[Federal Register Volume 86, Number 129 (Friday, July 9, 2021)]
[Notices]
[Pages 36293-36295]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2021-14518]
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DEPARTMENT OF HOMELAND SECURITY
Transportation Security Administration
[Docket No. TSA-2014-0001]
TSA PreCheck[supreg] Application Program Fees
AGENCY: Transportation Security Administration, DHS.
ACTION: Notice.
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SUMMARY: The Transportation Security Administration (TSA) administers
the TSA PreCheck[supreg] Application Program (also known as the TSA
Pre[check][supreg] Application Program), in which members of the public
may apply to be eligible for expedited airport security screening. To
apply for TSA PreCheck Application Program eligibility, individuals
voluntarily provide biometric and biographic information that TSA uses
to conduct a security threat assessment and those applicants pay a fee
to cover the cost to operate the TSA PreCheck Application Program. In
this Notice, TSA announces the anticipated launch of additional
enrollment providers who will be able to establish additional price
points for the TSA PreCheck Application Program. These enrollment
providers are planned to become available in 2021 to increase
opportunities to apply for membership in the program. TSA will announce
the details and pricing for these new enrollment options, when
available, via https://www.tsa.gov/precheck.
DATES: This notice is applicable July 9, 2021.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Anne Walbridge, Transportation
Security Administration, 6595 Springfield Center Drive, Springfield, VA
20598-6047; 571-227-2329; or email at [email protected].
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I. Summary
The TSA PreCheck Application Program (TSA PreCheck) is a voluntary,
expedited security screening program connecting low-risk travelers
departing from the United States with smarter security and a better air
travel experience.\1\ There are approximately 10 million members in the
TSA PreCheck Application Program. Individuals enrolled in the TSA
PreCheck Application Program are eligible to receive expedited
screening at U.S. airports. As explained in the December 4, 2013 Notice
in the Federal Register,\2\ membership in the TSA PreCheck Application
Program is within the sole discretion of TSA. Individuals may also
receive TSA PreCheck expedited screening via membership in other
programs such as certain U.S. Customs
[[Page 36294]]
and Border Protection (CBP) Trusted Traveler Programs. These
individuals do not pay a fee to TSA for membership in such other
programs.
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\1\ The TSA PreCheck Application Program refers to the DHS
Trusted Traveler Program that TSA operates to determine if
individuals are low-risk and may receive expedited screening. TSA
PreCheck refers to expedited screening provided by TSA.
\2\ See Notice, 78 FR 72922 (December 4, 2013).
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TSA established the TSA PreCheck Application Program in December
2013 to expand access to expedited screening to individuals who
voluntarily provide information that TSA uses to determine whether the
traveler is low risk. TSA uses biographic and biometric information the
applicant provides to conduct a security threat assessment (STA) that
includes review of criminal history, immigration, intelligence, and
regulatory violation records. As part of the enrollment process, TSA
requires that applicants present government-issued identity documents
with a photo to prove their identity. To prepare for REAL ID
enforcement, in advance of the REAL ID card-based enforcement deadline,
TSA will require new TSA PreCheck applicants as well as renewal
applicants to provide a REAL ID-compliant document if enrolling with a
state-issued identity document. Applicants must also prove they are a
U.S. person as required by the program. Following enrollment, TSA
evaluates the information generated by the vetting process to determine
whether the individual poses a low risk to transportation and national
security. Once completed, the STA remains valid for five years,
provided the individual continues to meet the eligibility standards. At
the end of the five-year term, individuals wishing to maintain their
TSA PreCheck eligibility must renew their membership in the program
which includes a new STA.
If TSA determines that the applicant is low risk, TSA issues a
Known Traveler Number (KTN) \3\ that the individual can use when making
flight reservations. Enrollment in the TSA PreCheck Application Program
and use of the associated KTN do not guarantee that an individual will
receive expedited screening at airport security checkpoints. TSA
retains an element of randomness to maintain unpredictability for
security purposes, and travelers with valid KTNs may be selected for
standard or enhanced physical screening on occasion.
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\3\ The Known Traveler Number is a component of Secure Flight
Passenger Data (SFPD), which is defined in TSA Secure Flight
regulations at 49 CFR 1560.3. See also the Secure Flight regulations
at 49 CFR part 1560.
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An individual is ineligible for a KTN and thus access to TSA
PreCheck expedited screening if TSA determines that the individual
poses a risk to transportation or national security; has committed
certain criminal acts; \4\ does not meet the immigration status
standards; \5\ has committed regulatory violations; \6\ or is otherwise
not a low-risk traveler. TSA notifies individuals who it determines are
ineligible for a KTN through the TSA PreCheck Application Program in
writing, and they continue to undergo standard screening at airport
security checkpoints.
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\4\ See 49 CFR 1572.103 for the criminal standards that apply to
TSA PreCheck applicants.
\5\ Individuals who apply for membership in the TSA PreCheck
Application Program must be U.S. citizens, U.S. Nationals, or Lawful
Permanent Residents.
\6\ For instance, an individual who interferes with security
screening or brings a weapon to the security checkpoint would be
deemed ineligible for TSA PreCheck expedited screening.
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TSA is required by law to charge a non-refundable fee to cover the
costs of operating the TSA PreCheck Application Program.\7\ Collecting
biographic and biometric information from applicants, conducting the
STA, adjudicating the results of the STA, and managing the program \8\
generate costs for TSA, the enrollment provider, and the Federal Bureau
of Investigation (FBI). The current initial application and renewal fee
for the TSA PreCheck Application Program is $85.00. The fee will remain
no more than $85 for individuals enrolling through the Universal
Enrollment Services enrollment provider.
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\7\ See 49 U.S.C. 114; Sec. 540 of the DHS appropriations act
of 2006, Public Law. 109-90 (119 Stat. 2064, 2088-89, Oct. 18,
2005).
\8\ See Sec. 540, Id.
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II. Discussion of Future Program Adjustments
The TSA PreCheck Application Program is a successful trusted
traveler program that improves the travel experience for approximately
10 million travelers. Recent statutory changes aimed at increasing
membership in the TSA PreCheck Application Program require TSA to
expand the number of companies providing enrollment services.
Specifically, section 1937 of the TSA Modernization Act requires TSA to
add at least two enrollment vendors to the program.\9\ On January 9,
2020, TSA announced that it selected Alclear, LLC; IDEMIA, and; Telos
Identity Management Solutions, LLC as enrollment providers as part of a
full and open competition posted on FedBizOps. These vendors will be
free to compete in the marketplace to offer creative enrollment
products using new locations, procedures, systems, and fees to gain
program applicants. TSA will review and approve vendor platforms to
ensure they meet the latest cybersecurity requirements before a vendor
can begin processing applications. Note that TSA, through the Universal
Enrollment Services contract, will continue to offer the existing TSA
PreCheck Application Program products and fees after the new providers
begin to operate. The fee to apply for initial membership and to renew
membership in the TSA PreCheck Application Program will not exceed $85
for individuals enrolling through the Universal Enrollment Services
enrollment provider.
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\9\ TSA Modernization Act, Division K--Title I of the FAA
Reauthorization Act Sec. 1937, Public Law 115-254, 132 Stat. 3186
(Oct. 5, 2018).
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TSA anticipates that the new enrollment providers will begin
enrolling applicants in 2021. Each new enrollment provider will be
authorized to establish its own fees to cover the cost of services it
provides to applicants. While vendor fees may vary to cover the costs
of their enrollment products and services,\10\ TSA will continue to
collect the TSA component of the fee for all individuals who apply for
and renew memberships. Therefore, regardless of the fee each new
enrollment provider establishes for its services, the three vendors
must continue to remit TSA's component to cover the TSA costs to
operate the program. The TSA component recovers the costs to analyze
the immigration, terrorism, criminal, and regulatory violation
information generated in the checks of the various databases; determine
whether applicants have a disqualifying factor or are eligible for the
TSA PreCheck Application Program; notify applicants of TSA's
determination; issue KTNs to eligible individuals; conduct research and
development for innovative enhancements to improve the TSA PreCheck
Application Program enrollment and the TSA PreCheck expedited screening
experience; and continue to monitor databases and information to
confirm that the members remain low risk.
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\10\ Enrollment providers will be responsible for fees imposed
by the FBI.
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The STA that TSA conducts will cover a term of five years and must
be renewed with TSA at the end of that term if an individual wishes to
maintain their TSA PreCheck eligibility. Vendors will be permitted to
offer shorter duration memberships (e.g., one-year memberships) but
must still remit the TSA component fee at initial enrollment to TSA to
cover TSA's 5-year costs. If a member allows the membership to lapse
for any period of time and subsequently applies for renewal, the vendor
must remit the TSA component fee again.
[[Page 36295]]
To attract new applicants to the TSA PreCheck Application Program,
an enrollment provider may choose to offer additional services or other
incentives to TSA PreCheck applicants, beyond membership in the
program, as part of its program fee. For instance, an enrollment
provider may offer discounts for travel related products.
TSA will ensure all enrollment options and membership fees are
publically available on the TSA website once multiple vendors are
operational. Applicants can use this publically available information
to choose the enrollment option that best meets their needs based on
the enrollment service offerings, convenience of enrollment center
locations, pricing, and incentives. TSA will announce the details of
these new enrollment options, when available, via https://www.tsa.gov/precheck.
Dated: July 1, 2021.
Thomas L. Bush,
Acting Executive Assistant Administrator, Operations Support.
[FR Doc. 2021-14518 Filed 7-8-21; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 9110-05-P