[Congressional Record Volume 165, Number 156 (Thursday, September 26, 2019)]
[House]
[Pages H8021-H8022]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                    HELPING FAMILIES FLY ACT OF 2019

  Mr. CORREA. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the 
bill (H.R. 3694) to require the Transportation Security Administration 
to implement training for frontline Administration personnel regarding 
the screening of pregnant women and families with young children at 
passenger screening checkpoints, and for other purposes.
  The Clerk read the title of the bill.
  The text of the bill is as follows:

                               H.R. 3694

       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 ``Helping Families Fly Act of 
     2019''.

     SEC. 2. TRAINING REQUIRED.

       (a) In General.--Not later than one year after the date of 
     the enactment of this Act, the Administrator shall develop 
     and implement training for frontline Administration personnel 
     regarding the screening of pregnant women and families with 
     young children at passenger screening checkpoints. Such 
     training shall include the following:
       (1) Information relating to concerns of pregnant women 
     relating to the use of Advanced Imaging Technology and 
     appropriate opt-out procedures and alternative screening 
     procedures.
       (2) Guidelines to assist pregnant women and families 
     traveling with young children effectively and efficiently 
     complete the screening process in a manner that is respectful 
     and improves the overall functioning of the screening 
     checkpoint.
       (3) Communication and procedural guidelines for frontline 
     Administration personnel to assist with passenger divestiture 
     for pregnant women and families traveling with young children 
     to improve the effectiveness and overall passenger experience 
     at the screening checkpoint.
       (b) Communications Strategy.--In conjunction with the 
     implementation of the training required under subsection (a), 
     the Administrator shall develop and implement a 
     communications strategy for pregnant women and families 
     traveling with young children to inform such women and 
     families of the procedures and guidelines described in such 
     subsection, including providing information to relevant 
     passengers through social media, the Administration's public 
     website, the Administration's customer service call center, 
     and partnerships with aviation stakeholders, including air 
     carriers and airport operators.
       (c) Passenger Support Specialists.--In carrying out 
     subsections (a) and (b), the Administrator shall, to the 
     extent possible, make available passenger support 
     specialists, upon request, to pregnant women and families 
     traveling with young children to assist with screening 
     checkpoint information, concerns, and procedures.
       (d) TSA Family Lanes Feasibility Assessment.--Not later 
     than 180 days after the date of the enactment of this Act, 
     the Administrator shall conduct a feasibility assessment to 
     determine whether screening processes and the screening 
     experience may be improved for travelers by developing 
     optional, dedicated screening lanes for families traveling 
     with young children at airports where the checkpoint 
     configuration would allow and where the overall functioning 
     of the checkpoint would not be inhibited in terms of 
     passenger throughput or security effectiveness.
       (e) Briefing to Congress.--Not later than 30 days after the 
     implementation of the training required under subsection (a), 
     the Administrator shall brief the appropriate congressional 
     committees on progress regarding the implementation of this 
     Act and improvements made to the screening process for 
     pregnant women and families traveling with young children.
       (f) Definitions.--In this section:
       (1) Administration.--The term ``Administration'' means the 
     Transportation Security Administration.
       (2) Administrator.--The term ``Administrator'' means the 
     Administrator of the Transportation Security Administration.
       (3) Appropriate congressional committees.--The term 
     ``appropriate congressional committees'' means the Committee 
     on Homeland Security of the House of Representatives and the 
     Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation of the 
     Senate.

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from 
California (Mr. Correa) and the gentleman from Tennessee (Mr. Green) 
each will control 20 minutes.
  The Chair recognizes the gentleman from California.


                             General Leave

  Mr. CORREA. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may 
have 5 legislative days to revise and extend their remarks and to 
include extraneous materials on this measure.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the 
gentleman from California?
  There was no objection.

[[Page H8022]]

  

  Mr. CORREA. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
  Mr. Speaker, I rise today in support of H.R. 3694, the Helping 
Families Fly Act.
  Traveling through the airport can be a stressful time for many of our 
travelers. Pregnant women and families with young children sometimes 
experience more difficulty when traveling, especially during the 
screening process.
  TSA's current screening procedures must be improved to ensure that 
these families are supported and have an easier experience flying 
through America's airports.
  This bill will improve the screening process for pregnant women and 
their families by requiring security personnel to undergo training 
specific to the concerns and needs of these specific travelers.
  Additionally, this legislation requires TSA to increase awareness of 
security procedures and guidelines by utilizing various forms of 
communication to keep families informed of the different options they 
may have during the screening process. This includes providing 
passengers, upon request, support specialists for women and families 
and adequate opt-out options to allow passengers to undergo alternative 
screening procedures.
  In short, this bill helps to improve TSA operations and support the 
millions of pregnant women and young families who travel throughout our 
Nation's airports.
  Mr. Speaker, I urge my House colleagues to support this legislation, 
and I reserve the balance of my time.
  Mr. GREEN of Tennessee. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I 
may consume.
  Mr. Speaker, I rise today in strong support of H.R. 3694, the Helping 
Families Fly Act, sponsored by my friend and colleague from Arizona, 
Representative Lesko.
  H.R. 3694 requires TSA to implement a number of reforms aimed at 
improving the travel experience for pregnant women and families with 
young children, including specific assistance by TSA officers at 
checkpoints and new training for officers.
  Representative Lesko's bill will ensure that TSA works closely with 
transportation stakeholders to make pregnant travelers and families 
aware of screening procedures and options for assistance.
  This good-government bill recognizes that TSA is oftentimes seen as 
the face of the Department of Homeland Security, screening more than 2 
million passengers a day. As such, it is incumbent upon the agency to 
ensure its services are working for all travelers.
  H.R. 3694 will improve the passenger experience for pregnant women 
and families with young children. I urge my colleagues to support this 
bill, and I reserve the balance of my time.
  Mr. CORREA. Mr. Speaker, I have no more speakers, and I am prepared 
to close after the gentleman from Tennessee closes.
  Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
  Mr. GREEN of Tennessee. Mr. Speaker, I yield 5 minutes to the 
gentlewoman from Arizona (Mrs. Lesko).
  Mrs. LESKO. Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentleman from Tennessee for 
yielding me the time.
  Mr. Speaker, I rise today in strong support of my bipartisan 
legislation, H.R. 3694, the Helping Families Fly Act.
  I believe strongly that TSA's passenger screening checkpoints should 
be a family-friendly environment. Airports can already be stressful 
places for the traveling public, and that stress can be exacerbated for 
expecting mothers or families traveling with young children.
  That is why I introduced this bill, which directs TSA to train 
frontline personnel on how to appropriately address traveler concerns 
related to screening technologies and opt-out procedures.
  Additionally, H.R. 3694 seeks to improve the passenger screening 
process by increasing the availability of frontline TSA personnel and 
passenger support specialists for pregnant women and families with 
young children.
  Moreover, my legislation requires TSA to communicate across its 
various media platforms, and in partnership with transportation 
stakeholders, any improvements, procedures, changes, or services 
relevant to pregnant women and families with young children.
  Lastly, H.R. 3694 will examine whether certain checkpoints may 
accommodate dedicated family-friendly screening lanes, which will 
improve the experience for traveling families while also improving the 
operation across all checkpoint lanes.
  Mr. Speaker, as the ranking member of the Transportation and Maritime 
Security Subcommittee, as well as a mother and grandmother, I believe 
that we should be holding TSA accountable in how it interacts with the 
traveling public and facilitates the efficient and effective screening 
of passengers who are pregnant and traveling with young families.
  I thank the chairman of the Transportation and Maritime Security 
Subcommittee, Representative Correa, for his bipartisan support of this 
legislation. We don't always have a lot of that here, so I am very 
thankful that we were able to agree on this bill.
  Additionally, I thank Chairman Thompson and Ranking Member Rogers for 
their work to bring this bill to the floor today and all the bill's 
cosponsors.
  Mr. Speaker, I urge all of my colleagues to support this legislation 
to make travel more friendly.
  Mr. GREEN of Tennessee. Mr. Speaker, I have no further speakers on 
the bill. I renew my support for the bill, and I yield back the balance 
of my time.
  Mr. CORREA. Mr. Speaker, H.R. 3694 will improve the traveling 
experience for pregnant women and young families traveling throughout 
our Nation's airports.
  By improving the awareness and skills of our security personnel, and 
providing more resources and support for our families, we will help 
ensure that our Nation's airports provide a safe, fair, and efficient 
traveling experience for all.
  Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentlewoman from Arizona for offering this 
good legislation.
  Mr. Speaker, I urge my colleagues to support H.R. 3694, and I yield 
back the balance of my time.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The question is on the motion offered by the 
gentleman from California (Mr. Correa) that the House suspend the rules 
and pass the bill, H.R. 3694.
  The question was taken; and (two-thirds being in the affirmative) the 
rules were suspended and the bill was passed.
  A motion to reconsider was laid on the table.

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