[Federal Register Volume 89, Number 218 (Tuesday, November 12, 2024)]
[Notices]
[Pages 89022-89024]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2024-25701]


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DEPARTMENT OF HOMELAND SECURITY

Transportation Security Administration

RIN 1652-ZA18


TSA PreCheck[supreg] Application Program Fee

AGENCY: Transportation Security Administration, DHS.

ACTION: Notice.

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SUMMARY: The Transportation Security Administration (TSA) administers 
the

[[Page 89023]]

TSA PreCheck[supreg] Application Program, in which individuals 
determined to be low-risk travelers may receive expedited airport 
security screening. To apply for TSA Precheck[supreg] eligibility, 
individuals submit biometric and biographic information that TSA uses 
to verify identity and conduct a security threat assessment and submit 
fees to cover the costs associated with the program. TSA announces in 
this Notice that, under certain circumstances, the membership renewal 
fee will be reduced by $11.25 due to changes related to the Federal 
Bureau of Investigation (FBI) fee for criminal history checks.

DATES: This notice is effective November 12, 2024.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Anne Walbridge, Transportation 
Security Administration, 6595 Springfield Center Drive, Springfield, VA 
20598-6047; by phone at (240) 568-5372, or email at 
<a href="/cdn-cgi/l/email-protection#4a1e190b1a382f29222f29210f2438252626272f243e0a3e392b642e2239642d253c"><span class="__cf_email__" data-cfemail="feaaadbfae8c9b9d969b9d95bb908c919292939b908abe8a8d9fd09a968dd0999188">[email protected]</span></a>.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Availability of Notice Document

    You can get an electronic copy using the internet by--
    (1) Accessing the Government Printing Office's web page at https://www.gpo.gov/fdsys/browse/collection.action?collectionCode=FR to view 
the daily published Federal Register edition; or accessing the ``Search 
the Federal Register by Citation'' in the ``Related Resources'' column 
on the left, if you need to do a Simple or Advanced search for 
information, such as a type of document that crosses multiple agencies 
or dates; or
    (2) Visiting TSA's Security Regulations web page at https://www.tsa.gov and accessing the link for ``Stakeholders'' at the top of 
the page, then the link ``Research Center'' in the left column.
    In addition, copies are available by writing or calling the 
individual in the FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT section.

I. Background

A. Overview of TSA PreCheck[supreg] Application Program

    The TSA PreCheck[supreg] Application Program 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\ As of August 2024, there are approximately 20 
million members in the TSA PreCheck[supreg] Application Program. 
Individuals enrolled in the TSA PreCheck[supreg] Application Program 
are eligible to receive expedited screening at U.S. airports. As 
explained in its Notice establishing the program,\2\ membership in the 
TSA PreCheck[supreg] Application Program is within the sole discretion 
of TSA.
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    \1\ For purpose of this document, the ``TSA PreCheck[supreg] 
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[supreg]'' refers to 
expedited screening provided by TSA.
    \2\ See Notice, 78 FR 72922 (Dec. 4, 2013).
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    TSA established the TSA PreCheck[supreg] 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.\3\ 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. During the enrollment 
process, TSA requires applicants to present government-issued identity 
documents with a photo to prove their identity and that they are a U.S. 
person.
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    \3\ Id.
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    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 5 years, provided the individual continues to meet 
the eligibility standards. At the end of the 5-year term, individuals 
wishing to maintain their membership must renew it by completing a new 
STA and paying renewal fees.
    If TSA determines that the applicant is low risk, TSA issues a 
Known Traveler Number (KTN) \4\ that the individual enters when making 
flight reservations. Enrollment in the TSA PreCheck[supreg] 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 additional physical screening on occasion.
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    \4\ The Known Traveler Number is a component of Secure Flight 
Passenger Data, 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 access to TSA 
PreCheck[supreg] expedited screening if TSA determines the individual 
poses a risk to transportation or national security; has committed 
certain criminal acts; \5\ does not meet the immigration status 
standards; \6\ has committed regulatory violations; \7\ or is otherwise 
not a low-risk traveler. TSA notifies individuals who it determines are 
ineligible for a KTN or whose membership in the program is revoked, in 
writing, and they continue to undergo standard screening at airport 
security checkpoints.
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    \5\ See 49 CFR 1572.103 for the criminal standards that apply to 
TSA PreCheck[supreg] applicants.
    \6\ Individuals who apply for membership in the TSA 
PreCheck[supreg] Application Program must be U.S. citizens, U.S. 
Nationals, or Lawful Permanent Residents.
    \7\ For instance, an individual who interferes with security 
screening or brings a weapon to the security checkpoint would be 
deemed ineligible for TSA PreCheck[supreg] expedited screening and 
their membership in the program may be revoked.
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B. Program Fees

    TSA is required by law to collect a non-refundable fee to cover the 
costs of operating the TSA PreCheck[supreg] Application Program.\8\ 
Collecting biographic and biometric information from applicants, 
conducting the STA, adjudicating the results of the STA, and managing 
the program \9\ generate costs for TSA, the enrollment providers who 
TSA has selected to conduct enrollment, and the FBI who processes the 
fingerprint-based criminal history records check. Consistent with the 
statutory mandate, TSA established a fee structure for new TSA 
PreCheck[supreg] enrollments and renewals. The fee includes a TSA fee, 
an FBI fee, and an enrollment provider fee.
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    \8\ See sec. 540 of the DHS appropriations act of 2006, Public 
Law 109-90 (119 Stat. 2064, 2088-89, Oct. 18, 2005); 49 U.S.C. 114 
(note).
    \9\ Id.
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    The TSA fee recovers TSA's costs to analyze the immigration, 
terrorism, criminal, and regulatory violation information generated in 
the vetting process to determine whether applicants meet all 
eligibility requirements; notify applicants of TSA's determination; 
issue KTNs to eligible individuals; conduct research and development 
for innovative improvements to enrollment, expedited screening, and 
overall airport experience; expand the TSA PreCheck[supreg]: Touchless 
Identity Solution; \10\ and continue to monitor databases and 
information to confirm that members remain low risk. The current TSA 
fee is $42.75.\11\
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    \10\ For more information on the Touchless Identity Solution, 
visit tsa.gov/digital-id.
    \11\ If it is necessary to change this fee in the future, TSA 
will notify the public through publication of a Notice in the 
Federal Register.
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    The FBI fee covers the FBI's costs to compare fingerprints against 
the national criminal databases and return any results to TSA. This fee 
also

[[Page 89024]]

includes subscription in the FBI Rap Back program, which provides TSA 
notification of any new criminal activity or information. The FBI 
determines when it is necessary to change its fee for this service and 
publishes a Notice of those changes in the Federal Register.\12\ TSA 
ensures that the current FBI fee is collected during enrollment and 
transmitted to the FBI. The current FBI fee is $11.25.
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    \12\ See https://www.federalregister.gov/documents/2022/08/04/2022-16668/fbis-criminal-justice-information-services-division-user-fee-schedule.
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    The enrollment provider fee covers the cost of the vendor's 
enrollment products and services to include costs to establish and 
maintain enrollment centers; equip and staff the centers; develop and 
maintain the information technology infrastructure to securely collect 
and transmit applicant data; and administer these services. The 
enrollment provider collects this fee directly from the applicant 
during enrollment and retains it; TSA does not ingest, transfer, or 
retain the enrollment provider fee.
    When the TSA PreCheck[supreg] Application Program launched in 2013, 
the enrollment provider fee was set via contract. TSA recompeted this 
contract in 2019. The contract was awarded to IDEMIA and set an updated 
enrollment provider fee. In 2018, Congress passed the TSA Modernization 
Act \13\ requiring TSA to increase the number of enrollment providers 
in the TSA PreCheck[supreg] program. This legislation sought to add 
competition, capabilities, and options to the enrollment process and 
provides that TSA must select at least two additional enrollment 
vendors to conduct enrollment under Other Transaction Agreements (OTAs) 
with TSA. Unlike a contract, an OTA permits the vendor to establish its 
fees and the services it wishes to provide, rather than having them set 
by TSA, which increases the opportunity for options and services for 
the applicants. Applicants can choose an enrollment provider based on 
the services it provides in addition to TSA PreCheck[supreg] 
enrollment. Nothing in the OTA process prevents TSA and the FBI from 
receiving their respective fees. TSA entered into OTAs with IDEMIA,\14\ 
Alclear, LLC and Telos Identity Management Solutions, LLC in 2020 to 
provide enrollment services for the TSA PreCheck[supreg] program. TSA 
maintains a list of the overall fees to enroll in TSA PreCheck[supreg], 
by enrollment provider, at www.tsa.gov/precheck. These fees include the 
TSA fee, the FBI fee, and the enrollment provider fee.
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    \13\ TSA Modernization Act, division K--title I of the FAA 
Reauthorization Act sec. 1937(f), Public Law 115-254, 132 Stat. 3186 
(Oct. 5, 2018).
    \14\ IDEMIA has an OTA with TSA for the TSA PreCheck[supreg] 
Application Program and a contract for TSA enrollment, to include 
TSA PreCheck[supreg].
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II. Reduced Renewal Fee

    In May 2021, TSA began subscribing TSA PreCheck[supreg] Application 
Program members in the FBI's Rap Back service.\15\ The FBI currently 
charges $11.25 to process fingerprints for the criminal history records 
check and retain them in the FBI's Next Generation Identification 
system. The FBI then allows TSA to subscribe individuals in Rap Back at 
no additional cost. Currently, the FBI permits an individual seeking to 
renew TSA PreCheck[supreg] membership to remain subscribed in Rap Back 
if their STA has not expired and the enrollment provider remains the 
same. In these cases, the FBI does not charge the $11.25 FBI fee.
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    \15\ Rap Back is an optional service offered by the FBI that 
provides authorized users with the capability to subscribe an 
individual to receive notification of subsequent triggering 
information, such as a new criminal arrest or the disposition of an 
old arrest, involving that individual during the term of enrollment.
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    TSA's contract with IDEMIA requires this $11.25 savings to be 
passed on to the renewing individual. Providers operating under an OTA 
with TSA may, but are not required, to pass this savings on to the 
individual. As stated above, the OTA process permits the provider to 
set its fees and services, which applicants may take into account when 
choosing a provider.
    TSA will continue to maintain a current listing of the overall fees 
for all enrollment and renewal options at www.tsa.gov/precheck.

    Dated: October 30, 2024.
Stacey Fitzmaurice,
Executive Assistant Administrator, Operations Support.
[FR Doc. 2024-25701 Filed 11-8-24; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 9110-05-P


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