110th CONGRESS
1st Session
S. 509
To provide improved aviation security, and for other purposes.
IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES
February 6, 2007
Mr. INOUYE (for himself, Mr. STEVENS, Mr. ROCKEFELLER, Mr. LOTT, and Mr.
LAUTENBERG) introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred
to the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation
A BILL
To provide improved aviation security, and for other purposes.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United
States of America in Congress assembled,
SEC. 1. SHORT TITLE; TABLE OF CONTENTS.
(a) SHORT TITLE- This Act may be cited as the `Aviation Security Improvement
Act'.
(b) TABLE OF CONTENTS- The table of contents for this Act is as follows:
TITLE--AVIATION SECURITY
Sec. 1. Short title; table of contents.
Sec. 2. Extension of authorization for aviation security funding.
Sec. 3. Passenger aircraft cargo screening.
Sec. 4. Blast-resistant cargo containers.
Sec. 5. Protection of air cargo on passenger planes from explosives.
Sec. 6. In-line baggage screening.
Sec. 7. Enhancement of in-line baggage system deployment.
Sec. 8. Research and development of aviation transportation security technology.
Sec. 9. Certain TSA personnel limitations not to apply.
Sec. 10. Specialized training.
Sec. 11. Explosive detection at passenger screening checkpoints.
Sec. 12. Appeal and redress process for passengers wrongly delayed or
prohibited from boarding a flight.
Sec. 13. Repair station security.
Sec. 14. Strategic plan to test and implement advanced passenger prescreening
system.
Sec. 15. General aviation security.
Sec. 16. Security credentials for airline crews.
SEC. 2. EXTENSION OF AUTHORIZATION FOR AVIATION SECURITY FUNDING.
Section 48301(a) of title 49, United States Code, is amended by striking
`and 2006' and inserting `2006, 2007, 2008, and 2009'.
SEC. 3. PASSENGER AIRCRAFT CARGO SCREENING.
(a) IN GENERAL- Section 44901 of title 49, United States Code, is amended--
(1) by redesignating subsections (g) and (h) as subsections (h) and (i),
respectively; and
(2) by inserting after subsection (f) the following:
`(g) Air Cargo on Passenger Aircraft-
`(1) IN GENERAL- Not later than 3 years after the date of enactment of
the Aviation Security Improvement Act, the Secretary of Homeland Security,
acting through the Administrator of the Transportation Security Administration,
shall establish a system to screen all cargo transported on passenger
aircraft operated by an air carrier or foreign air carrier in air transportation
or intrastate air transportation to ensure the security of all such passenger
aircraft carrying cargo.
`(2) MINIMUM STANDARDS- The system referred to in paragraph (1) shall
require, at a minimum, that the equipment, technology, procedures, personnel,
or other methods determined by the Administrator of the Transportation
Security Administration, provide a level of security comparable to the
level of security in effect for passenger checked baggage.
`(A) INTERIM FINAL RULE- The Secretary of Homeland Security may issue
an interim final rule as a temporary regulation to implement this subsection
without regard to the provisions of chapter 5 of title 5.
`(i) IN GENERAL- If the Secretary issues an interim final rule under
subparagraph (A), the Secretary shall issue, not later than 1 year
after the effective date of the interim final rule, a final rule as
a permanent regulation to implement this subsection in accordance
with the provisions of chapter 5 of title 5.
`(ii) FAILURE TO ACT- If the Secretary does not issue a final rule
in accordance with clause (i) on or before the last day of the 1-year
period referred to in clause (i), the Secretary shall submit a report
to the Congress explaining why the final rule was not timely issued
and providing an estimate of the earliest date on which the final
rule will be issued. The Secretary shall submit the first such report
within 10 days after such last day and submit a report to the Congress
containing updated information every 60 days thereafter until the
final rule is issued.
`(iii) SUPERSEDING OF INTERIM FINAL RULE- The final rule issued in
accordance with this subparagraph shall supersede the interim final
rule issued under subparagraph (A).
`(4) REPORT- Not later than 1 year after the date on which the system
required by paragraph (1) is established, the Secretary shall transmit
a report to Congress that details and explains the system.'.
(b) Assessment of Exemptions-
(1) TSA ASSESSMENT OF EXEMPTIONS-
(A) IN GENERAL- Not later than 180 days after the date of enactment
of this Act, the Secretary of Homeland Security, through the Administrator
of the Transportation Security Administration, shall submit a report
to Congress and to the Comptroller General containing an assessment
of each exemption granted under section 44901(i) of title 49, United
States Code, for the screening required by section 44901(g)(1) of that
title for cargo transported on passenger aircraft and an analysis to
assess the risk of maintaining such exemption. The Secretary may submit
the report in both classified and redacted formats if the Secretary
determines that such action is appropriate or necessary.
(B) CONTENTS- The report shall include--
(i) the rationale for each exemption;
(ii) a statement of the percentage of cargo that is not screened as
a result of each exemption;
(iii) the impact of each exemption on aviation security;
(iv) the projected impact on the flow of commerce of eliminating such
exemption;
(v) a statement of any plans, and the rationale, for maintaining,
changing, or eliminating each exemption.
(2) GAO ASSESSMENT- Not later than 120 days after the date on which the
report required under paragraph (1) is submitted, the Comptroller General
shall review the report and provide to Congress an assessment of the methodology
used for determinations made by the Secretary for maintaining, changing,
or eliminating an exemption.
SEC. 4. BLAST-RESISTANT CARGO CONTAINERS.
Section 44901 of title 49, United States Code, is amended by adding at the
end thereof the following:
`(i) BLAST-RESISTANT CARGO CONTAINERS-
`(1) IN GENERAL- Before January 1, 2008, the Administrator of the Transportation
Security Administration shall--
`(A) evaluate the results of the blast-resistant cargo container pilot
program instituted before the date of enactment of the Aviation Security
Improvement Act;
`(B) based on that evaluation, begin the acquisition of a sufficient
number of blast-resistant cargo containers to meet the requirements
of the Transportation Security Administration's cargo security program
under paragraph (2); and
`(C) develop a system under which the Administrator--
`(i) will make such containers available for use by passenger aircraft
operated by air carriers or foreign air carriers in air transportation
or intrastate air transportation on a random or risk-assessment basis
as determined by the Administrator, in sufficient number to enable
the carriers to meet the requirements of the Administration's cargo
security system; and
`(ii) provide for the storage, maintenance, and distribution of such
containers.
`(2) DISTRIBUTION TO AIR CARRIERS- Within 90 days after the date on which
the Administrator completes development of the system required by paragraph
(1)(C), the Administrator of the Transportation Security Administration
shall implement that system and begin making blast-resistant cargo containers
available to such carriers as necessary.'.
SEC. 5. PROTECTION OF AIR CARGO ON PASSENGER PLANES FROM EXPLOSIVES.
(a) Technology Research and Pilot Projects-
(1) RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT- The Secretary of Homeland Security shall
expedite research and development for technology that can disrupt or prevent
an explosive device from being introduced onto a passenger plane or from
damaging a passenger plane while in flight or on the ground. The research
shall include blast resistant cargo containers and other promising technology
and will be used in concert with implementation of section 4 of this Act.
(2) PILOT PROJECTS- The Secretary, in conjunction with the Secretary of
Transportation, shall establish a grant program to fund pilot projects--
(A) to deploy technologies described in paragraph (1); and
(B) to test technology to expedite the recovery, development, and analysis
of information from aircraft accidents to determine the cause of the
accident, including deployable flight deck and voice recorders and remote
location recording devices.
(b) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS- There are authorized to be appropriated
to the Secretary of Homeland Security for fiscal year 2008 such sums as
may be necessary to carry out this section, such funds to remain available
until expended.
SEC. 6. IN-LINE BAGGAGE SCREENING.
(a) EXTENSION OF AUTHORIZATION- Section 44923(i)(1) of title 49, United
States Code, is amended by striking `2007.' and inserting `2007, and $450,000,000
for each of fiscal years 2008 and 2009.'.
(b) REPORT- Within 30 days after the date of enactment of this Act, the
Secretary of Homeland Security shall submit the report the Secretary was
required by section 4019(d) of the Intelligence Reform and Terrorism Prevention
Act of 2004 (49 U.S.C. 44901 note) to have submitted in conjunction with
the submission of the budget for fiscal year 2006.
SEC. 7. ENHANCEMENT OF IN-LINE BAGGAGE SYSTEM DEPLOYMENT.
(a) IN GENERAL- Section 44923 of title 49, United States Code, is amended--
(1) by striking `may' in subsection (a) and inserting `shall';
(2) by striking `may' in subsection (d)(1) and inserting `shall';
(3) by striking `2007' in subsection (h)(1) and inserting `2028';
(4) by striking paragraphs (2) and (3) of subsection (h) and inserting
the following:
`(2) ALLOCATION- Of the amount made available under paragraph (1) for
a fiscal year, not less than $200,000,000 shall be allocated to fulfill
letters of intent issued under subsection (d).
`(3) DISCRETIONARY GRANTS- Of the amount made available under paragraph
(1) for a fiscal year, up to $50,000,000 shall be used to make discretionary
grants, with priority given to small hub airports and non-hub airports.';
and
(5) by redesignating subsection (i) as subsection (j) and inserting after
subsection (h) the following:
`(i) LEVERAGED FUNDING- For purposes of this section, a grant under subsection
(a) to an airport sponsor to service an obligation issued by or on behalf
of that sponsor to fund a project described in subsection (a) shall be considered
to be a grant for that project.'.
(b) Prioritization of Projects-
(1) IN GENERAL- The Administrator shall create a prioritization schedule
for airport security improvement projects described in section 44923(b)
of title 49, United States Code, based on risk and other relevant factors,
to be funded under the grant program provided by that section. The schedule
shall include both hub airports (as defined in section 41731(a)(3) of
title 49, United States Code) and nonhub airports (as defined in section
41731(a)4) of title 49, United States Code).
(2) AIRPORTS THAT HAVE COMMENCED PROJECTS- The schedule shall include
airports that have incurred eligible costs associated with development
of partial in-line baggage systems before the date of enactment of this
Act in reasonable anticipation of receiving a grant under section 44923
of title 49, United States Code, in reimbursement of those costs but that
have not received such a grant.
(3) REPORT- Within 180 days after the date of enactment of this Act, the
Administrator shall provide a copy of the prioritization schedule, a corresponding
timeline, and a description of the funding allocation under section 44923
of title 49, United States Code, to the Senate Committee on Commerce,
Science, and Transportation and the House of Representatives Committee
on Homeland Security.
SEC. 8. RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT OF AVIATION TRANSPORTATION SECURITY TECHNOLOGY.
Section 137(a) of the Aviation and Transportation Security Act (49 U.S.C.
44912 note) is amended--
(1) by striking `2002 through 2006,' and inserting `2006 through 2009,';
(2) by striking `aviation' and inserting `transportation'; and
(3) by striking `2002 and 2003' and inserting `2006 through 2009'.
SEC. 9. CERTAIN TSA PERSONNEL LIMITATIONS NOT TO APPLY.
(a) IN GENERAL- Notwithstanding any provision of law to the contrary, any
statutory limitation on the number of employees in the Transportation Security
Administration, before or after its transfer to the Department of Homeland
Security from the Department of Transportation, does not apply after fiscal
year 2007.
(b) AVIATION SECURITY- Notwithstanding any provision of law imposing a limitation
on the recruiting or hiring of personnel into the Transportation Security
Administration to a maximum number of permanent positions, the Secretary
of Homeland Security shall recruit and hire such personnel into the Administration
as may be necessary--
(1) to provide appropriate levels of aviation security; and
(2) to accomplish that goal in such a manner that the average aviation
security-related delay experienced by airline passengers is reduced to
a level of less than 10 minutes.
SEC. 10. SPECIALIZED TRAINING.
The Administrator of the Transportation Security Administration shall provide
advanced training to transportation security officers for the development
of specialized security skills, including behavior observation and analysis,
explosives detection, and document examination, in order to enhance the
effectiveness of layered transportation security measures.
SEC. 11. EXPLOSIVE DETECTION AT PASSENGER SCREENING CHECKPOINTS.
(a) IN GENERAL- Within 90 days after the date of enactment of this Act,
the Secretary of Homeland Security shall issue the strategic plan the Secretary
was required by section 44925(a) of title 49, United States Code, to have
issued within 90 days after the date of enactment of the Intelligence Reform
and Terrorism Prevention Act of 2004.
(b) DEPLOYMENT- Section 44925(b) of title 49, United States Code, is amended
by adding at the end thereof the following:
`(3) FULL DEPLOYMENT- The Secretary shall fully implement the strategic
plan within 1 year after the date of enactment of the Aviation Security
Improvement Act.'.
SEC. 12. APPEAL AND REDRESS PROCESS FOR PASSENGERS WRONGLY DELAYED OR
PROHIBITED FROM BOARDING A FLIGHT.
(a) IN GENERAL- Subtitle C of title IV of the Homeland Security Act of 2002
(6 U.S.C. 231 et seq.) is amended by adding at the end the following:
`SEC. 431. APPEAL AND REDRESS PROCESS FOR PASSENGERS WRONGLY DELAYED OR
PROHIBITED FROM BOARDING A FLIGHT.
`(a) IN GENERAL- The Secretary shall establish a timely and fair process
for individuals who believe they have been delayed or prohibited from boarding
a commercial aircraft because they were wrongly identified as a threat under
the regimes utilized by the Transportation Security Administration, the
Bureau of Customs and Border Protection, or any other Department entity.
`(b) Office of Appeals and Redress-
`(1) ESTABLISHMENT- The Secretary shall establish an Office of Appeals
and Redress to oversee the process established by the Secretary pursuant
to subsection (a).
`(2) RECORDS- The process established by the Secretary pursuant to subsection
(a) shall include the establishment of a method by which the Office of
Appeals and Redress, under the direction of the Secretary, will be able
to maintain a record of air carrier passengers and other individuals who
have been misidentified and have corrected erroneous information.
`(3) INFORMATION- To prevent repeated delays of an misidentified passenger
or other individual, the Office of Appeals and Redress shall--
`(A) ensure that the records maintained under this subsection contain
information determined by the Secretary to authenticate the identity
of such a passenger or individual; and
`(B) furnish to the Transportation Security Administration, the Bureau
of Customs and Border Protection, or any other appropriate Department
entity, upon request, such information as may be necessary to allow
such agencies to assist air carriers in improving their administration
of the advanced passenger prescreening system and reduce the number
of false positives.'.
(b) CLERICAL AMENDMENT- The table of contents in section 1(b) of such Act
is amended by inserting after the item relating to section 430 the following:
`431. Appeal and redress process for passengers wrongly delayed or prohibited
from boarding a flight.'.
SEC. 13. STRATEGIC PLAN TO TEST AND IMPLEMENT ADVANCED PASSENGER PRESCREENING
SYSTEM.
Not later than 180 days after the date of enactment of this Act, the Secretary
of Homeland Security, in consultation with the Administrator of the Transportation
Security Administration, shall submit to the Congress a plan that--
(1) describes the system to be utilized by the Department of Homeland
Security to assume the performance of comparing passenger information,
as defined by the Administrator of the Transportation Security Administration,
to the automatic selectee and no-fly lists, utilizing appropriate records
in the consolidated and integrated terrorist watchlist maintained by the
Federal government;
(2) provides a projected timeline for each phase of testing and implementation
of the system;
(3) explains how the system will be integrated with the prescreening system
for passengers on international flights; and
(4) describes how the system complies with section 552a of title 5, United
States Code.
SEC. 14. REPAIR STATION SECURITY.
(a) CERTIFICATION OF FOREIGN REPAIR STATIONS SUSPENSION- If the regulations
required by section 44924(f) of title 49, United States Code, are not issued
within 90 days after the date of enactment of this Act, the Administrator
of the Federal Aviation Administration may not certify any foreign repair
station under part 145 of title 14, Code of Federal Regulations, after such
90th day unless the station was previously certified by the Administration
under that part.
(b) 6-Month Deadline for Security Review and Audit- Subsections (a) and
(d) of section 44924 of title 49, United States Code, are each amended by
striking `18 months' and inserting `6 months'.
SEC. 15. GENERAL AVIATION SECURITY.
Section 44901 of title 49, United States Code, is amended by adding at the
end thereof the following:
`(i) General Aviation Airport Security Program-
`(1) IN GENERAL- Within 1 year after the date of enactment of the Aviation
Security Improvement Act the Administrator of the Transportation Security
Administration shall--
`(A) develop a standardized threat and vulnerability assessment program
for general aviation airports (as defined in section 47135(m)); and
`(B) implement a program to perform such assessments on a risk-assessment
basis at general aviation airports.
`(2) GRANT PROGRAM- Within 6 months after date of enactment of the Aviation
Security Improvement Act the Administrator shall initiate and complete
a study of the feasibility of a program, based on a risk-managed approach,
to provide grants to general aviation airport operators for projects to
upgrade security at general aviation airports (as defined in section 47135(m)).
If the Administrator determines that such a program is feasible, the Administrator
shall establish such a program.
`(3) APPLICATION TO FOREIGN-REGISTERED GENERAL AVIATION AIRCRAFT- Within
180 days after the date of enactment of the Aviation Security Improvement
Act, the Administrator shall develop a risk-based system under which--
`(A) foreign-registered general aviation aircraft, as identified by
the Administrator, in coordination with the Administrator of the Federal
Aviation Administration, are required to submit passenger information
to the Transportation Security Administration before entering United
States airspace; and
`(B) such information is checked against appropriate databases maintained
by the Transportation Security Administration.'.
`(4) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS- There are authorized to be appropriated
to the Secretary of Homeland Security such sums as may be necessary to
carry out any program established under paragraph (2).'.
SEC. 16. SECURITY CREDENTIALS FOR AIRLINE CREWS.
Within 180 days after the date of enactment of this Act, the Administrator
of the Transportation Security Administration shall, after consultation
with airline, airport, and flight crew representatives, transmit a report
to the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation and the
House of Representatives Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure
on the status of its efforts to institute a sterile area access system or
method that will enhance security by properly identifying authorized airline
flight deck and cabin crew members at screening checkpoints and granting
them expedited access through screening checkpoints. The Administrator shall
include in the report recommendations on the feasibility of implementing
the system for the domestic aviation industry beginning 1 year after the
date on which the report is submitted. The Administrator shall begin full
implementation of the system or method not later than 1 year after the date
on which the Administrator transmits the report.
END
