Sleeping on the Job at the TSA

After September 2001, we were led to believe that, as airline passengers, our last line of defence against a repeat performance were the agents of the Transportation Security Administration (TSA).  The TSA was created to strengthen the obvious weaknesses in America's national transportation infrastructure and, in particular, has the duty of screening all commercial airline passengers and baggage.

Here is a flow chart showing the senior leadership of the TSA:

The Administrator, John Pistole, was nominated by President Obama and was confirmed (unanimously, I might add) and took the helm of the TSA in June 2010.  For the previous six years, Mr. Pistole, a short-term practising lawyer, was the Deputy Director of the FBI and has played an important role in formulating anti-terrorist policies during both the Bush II and Obama Administrations.  Mr. Pistole is best known by Main Street America for implementing and defending the "grandma and children pat down policy" in 2010 as shown on this video:

That's a pretty thorough pat down, isn't it?  I guess you can never be too sure where something threatening could be hidden!  Next up, the dreaded cavity search. 

How much does this fun cost American tax payers?   Budget requests for the TSA fall under the Department of Homeland Security.  For fiscal year 2014, the TSA has requested $4.8 billion, a drop of $388 million or 8.1 percent from the previous year.  The request will cap full-time passenger screeners to 46,000 and also reduces uniform costs by $18 million and cuts management programs by 5 percent.  Right now, the TSA has nearly 50,000 security officers, inspectors, air marshals and managers.

Let's look at how much TSA employees get paid noting that the pay level obviously depends on the degree of job responsibility:

These rates do not include locality pay which can add up to 35 percent to the base rate.  In addition, TSA employees get coverage for health insurance, personal leave days, ten whole days of paid vacation annually, transportation subsidies and a uniform allowance.

Since it is the passenger screeners that are the front line TSA employees that we interact with the most, let's look at how much they make from this job posting:

The candidates for this job must:

1.) Pass a background check including credit and criminal.

2.) Pass a drug screening test.

3.) Have no default on $7500 or more in delinquent debt.

4.) Have no delinquent federal or state taxes or child support payments.

5.) Be able to stand for between one and four hours without a break.

6.) Be able to walk up to two miles during a shift.

7.) Be able to repeatedly lift or carry up to 70 pounds.

All that is required is a high school diploma or GED or at least one year of full-time work experience in the security industry or as an X-ray technician.

Now that we have that background information, let's look at a recent report by the Government Accountability Office, evaluating the performance of America's last line of defence against a repeat performance of September 2001.

Between fiscal 2010 and 2012, the TSA investigated 9622 cases of employee misconduct.  These cases were brought to the TSA's attention by airline passengers, the Office of the Inspector General for the Department of Homeland Security and Members of Congress.  Here is a chart showing the categories of the offences:

Sadly, the number of misconduct cases rose from 2691 in 2010 to 3408 in 2012 (an increase of 26.6 percent) at the same time as the TSA's workforce grew by 3200 employees.

Nearly one-third of the offences are related to absence from the job including unexcused absences and absence without leave.  Next up we have 20 percent of offences that are related to failing to do the job properly including the "sleeping while on the job" problem.  In third place, we find 16 percent of offences falling under the insubordination and disrespectful conduct category.  In fourth place (and this is the one that should concern most of us), 10 percent of offences were related to inappropriate or sexual misconduct, fighting, abusive language or abusive use of authority.  This should not surprise anyone.  Apparently, putting a uniform on some people hones their sense of authority despite the fact that they are barely making a living wage (or perhaps because of it!).

So what happened to the 9622 TSA employees?  Here is a pie chart showing that nearly half of them received a slap with a wet noodle:

If we go back to the "sleeping while engaging in security duties" issue, the prescribed penalty ranges from a suspension of 14 days to removal from the job.  This indicates the seriousness of this offense.  So, what did the TSA do to employees caught napping on the taxpayers' nickel?  The GAO found that 50 percent of the cases resulted in penalties ranging from the dreaded letter of demand to a suspension of one to three days (in other words, a long weekend).

While the appearance of a thorough security screening has pacified the travelling American public, if one scratches just a bit below the surface, it appears that the TSA is dysfunctional even in the way that it handles its own, offending employees.  Until the TSA takes the job of conducting reviews of cases of misconduct consistently, the security situation at U.S. airports is unlikely to improve.

Airport Valet Parking, The TSA and Your Privacy

To give us a bit of perspective on how widespread and foolish the imposition of security measures are in the United States, a recent posting by Bob Burns (and yes, that's his real name and he has been working for the TSA since September 2002) on the TSA Blog provides us with a prime example.  Interestingly, the TSA Blog deals with such interesting topics as what kind of deodorant you can take on your carryon luggage (stick deodorant is fine in any size, gels and sprays must be 3.4 ounces or less) and what type of gag gifts you should not try to take on board (hint: a retirement gift that looks like an explosive device).

A mainstream media story recently reported that TSA officers searched a valet-parked car at the Greater Rochester International Airport without the owners consent.  In response and in defence of the situation, the Transportation Safety Administration posted this on their blog:

"It has been reported that TSA Officers at airports are now searching cars. The news started to spread after a story ran  this week stating that a woman found a notice informing her that her car had been searched by TSA. 

The short version: While we deploy numerous layers of security, TSA officers are not inspecting cars or mandating that they be searched.

In this case, it turns out the car was searched by an employee of a car parking service. 

Each airport authority, along with its state and local law enforcement partners, is responsible for securing airport property, including the outer perimeter.  At this particular airport, car searches are part of their “airport security plan.”

An airport security plan addresses a myriad of security requirements that each airport must adhere to in order to protect the traveling public, which includes the physical security of the airport property. While the airport security plan is approved by the TSA, it is up to each airport authority and its state and local law enforcement partners to follow the plan that has been implemented. " (my bold)

It kind of makes you wonder what the "long version" of the story is, doesn't it?

Basically, each airport must supply a plan that protects the travelling public to the TSA which then provides its approval.  Since valet-parked cars are often sitting immediately adjacent to airport terminals for extended periods of time, they are deemed risky since any number of them could potentially contain explosives.  In the Rochester case, while the car was not actually searched by the TSA, the employee of the car parking service acted as a proxy for the TSA or, in other words, an agent of the federal government.  Basically, our privacy is at the mercy of a parking valet on a power trip who has been granted the right to search your car and all contents based on a suspicion (aka a whim).  According to the valet service at the San Diego International Airport, should you happen to drive to the airport and forget about those illicit drugs that you have stashed in the trunk of your car, the parking service will contact the police on your behalf should they happen to discover them.

Let's look at the Fourth Amendment to the Constitution:

"The right of the people to be secure in their persons, houses, papers, and effects, against unreasonable searches and seizures, shall not be violated, and no warrants shall issue, but upon probable cause, supported by oath or affirmation, and particularly describing the place to be searched, and the persons or things to be seized."

The purpose of this Amendment is to protect our right to privacy and to provide us freedom from arbitrary invasions.  Under the "plain view doctrine", if a restricted object (i.e. dangling wires and fuses) is in plain view of a government agent (in this case, a car parker), the agent has the right to search and seize.  In the case where nothing is obviously amiss, the legal loophole seems to exist with the fact that persons using a valet parking service are handing over the keys to their vehicle voluntarily; this is interpreted as giving voluntary consent to search your vehicle and potentially seize any "deemed contraband".

My advice; don't use an airport valet service unless you absolutely must and if you do, provide a valet key only that does not give access to the trunk.  That way, at the very least, the car parker will have to jimmy open your trunk if they want a peak at the vast horde of restricted treasures that await them.  

Apparently, in the "Modern Age of Paranoia", just about any excuse for a privacy violation is justifiable.

Full Body Scanners - Travelling Fun and Games

Those of us who fly on either a regular or irregular basis are well aware of the process of pre-flight screening that passes for our domestic War on Terrorism.  The gropings, invasive scannings, tweezer, nail clipper, toothpaste tube, deodorant and shampoo confiscations have become a routine part of taking flight in most developed nations of the world.  As a person with a dark complexion, black hair and a generally not terribly closely shaven appearance (and yet, I have no Middle Eastern heritage that I know of), I usually get the "extra special screening" and generally find my carry on baggage thoroughly searched, my hands tested for explosive residue and my boarding pass snatched from my grubby paws until I have passed the extra line of questioning reserved for those of us who dare to fit the pre-assumed appearance of a potential inflight trouble maker.

In the United States and Canada, the use of Advanced Imaging Technology (AIT) or what is commonly known as full-body scanners has taken over, limiting the human-to-subhuman contact that passed for security screening in the not-to-distant past.  Generally, ticket-bearing passengers are given three choices; passing through the imaging equipment, having an intimate pat down by a gorilla-fingered security agent or declining the aforementioned procedures and being denied boarding.  Thanks to a decision by the U.S. Court of Appeals on a case brought forward by the fine folks at the Electronic Privacy Information Center (EPIC) back in 2011, the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) now has to publicly clarify that in order for the sweaty masses to pass into the inner and "sterile" area of an airport, passengers may be screened and inspected by procedures that may include the use of AIT, resulting in total strangers seeing this:

...or this video that shows what can be done with the images:

With the United States having among the highest obesity rates in the world, one cannot imagine that the job is any great thrill for the most part.  Personally, if someone really wants to see my package, knock yourself out.  That said, I would prefer the pat down as it limits my exposure to unnecessary if infinitesimally small doses of radiation passing through my “boys”.

Many Americans are expressing concerns about the increasingly invasive hands of Big Brother and, on the Regulations.gov website, are verbalizing their anger over the TSA's current power grab.  Here are a few of the more interesting recent comments:

"I urge that we do not start using these types of scanners. Considering the rash of undercover operations of people getting through screening with dangerous objects, I have resolved to believe that airline security is a personnel issue. Do you really have to pat down an 80 year old woman in a wheelchair? Or search a baby? Or take a woman's breastmilk that she just drank in front of TSA agents to prove it wasn't a "threat"? Of course not. That's the problem. The majority of people that you hire to work at the TSA are either ill-trained, incompetent or uneducated. (If you have a chance to hear the way they talk and think out loud, you'd generally make the same assessment.)

I have an idea: Pay more for the job and hire smarter people. The quality of work will go up, better, non-irrational decisions will be made and passengers will feel better about the time it takes to go through security procedures."

"Nude Body Scanners are an ineffective, perverted violation of privacy. I opt out. However, I am still physically and emotionally violated by the TSA's disturbingly invasive Enhanced Pat-downs. 

The times I have been subjected to these unlawful procedures, I have experienced extreme panic attacks and distress as a result of the physical violation. I consider it sexual abuse. I have boycotted the airline industry because of the TSA. I will not pay someone to violate and abuse my person and my constitutional rights. The TSA and its procedures are a complete disgrace and should not be allowed to continue. Not only are the Nude Body Scanners and Enhanced Pat-downs completely ineffective, they are a violation of the Fourth Amendment of the Constitution."

"I completely oppose the use of these imaging devices. And even more so the so called "pat downs" and strip searches unless they have a bonafide reason for doing so. Searching children and children in wheelchairs is pathetic. No one has the right to touch me or my own, especially when they don't know me. I'm a grandmother and was completely humiliated when pulled aside. I flew from Arizona to Texas because my daughter was sick, I was already upset and when pulled aside it was embarassing. I was left in a cubicle for 10 minutes before anything was done. The TSA thinks this is acceptable? They are focusing on the wrong people instead of going after terrorists. Americans should not be treated this way in their own country."

"How many terrorists have the scanners and grope downs caught? NADA!"

Here, in my mind, is the comment that sums up the scenario in one sentence:

"If the dignity of people simply exercising their right to travel continues to be violated, then the terrorists will have won in that they will have succeeded in destroying some of our constitutional rights. "

Let's look at a key part of the mission of the Department Homeland Security:

"Securing and Managing Our Borders – The protection of the Nation’s borders— land, air, and sea—from the illegal entry of people, weapons, drugs, and other contraband while facilitating lawful travel and trade is vital to homeland security, as well as the Nation’s economic prosperity. The Department’s border security and management efforts focus on three interrelated goals: Effectively securing U.S. air, land, and sea borders; safeguarding and streamlining lawful trade and travel; and disrupting and dismantling transnational criminal and terrorist organizations."

How much does all of this security fun cost taxpayers? Keeping in mind that the TSA has wide-ranging security responsibilities that go beyond screening and prescreening 100 percent of the 1.8 million air travellers that fly on a daily basis, their budget is substantial at $7.91 billion in fiscal 2013 as shown here:

As shown on this pie chart, this will work out to 12 percent of the entire $59.959 billion fiscal 2014 budget for the Department of Homeland Security:

To ensure the safety of the travelling public, the TSA now has more than 46,000 Transportation Security Officers at 448 airports in the United States.

The cost of TSAs information technology, checkpoint technology, security screening equipment and infrastructure alone is expected to drop by $288 million from fiscal 2012 as a result of the $3.2 billion cuts to the Department of Homeland Security.    The Federal Air Marshal Service alone is expected to cost $906.9 million in fiscal 2013 ($858 under sequestration), down from $965.8 million in fiscal 2012.

In order to catch the "bad guys", here's what the TSA proposes for those Americans who will be flying now and in the future:

Strengthening Risk-Based Aviation Security: The FY 2014 Budget supports DHS’s effort to employ risk-based, intelligence-driven operations to prevent terrorist attacks and to reduce the vulnerability of the Nation’s aviation system to terrorism. These security measures create a multi-layered system to strengthen aviation security from the time a passenger purchases a ticket to arrival at his or her destination. The FY 2014 Budget:

o Continues expansion of trusted traveler programs, such as TSA Pre✓TM, which are pre- screening initiatives for travelers who volunteer information about themselves before flying to potentially expedite screening at domestic checkpoints and through customs. By 2014, TSA anticipates that one in four members of the traveling public will be eligible for expedited screening.

o Continues enhanced behavior detection in which interview and behavioral analysis techniques are used to determine if a traveler should be referred for additional screening at the checkpoint. Analyses from pilots in FY 2013 will inform next steps for how larger-scale implementation in FY 2014 could improve capabilities in a risk-based security environment.

o Expands Secure Flight to perform watch-list matching for passengers before boarding large general aviation aircraft. An estimated 11 million additional Secure Flight Passenger Data sets are expected to be submitted by general aviation operators per year.

o Supports, as part of its multi-layered security strategy, the Federal Flight Deck Officer and Flight Crew program as a fully reimbursable program under FLETC’s existing authorities.

o Prioritizes TSA’s mission-critical screening functions, and proposes the transfer of all exit lane staffing to local airports pursuant to Federal regulatory authorities. Airports will be responsible for integrating exit lane security into their perimeter security plans, which are assessed regularly by TSA. 

After having my tube of toothpaste confiscated, it's most reassuring to see that we really are taking key measures to ensure that we are living in a much more secure world today than we were before September 11, 2001.  From the comments that I noted above, many other air travellers feel the same way.  

Scan and/or pat away.  All you can lose is your privacy and dignity.