Another Deadline Missed as TSA Tries to Handle Cargo Screening

The Transportation Security Administration (TSA) will miss a Congressionally mandated deadline to screen 100 percent of U.S.-bound air cargo by next month, lawmakers said June 30. In addition, TSA relies too heavily on a voluntary shipping program to ensure the compliance of private companies in the 100 percent screening requirement, said the Government Accountability Office (GAO) in a new report. GAO recommended that TSA develop contingency plans to address shortfalls in voluntary participation, but the agency objected. The chair of the House Homeland Security Committee characterized the report as demonstrating mixed progress at TSA. One of the lawmakers who requested the report said the 100-percent screening mandate was an important recommendation of the 9/11 Commission, which suggested that terrorists could ship illicit goods into the U.S. without a monitoring program. The GAO report, Aviation Security: TSA Has Made Progress but Faces Challenges in Meeting the Statutory Mandate for Screening Air Cargo on Passenger Aircraft, determined that TSA should set up a staffing study, verify the accuracy of screening data, set up a contingency plan for screening domestic cargo, and produce new plans for meeting requirements for screening cargo originating from overseas.