{
  "id": "RL32383",
  "type": "CRS Report",
  "typeId": "REPORTS",
  "number": "RL32383",
  "active": false,
  "source": "EveryCRSReport.com",
  "versions": [
    {
      "source": "EveryCRSReport.com",
      "id": 305618,
      "date": "2004-05-14",
      "retrieved": "2016-04-07T20:15:58.115706",
      "title": "A Return to Private Security Screening at Airports?: Background and Issues Regarding the Opt-Out Provision of the Aviation and Transportation Security Act",
      "summary": "A provision in the Aviation and Transportation Security Act (ATSA,  P.L. 107-71  Section 108;\n115\nStat. 611) permits each airport where federal screeners are currently deployed to request private\nscreeners instead of federal screeners starting in November 2004. A pilot program created by the\nact was established at five airports to examine the advantages and disadvantages of private airport\nscreening. Concerns have been raised, however, that the pilot program may provide too small a\nsample and, as currently implemented, is too similar in design to the federal screening function to\nmake a valid comparison of federal and private screening, and that the pilot program airports may\nnot serve as ideal models for future private screening systems. Also, no regulatory framework or\nguidelines currently exist for evaluating private screening proposals and overseeing private screening\nfirms. The Transportation Security Administration (TSA) is currently working on these and expects\nto have preliminary information for airports on the program's implementation by mid-May 2004. \n  Many airports have expressed interest in pursuing private screening options but believe that \nlegal protections, program flexibility to adapt to local needs, and stable funding mechanisms are\nneeded for successful implementation. Other issues to be addressed regarding private screening are\nrelated to how private screening entities will interface with federal aviation security functions such\nas intelligence gathering and data sharing, and deployment of new screening technologies. The\neffect of private screening on the security screening workforce is also a critical issue, since high\nturnover rates among screeners before September 11, 2001, were a key factor in the decision to\ncreate a federal screening workforce under ATSA. \n  Implementation of the security screening opt-out provision is likely to be an issue of\nconsiderable interest during the remainder of the 108th Congress. While privatization advocates are\ncalling for an expansion of the opt-out provision to allow for greater program flexibility and less\nfederal control of private airport screening, advocates for federal control of aviation security view\na return to private screening as a move that could reintroduce deficiencies in aviation security that\nexisted before the federalization of passenger screening under ATSA. \n  This report will be updated as warranted by events.",
      "type": "CRS Report",
      "typeId": "REPORTS",
      "active": false,
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          "url": "http://www.crs.gov/Reports/RL32383",
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      ],
      "topics": []
    }
  ],
  "topics": [
    "Intelligence and National Security",
    "Transportation Policy"
  ]
}