[House Report 116-192]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]


116th Congress    }                                    {        Report
                        HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
 1st Session      }                                    {       116-192

======================================================================



 
                    HELPING FAMILIES FLY ACT OF 2019

                                _______
                                

August 30, 2019.--Committed to the Committee of the Whole House on the 
              State of the Union and ordered to be printed

                                _______
                                

 Mr. Thompson of Mississippi, from the Committee on Homeland Security, 
                        submitted the following

                              R E P O R T

                        [To accompany H.R. 3694]

      [Including cost estimate of the Congressional Budget Office]

    The Committee on Homeland Security, to whom was referred 
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, having considered the 
same, report favorably thereon without amendment and recommend 
that the bill do pass.

                                CONTENTS

                                                                   Page
Purpose and Summary..............................................     1
Background and Need for Legislation..............................     2
Hearings.........................................................     2
Committee Consideration..........................................     2
Committee Votes..................................................     2
Committee Oversight Findings.....................................     2
C.B.O. Estimate, New Budget Authority, Entitlement Authority, and 
  Tax Expenditures...............................................     3
Federal Mandates Statement.......................................     4
Statement of General Performance Goals and Objectives
Duplicative Federal Programs.....................................     4
Congressional Earmarks, Limited Tax Benefits, and Limited Tariff 
  Benefits
Advisory Committee Statement
Applicability to Legislative Branch
Section-by-Section Analysis of the Legislation...................     4

                          PURPOSE AND SUMMARY

    The purpose of H.R 3694, the ``Helping Families Fly Act of 
2019,'' is to require the Transportation Security 
Administration (TSA) to implement training for frontline 
personnel regarding the screening of pregnant women and 
families with young children at passenger screening 
checkpoints. In conjunction with the implementation of the 
training required, this bill requires the TSA Administrator to 
develop and implement a communication strategy for pregnant 
women and families traveling with children to inform them of 
procedures, including communications through social media, the 
TSA website, customer service representatives, and partnerships 
with aviation stakeholders, including air carriers and airport 
operators. Lastly, this bill requires the Administrator to 
ensure TSA passenger support specialists are available upon 
request for pregnant women and families and requires TSA to 
conduct a study on the feasibility of installing screening 
lanes dedicated to families traveling with young children at 
airport checkpoints.

                  BACKGROUND AND NEED FOR LEGISLATION

    TSA screens millions of aviation passengers and their 
property every day. Though, TSA has stated that it aims to 
provide each passenger with a safe, fair, and efficient 
screening process, many pregnant women and families with young 
children have complained about current screening procedures. 
H.R. 3694 seeks to address concerns by requiring improved 
training for TSA officers.
    Additionally, this bill seeks to better inform pregnant 
women and families of TSA procedures and offer passenger 
support specialists for a more efficient airport experience. 
This bill also requires TSA to explore the feasibility of 
installing dedicated screening lanes for pregnant women and 
families as a potential solution to improving the checkpoint 
screening experience.

                                HEARINGS

    For the purpose of section 103(i) of H. Res 6. Of the 116th 
Congress the following related hearing was held:
    A Subcommittee on Transportation and Protective Security 
Subcommittee hearing on February 27, 2018, entitled, ``The 
Public Face of TSA: Examining the Agency's Outreach and 
Traveler Engagement Efforts,'' at which TSA's screening 
protocols and communications were discussed.

                        COMMITTEE CONSIDERATION

    The Committee met on July 17, 2019, with a quorum being 
present, to consider H.R. 3694 and ordered the measure to be 
reported to the House with a favorable recommendation, without 
amendment, by unanimous consent.

                            COMMITTEE VOTES

    Clause 3(b) of rule XIII of the Rules of the House of 
Representatives requires the Committee to list the recorded 
votes on the motion to report legislation and amendments 
thereto.
    No recorded votes were requested during consideration of 
H.R. 3694.

                      COMMITTEE OVERSIGHT FINDINGS

    In compliance with clause 3(c)(1) of rule XIII of the Rules 
of the House of Representatives, the Committee advises that the 
findings and recommendations of the Committee, based on 
oversight activities under clause 2(b)(1) of rule X of the 
Rules of the House of Representatives, are incorporated in the 
descriptive portions of this report.

CONGRESSIONAL BUDGET OFFICE ESTIMATE NEW BUDGET AUTHORITY, ENTITLEMENT 
                    AUTHORITY, AND TAX EXPENDITURES

    With respect to the requirements of clause 3(c)(2) of rule 
XIII of the Rules of the House of Representatives and section 
308(a) of the Congressional Budget Act of 1974 and with respect 
to requirements of clause (3)(c)(3) of rule XIII of the Rules 
of the House of Representatives and section 402 of the 
Congressional Budget Act of 1974, The Committee adopts as its 
own the cost estimate prepared by the Director of the 
Congressional Budget Office.

                                     U.S. Congress,
                               Congressional Budget Office,
                                   Washington, DC, August 28, 2019.
Hon. Bennie G. Thompson,
Chairman, Committee on Homeland Security,
House of Representatives, Washington, DC.
    Dear Mr. Chairman: The Congressional Budget Office has 
prepared the enclosed cost estimate for H.R. 3694, the Helping 
Families Fly Act of 2019.
    If you wish further details on this estimate, we will be 
pleased to provide them. The CBO staff contact is Madeleine 
Fox.
            Sincerely,
                                         Phillip L. Swagel,
                                                          Director.
    Enclosure.

    
    

    H.R. 3694 would require the Transportation Security 
Administration (TSA) to develop and implement training for 
personnel with respect to screening pregnant woman and families 
with young children. In addition, the bill would require TSA to 
assess the feasibility of creating designated security lines at 
airports for families with young children.
    Using information from TSA, CBO estimates that implementing 
H.R. 3694 would cost less than $500,000; any spending would be 
subject to the availability of appropriated funds.
    The CBO staff contact for this estimate is Madeleine Fox. 
The estimate was reviewed by H. Samuel Papenfuss, Deputy 
Assistant Director for Budget Analysis.

                       FEDERAL MANDATES STATEMENT

    The Committee adopts as its own the cost estimate prepared 
by the Director of the Congressional Budget Office.

                      DUPLICATIVE FEDERAL PROGRAMS

    Pursuant to clause 3(c) of rule XIII, the Committee finds 
that H.R. 3694 does not contain any provision that establishes 
or reauthorizes a program known to be duplicative of another 
Federal program.

                    PERFORMANCE GOALS AND OBJECTIVES

    The Committee states that pursuant to clause 3(c)(4) of 
rule XIII of the Rules of the House of Representatives, H.R. 
3694 seeks to improve the screening experience for pregnant 
women and young families at the nation's airports.

                          ADVISORY ON EARMARKS

    In compliance with rule XXI of the Rules of the House of 
Representatives, this bill, as reported, contains no 
congressional earmarks, limited tax benefits, or limited tariff 
benefits as defined in clause 9(d), 9(e), or 9(f) of the rule 
XXI.

             SECTION-BY-SECTION ANALYSIS OF THE LEGISLATION

Section 1. Short title

    This section provides that this bill may be cited as the 
``Helping Families Fly Act of 2019''.

Sec 2. Training required

    This section requires the TSA Administrator, within one 
year of enactment, to develop and implement a training for 
frontline TSA personnel regarding the screening of pregnant 
women and families with young children at passenger screening 
checkpoints. This training shall include the following: 
information relating to concerns of pregnant women's use of 
Advanced Imaging Technology and appropriate opt-out procedures 
and alternative screening procedures; guidelines to assist 
pregnant women and families traveling with young children; and 
communication and procedural guidelines for frontline TSA 
personnel to assist with passenger divestiture for pregnant 
women and families traveling with young children.
    Additionally, this section requires the implementation of a 
communication strategy to inform women and families of 
procedures and guidelines through social media, the TSA 
website, customer service representatives, and partnerships 
with aviation stakeholders, including air carriers and airport 
operators.
    This section requires passenger support specialists to be 
available upon request, to the extent possible, for pregnant 
women and families, and it requires TSA to conduct a study on 
the feasibility of installing screening lanes dedicated to 
families traveling with young children at appropriate airport 
checkpoints.
    Finally, this section requires a briefing to Congress on 
its implementation and defines the terms used in this section 
including ``Administration'', ``Administrator'', and 
``Appropriate Congressional Committees''.

                                  [all]