that also incorporates the standards that have
been adapted to. It would just--I think it would make sense.
Sometimes, you know, I have these wild ideas.
But again, let me yield to other Members. Let me go--Mr.
Cravaack, our vice chairman, and then we will go to other
Members for questions. You are recognized.
Mr. Cravaack. Thank you, Mr. Chairman. And, once again,
thank you for coming here today on a pretty important issue,
actually, from my perspective.
One of the things I am kind of concerned about is TSA. And
I wish--again, I wish that TSA was here today. But their new
program, Known Crewmember, is the FAA aware of this program?
Were they able to discuss with you what their intentions were,
and what were your thoughts on that?
Ms. Gilligan. I am aware of the program, I have talked with
some of the representatives from the Air Line Pilots
Association who were involved in it, as well as the Air
Transport Association. So I am familiar with the effort, which
is an effort to allow crewmembers to pass through security
perhaps a little more quickly, because of the known nature of
their need to be at the airport and inside the secure area.
Mr. Cravaack. Right. And all they are doing is using their
airline ID, correct?
Ms. Gilligan. That is correct.
Mr. Cravaack. To go through. And that is the only source of
identification?
Ms. Gilligan. As I understand it, they are going to use the
airline ID, the employee ID number, and have access to a
computer base that will confirm that that number is associated
with the individual presenting the card.
Mr. Cravaack. OK. So they do back it up, via----
Ms. Gilligan. My understanding is that that is what it will
be. I don't know where they are in the pilot programs.
Mr. Cravaack. Yes. One of the things I just caution is that
sometimes, you know, in not-too-distant history, in a FedEx
incident where there was a disgruntled employee that got access
to a jump seat in a cockpit, took the crew axe out and
butchered the pilots. So we want to make sure that that
obviously does not occur.
And with that said, I do applaud trying to expedite
crewmembers--and I would say crewmembers including all flight
crew--getting through these systems. But it does take a--by the
way, Mr. Chairman, I do like the card of Orville. I thought it
was a very nice card, by the way, it is very nicely done.
Ms. Gilligan. Thank you.
Mr. Cravaack. And--but I do think that we do need an
expedited process of getting flight crews through there,
because I remember going through and them pulling tweezers out
of my bag when I had a huge crash axe right behind me and quite
a large aircraft that I could have done a lot of things with.
So, you know, being able to trust pilots is essential. But
with that said, we have to have very updated data to make sure
that there is not any pilots or crewmembers that would be
trying to infiltrate the system, you know, by somebody--
somebody had an action against them, had their ID pulled, or
used some other ID to get through. That is what concerns me the
most. And I think biometric devices like a retina scan or
something like that would be very good in this process, and
give a lot of faith and confidence to the public, as we go
through. So, I appreciate that.
What is it--in regards to your knowledge with the--sir, I
don't have a counter on here, I don't want to take too much
time, but I do not see----
Mr. Mica. No, we do not have a counter today, but just to--
--
Mr. Cravaack. OK. Good.
Mr. Mica. Try to share the time.
Mr. Cravaack. OK, thank you. To your knowledge, did TSA
consider a biometric pilot license instead of airline IDs prior
to this?
Ms. Gilligan. We have had ongoing and longstanding
conversations with TSA on exactly what should be the way to
identify pilots--in this case, and transportation workers,
generally. And I know the Chairman shares a concern about a
proliferation of identification----
Mr. Cravaack. Right.
Ms. Gilligan [continuing]. Cards for different purposes.
But we have not been very successful in drawing those
conversations to a conclusion. And I know that is the source of
the Chairman's frustration. But we will continue to work that.
Mr. Cravaack. And if I could just offer a suggestion, I
think the airlines themselves would be more than happy to
partner with you, because we all had IDs with pictures on them.
So you have a source of--and those have to be--I can't remember
how many years they had to be updated, so I am sure that they
could partner with you, as well.
And I don't want to take too much time here, so--but thank
you very much, again, for coming. I do appreciate it. Again, I
wish we had had other members--the TSA--because I think it
would be a very good conversation to have. And, Mr. Chairman, I
yield back. Thank you.
Mr. Mica. Thank you.
Ms. Gilligan. Thank you.
Mr. Mica. Other Members for questions? Mr. Hanna?
Mr. Hanna. Ms. Gilligan, I am a private pilot, an amateur
pilot, but I spend a lot of time flying. And I just had my
license redone about a year ago and it cost me $2 to get
Orville and his brother's photograph on my card.
I thought at the time--and I know a lot of--I know hundreds
of pilots spend a lot of time around airports. They are kind of
like the bars for people who don't drink, you know, they are
real great places to hang out.
[Laughter.]
Ms. Gilligan. I am glad to hear they don't drink.
Mr. Hanna. No, they don't. No. That is one thing pilots
don't do is drink. It is--it really works better that way.
Ms. Gilligan. Yes.
[Laughter.]
Mr. Hanna. The--my point is it cost me $2 to get my license
replaced. You spent $2 million. You could have easily charged
me $5 and had it cost you nothing.
And you also stated that it took you 2 years to cycle
through 750,000 people, one of which was me. It seems to me
then, if that is the case, why should it take a year to do
something you know ultimately you are going to have to do? And
why should it take, beyond that, another 5 years to do it?
Because I can assure you there are no pilots who are against
this. If there is anybody who wants security at airports, it is
pilots, since, you know, they are busy when they are flying and
the last thing they need is trouble behind them.
It seems like--based on your own experience and what you
have been able to accomplish in the past, it seems like a long
time.
Ms. Gilligan. I understand that, sir. This is one of a
number of rulemakings we have underway. We have another half-
dozen rules which were directed by this committee last summer
with very short timeframes. So part of this is a resource issue
at FAA. But we will continue and finalize the rule.
Unfortunately, there are some pilots who do not necessarily
agree with this. We got about 400 comments suggesting that
there are lots of other ways pilots have identification, and
they do not consider their pilot certificate should be used for
identification purposes. They use their pilot's license for a
different reason. So, we will have to work our way through
those comments and make sure we are balancing the concerns
identified.
Then we have the dilemma of how to collect photos, and make
sure that the person giving us the photo is the person whose
certificate we want to issue. So we are looking at the
infrastructure of where will pilots have to go to be able to
bring us their photos or provide us the digital photos. So
there are some logistical issues involved with it, as well, all
of which we are working through as we finalize the rule.
Mr. Cravaack. Would you yield for a question?
Mr. Hanna. Oh, sure.
Mr. Cravaack. My--one of the questions I have is who is--
who actually needs the pilot's license with a picture on it?
Usually only those flying in a commercial status. So all
pilots, not necessarily, would need to have a picture or
biometric devices associated with their pilot's license, only
those working, for example, that would have to have access to a
secure area. Don't you think?
To be honest with you, for a security measure, only those
individuals would truly need to have the type of identification
that you are talking about. So not all pilots--not all 700,000
pilots--need to have this type of identification.
Ms. Gilligan. Well, the committee direction does require
all pilots. And, in addition, at the time, during the debate,
there was discussion about the potential security risk of
general aviation aircraft, and the idea that FBOs should be
able to properly identify people to whom they are leasing
aircraft. That these pilots would have somehow been vetted.
Now, of course--and I probably should have mentioned this
because some of the new Members may not know--the entire airman
registry is vetted through TSA and through other law
enforcement organizations regularly. It is now vetted 24 hours
a day, 7 days a week, 365 days a year, in an effort to identify
any known risk or threat from someone who may hold one of our
certificates. And if we are notified by TSA that there is a
risk, we revoke certificates based on the TSA determination of
a security risk.
So, we have addressed that sort of known risk when we are
able to identify it. So that is ongoing. But right now the
legislation does anticipate all pilots would, in fact, get the
new certificates with photographs and biometrics.
Mr. Cravaack. I will have to educate myself more on that.
Thank you very much, and I yield back, sir. Thank you.
Ms. Gilligan. Sir, we will be glad to come and talk with
you any time to let you know what we have done and where we are
going. Thank you.
Mr. Mica. OK. Mr. Hanna, were you finished?
Mr. Hanna. Do you happen to know AOPA's position on this?
Have they rendered one?
Ms. Gilligan. They have. I am sure they commented, sir. I
don't recall.
But I agree with you. Fundamentally, there is not a lot of
disagreement.
Mr. Hanna. I use a number of different airports, so I carry
a lot of cards.
Ms. Gilligan. Yes.
Mr. Hanna. So, for what little it matters, I would like
one.
Ms. Gilligan. Absolutely. And the Chairman has made that
point, as well.
Mr. Mica. Well, if the gentleman will yield----
Mr. Hanna. Yes.
Mr. Mica. You know they do have--TSA does have several
programs. They started one in 2007. Now we are on another one
in 2010 to produce credentials. But I don't believe it is the
role of the Air Line Pilots Association, the commercial
airliners, to produce identification that should be acceptable
by TSA or acceptable as a pilot's--in lieu of a pilot's
license. So, while we are producing a pilot's license already,
why not have that capability?
And the standards also that the National Institute is
setting, the type of card--and embedded in it you can have
encodement for all kinds of different levels of access. So--but
if we had--well, if we had true biometric measures of both iris
and thumbprint, and a photo, we would have a triple check that
that individual is that individual, that we have an honest
documentation that they have access to certain levels of
activities. And again, we are not producing a whole host of
identifications that go on and on, nor is the--a private
company setting the standard that is acceptable.
So, that is where we are. And I don't care if AOPA or any
of the others or the airlines like it. They can all go fly in a
different direction. But we will make certain--I can assure
you, as sure as we are at this hearing today in this room, that
we will have this matter resolved in the FAA legislation that
will pass Congress very shortly. So this is an important area.
Mr. Bucshon, you have been waiting, and then we will go to
Mr. Farenthold.
Dr. Bucshon. Thank you, Mr. Chairman. I appreciate it. I am
not an aviation person. Unlike some of the others, I was a
physician prior to coming here.
But I want to make a few general comments about government,
and why I am here, and this is a classic example, I think, of
why the American people are disgruntled with the Federal
Government.
In my view, I mean, the Congress has given directed orders
to fix a problem that seems fairly simple. And I suspect most
major private security firms could have solved this problem
years ago. But the Federal Government continues to blame
everybody, you know. Not having TSA here gives the people who
are here plausible deniability that, well, it is the TSA's
fault, and the TSA is going to say it is your fault. And I just
want to say that this is one of the reasons why the American
people want this government to change.
You know, you commented on 400 comments that you received
from the public on this issue out of 700,000 pilots that would
be affected like this. And in medicine I would call that
something that is called anecdote, which is--I know you needed
to consider it, but statistically, this is an extremely small
number of concerns for a problem that affects the entire
American aviation system.
So, I would like to know, Ms. Gilligan, what are the real
reasons why we cannot fix this problem? Just cut through all
the blaming of the agencies, cut through all of the politics.
How come a problem that I think the private sector could have
solved in a matter of months, literally, has taken years, and
how come people can continue to say--even though Congress has
directed this to happen, just come here and tell us that--and
blame other people, and tell us why you have not done it?
So, I want to know--I really want to know. What is the real
reason why we cannot fix this?
Ms. Gilligan. Yes, sir. In part, it is because we did not
step up to do it in a timely way. In part, it is because FAA
has no experience in biometrics or how to collect them or how
to keep them and protect them----
Dr. Bucshon. I am going to interrupt, just for a second.
Ms. Gilligan. Yes, sir.
Dr. Bucshon. There are many private companies around this
Nation, I can tell you, that are experts at this. And this
could have been solved, I mean, within weeks.
You know, we do not have to reinvent the wheel every time
something comes up. There is no reason why the FAA needs to be
an expert in biometrics. There is private companies and other
agencies within the government that are experts in this area.
So I do not think that--that is not a valid excuse.
Ms. Gilligan. It is not meant by way of excuse, sir. It is
simply part of the facts. We did reach out to TSA, because they
also had direction, as the Chairman has indicated, to establish
biometric indicators for all transportation workers, including
pilots. And we felt it would be appropriate to follow their
lead. That lead has not led us to a conclusion. And so we are
continuing to work the issue.
I understand your frustration. I agree, this could have
been done sooner and quicker. But we are where we are at this
point, and we are working hard to try to move forward.
Dr. Bucshon. But it has been how many years, approximately,
since you were directed to do this that it has not been done?
Ms. Gilligan. The direction, I believe, was in 2004.
Dr. Bucshon. 2004. That is 7 years. I mean in anyone's mind
in the American public that are watching this hearing, they
would say that that is a ridiculous amount of time to solve
this problem. And so----
Mr. Mica. Will the gentleman yield?
Dr. Bucshon. I will yield.
Mr. Mica. I mean what you have learned today is it is 7
years to date, and we have got another year to go before we get
the comments, and then 5 years to deploy. So we are looking at
more than a decade to, again, solve a relatively--well, it is
not a simple requirement that Congress has set forth, but if
you are frustrated, Mr. Bucshon, I have been here for the whole
thing, so----
[Laughter.]
Mr. Mica. I am at the end of my wits on it. I yield back.
Dr. Bucshon. And I do not--I am not--and there is no
disrespect here among what you are trying to do, of course. But
I think I am passing on the frustration of the American people,
not only for this issue, but many others.
And so, I really--I mean it is an honest question. What is
the real reason why we cannot do this?
Ms. Gilligan. Again, I think we looked for expertise from
others, which has not been forthcoming. And the reality that
is--putting in place an infrastructure to collect and protect
biometrics for 700,000 pilots is a somewhat daunting task.
So, at FAA we have the identification cards, as many
agencies do. We have about 70,000 employees. We set up 170
collection locations. For 10 times that number of pilots, the
infrastructure needed to collect and protect this data is
something that really needs to be carefully constructed. And we
had hoped to draw on the expertise of others who do this, and
we have not successfully completed that.
Dr. Bucshon. OK, thank you. I yield back.
Mr. Mica. Mr. Farenthold?
Mr. Farenthold. Thank you very much, Mr. Chairman. And I
agree. I am stunned at how long this process took. I walked in
here, they took my picture and had a photo ID for me in a
matter of 5 minutes when I became a freshman here that had
holograms on it and was tamper resistant. You can walk into any
amusement park in the country, buy a season pass, and they will
put your picture on it. You know, in--OK, it probably takes
longer than 5 minutes; he has got to wait in line to get it.
So, I mean, I am just stunned by this.
Let's talk a little bit more about the detailed biometrics.
Ms. Furlani, how much data does it take to store appropriate
amount of biometric data on a card? I mean is it a kilobyte? Is
it a megabyte? I mean just give me an order of----
Ms. Furlani. I do not have those numbers, but that is the
challenge. You have put your finger on it. And that is one of
the reasons it has been difficult on the iris--and it is only
recently we found a way to reduce the amount of data that needs
to be stored on the card that permits it to move into the
standard. So it is----
Mr. Farenthold. So we are talking about something that
probably cannot be stored on a magnetic strip, it is going to
require----
Ms. Furlani. Oh, it needs a----
Mr. Farenthold [continuing]. An embedded chip, or something
like----
Ms. Furlani. With encryption. You need to have the
encryption to protect it.
Mr. Farenthold. OK. Now, I assume also that you have got to
have some way of telling whether or not that ID has been
revoked or not. So it is going to be online. So, really, do you
really need that much data? Can't you just store a serial
number, have the user know a PIN, and it looks it up online at
the same time it looks to see if it has been revoked?
Ms. Furlani. You want all the intelligence on the cards,
and that is what is the protective device. And you do need the
PIN to identify that you are the person----
Mr. Farenthold. Right. I mean I get--something you have,
something you know, something you are.
Ms. Furlani. You got it.
Mr. Farenthold. But it seems to me there is going to have
to be an online component to that anyway, to check revocation.
Ms. Furlani. Correct. And that is what--when you have the
readers, that is what they do, is confirm that there is a
validity. And, as the Chairman said, what actual access each
individual should have.
Mr. Farenthold. OK----
Ms. Furlani. Because that could be controlled through the--
--
Mr. Farenthold. So, I mean, the technology is there. Clear
had the cards that they embedded it on them. OK, admittedly,
they went out of business. But, you know, they did not have the
Federal Government behind them.
Ms. Furlani. Well, it is a business model.
Mr. Farenthold. Yes. You have got--CBP has something
similar, their trusted entry program that I know of. American
Express blue cards have a chip embedded in them. They cannot be
that expensive.
Ms. Furlani. Correct. And the reason they are not
expensive, and are available, are the basic standards and the
interoperability, so vendors can compete and build better
products, and thus enter the market more acceptably. So----
Mr. Farenthold. OK. So it is not expensive. We get the
standards out. We ought to just be able to get this done in a
short amount of time. Texas changed their driver's license--
what is it, over 10 million drivers in Texas--in a matter of--
you know, as soon as they all expired, all changed. Done.
So, again, I am troubled by--and I am also troubled, Ms.
Gilligan, you are talking about, well, how do we collect the
pictures of the pilot. We ask our TWIC longshoremen to appear
in person twice to have their picture taken. If anybody ought
to be able to get around to a location easily, it ought to be a
pilot. You know, they can fly to wherever you want.
I mean, admittedly, I realize that is an exaggeration. I
mean if you are in the middle of, you know, some rural area, it
is potentially a long trip there. But I cannot believe that
with a--the hardware to make these ID cards costs more than a
couple of thousand dollars with just a picture. Obviously, a
little bit more with the biometric data.
Can you explain why pilots--we are asking less of our
pilots than we are of our longshoremen?
Ms. Gilligan. Well, again, sir, the pilot certificate was
never intended as an identification medium. It was to show that
the pilot was qualified for the function. Now we are trying to
convert it, potentially, to an identification media, and are
trying to incorporate either in that or some other single
universal identification media, all the information that would
be appropriate.
Mr. Farenthold. It seems like more than trying. I think
we--this Congress directed you to do that, didn't they?
Ms. Gilligan. Yes, sir, they did.
Mr. Farenthold. OK. My mom used to have a saying, or a
little thing she used to do to us. She would say, ``Try to pick
up that bottle of water.'' ``I am trying.'' ``We told you to
pick up the bottle of water.'' There is a difference. I can try
all day. So it was pick up the thing of water. And you can try
all day long.
Let's just--it just seems to me, and like Mr. Bucshon said,
the government spends too much time not talking to each other
and costing too much money. So I urge you to just find a way to
get her done.
Mr. Mica. Well, we will get it done, one way or the other,
and with help from the members of the committee, there will be
very specific direction in the FAA legislation, which should be
on the President's desk before the end of May.
Any other Members--Mr. Petri has joined us. Did you--Mr.
Harris? Mr. Harris?
Dr. Harris. Yes. Brief question, Mr. Chairman. You know, my
questions were actually for the TSA folks. And, Mr. Chairman,
you might enlighten me as to----
Mr. Mica. You came a little late.
Dr. Harris. I know. Did I miss them?
Mr. Mica. So far they have stonewalled us. They have
stonewalled the Committee on Science, Space and Technology,
they have stonewalled the Committee on Oversight and Government
Reform. So they are----
Dr. Harris. Are they figuring out how to----
Mr. Mica. And we are working with the leadership and with
the other committees. And, as you know, I have even threatened
to subpoena. We are trying not to do that, but to enlist their
support. We have had a private meeting on this subject, and
they refuse to appear.
So you are coming in a little bit late in the explanation,
but just to repeat for you that the two primary agencies that
should be here, since TSA is also cooking up their second
program for pilot identification, they are not here. So we are
all frustrated by it, and we will take some steps to address
it.
Dr. Harris. Thank you. I guess they are just figuring out
how to pat down the 6-year-olds today. I mean that is probably
consuming----
Mr. Mica. They have not had a good week, and----
Dr. Harris. It is not a good week at all. I will just be
very brief, and I will just share, you know, my colleague here
from--fellow physician, freshman Member--I guess I am--I share
his frustration because 7 years is a long time. I thought the
EPA took a long time figuring out that spilled milk on a dairy
farm is not the same as an oil spill. That only took them 27
months. This is now 7 years.
And I am puzzled because I know that in the hospital--you
know, I have a biometric identification to sign out narcotics
and it has been there for years, and it works, and it is--you
know, it is remote location, you know, I have an identification
card, I have a fingerprint, it is by telecommunications,
obviously transmitted some central--checks out, makes sure I am
me. I mean all that technology is there.
So, you know, whatever we can do to help. I know the
solutions and--are out there, and I--you know, I share the
frustrations, but we ought to get it done. You know, our
citizens deserve that level of security.
But thank you very much for being here. I yield back my
time.
Mr. Mica. Any other Members seek recognition. Mr. Petri?
No?
Well, I want to thank you all for coming out. We do not
mean to beat you up too badly, particularly you, Ms. Gilligan,
but there is--as you can see, there is great frustration. I
know there was some differences in direction by Congress.
You have publicly stated that FAA did have problems, and
was not successful in getting this out as Congress thought it
should be done. We will give you some pretty specific
directives, I think, in the bill that will be passed, and we
will try to get this resolved quicker, and give you the tools
to do that, hopefully.
But again, TSA continues to spend a countless amount of
money rescreening people, and they rescreen them because they
do not know who they are. And now, for pilots, they are using
all kinds of identification. And we have produced, at millions
of dollars, a pilot's license that is not even an acceptable
form of identification. So it is very frustrating for us, as
Members of Congress, to not see the agencies at least operating
better, more responsibly.
We couldn't get into the TWIC program today because the
program manager refused also to come before the Transportation
Committee. So we really couldn't get into the problems with the
nearly half-a-billion dollars that have been expended on the
transportation worker identification card.
We hope that our discussions over the past couple of months
with the National Institute of Standards and Technology is also
helping prompt expediting the final important element, and that
is a biometric standard on iris. Once we get those standards in
place, we need every agency to comply and utilize the good
standards that have been adopted.
We are about to recess, or adjourn the hearing. Did any
other Members have any questions? Mr. Southerland?
Mr. Southerland. I am--I just thank you, Mr. Chairman. Just
a quick question.
Ms. Gilligan, I know that you have heard our frustration
that TSA and Homeland Security was not here. But in your work,
you know, I guess you will continue to work with these
agencies. I mean tell me about your working relationship with
them. I mean I am aggravated, and I certainly want the record
to reflect, you know, my aggravation that we are the people's
House. And when the people's House has asked, the agency has to
come and give a report to the people. To me, it is a blatant
disregard and a blatant disrespect to the people. It aggravates
me beyond my ability, really, right now to explain.
But tell me about your working relationship with them.
Since they have chosen not to come here today to address the
people, what is your working relationship with them like?
Ms. Gilligan. Well, sir, before 9/11, the Federal Aviation
Administration also had responsibility for aviation security.
After that event, and the creation of the Department of
Homeland Security and the Transportation Security
Administration, we have had to work very closely together to
assure that whatever is being put in place to enhance security
does not have a negative impact on aviation safety. So we work
together with TSA quite closely on many, many issues.
This issue of biometric identification for transportation
workers seemed to us to be primarily their responsibility, with
us assisting in whatever way we could. They have struggled.
And, consequently, we have struggled with identifying what
those biometric identifiers should be, the process for
requiring them for the transportation worker, the creation of
the infrastructure to collect the information and to have
readers in locations, and to understand what is the reason for
having that biometric information.
So, we continue to have those discussions. And having heard
the Chairman and the Members' frustrations, I can assure you we
will continue to push hard to try to come to closure on what
the standards should be, and how we should create the
infrastructure around the country to take advantage of that.
Mr. Southerland. Very good. I appreciate you being here
today. I look forward to furthering this issue along, and
hopefully they will yield to the will of the people. And I am
sure our Chairman will pursue that, as well.
So, Mr. Chairman, thank you.
Mr. Mica. Well, again, I thank our two witnesses for
appearing, both a representative from the National Institute of
Standards and Technology and the FAA associate administrator
for aviation security.
Unfortunately, the FAA has not had a good week, neither
with this hearing, unfortunately. We started off, I guess, with
the Airbus 380 incident, we have had more controllers sleeping,
we have a record number of mishaps. The vice chairman and I are
headed right now--we are late for a meeting with the
administrator, and just got word that the FAA chief
administrative officer, Hank Krakowski, is resigning.
So, it is not too good a day for FAA, or too good a week.
But our job is to make it better, make it work better, figure
out how these things got astray, particularly during the last 4
years, and get them in order and work with the agencies and
make certain that they do comply with just a common sense
approach to expending limited resources, which is taxpayer
dollars funding the whole show.
So, there being no further business before the Committee on
Transportation and Infrastructure this morning, I thank again
our witnesses, and this meeting is adjourned. Thank you.
[Whereupon, at 10:40 a.m., the committee was adjourned.]