I 
115TH CONGRESS 
1ST SESSION 
H. R. 876 
To amend the Homeland Security Act of 2002 to reform programs of the 
Transportation Security Administration, and for other purposes. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
FEBRUARY 6, 2017 
Mr. KATKO (for himself, Mr. MCCAUL, Mr. ROGERS of Alabama, Mr. 
FITZPATRICK, Mr. HIGGINS of Louisiana, Mr. KING of New York, Mr. 
VELA, Mr. KEATING, and Mrs. WATSON COLEMAN) introduced the fol-
lowing bill; which was referred to the Committee on Homeland Security 
A BILL 
To amend the Homeland Security Act of 2002 to reform 
programs of the Transportation Security Administration, 
and for other purposes. 
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 
This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Aviation Employee 
Screening and Security Enhancement Act of 2017’’. 
SEC. 2. DEFINITIONS. 
In this Act: 
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(1) ADMINISTRATION.—The term ‘‘Administra-
tion’’ means the Transportation Security Adminis-
tration. 
(2) ADMINISTRATOR.—The term ‘‘Adminis-
trator’’ means the Administrator of the Transpor-
tation Security Administration. 
(3) AIR CARRIER.—The term ‘‘air carrier’’ has 
the meaning given such term in section 40102 of 
title 49, United States Code. 
(4) APPROPRIATE
CONGRESSIONAL
COMMIT-
TEES.—The term ‘‘appropriate congressional com-
mittees’’ means the Committee on Homeland Secu-
rity of the House of Representatives and the Com-
mittee on Homeland Security and Governmental Af-
fairs and the Committee on Commerce, Science, and 
Transportation of the Senate. 
(5) FOREIGN AIR CARRIER.—The term ‘‘foreign 
air carrier’’ has the meaning given such term in sec-
tion 40102 of title 49, United States Code. 
(6) INTELLIGENCE
COMMUNITY.—The term 
‘‘intelligence community’’ has the meaning given 
such term in section 3(4) of the National Security 
Act of 1947 (50 U.S.C. 3003(4)). 
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SEC. 3. COST AND FEASIBILITY STUDY. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 180 days after the 
date of the enactment of this Act, the Administrator, in 
consultation with the Aviation Security Advisory Com-
mittee (established under section 44946 of title 49, United 
States Code), shall submit to the Committee on Homeland 
Security of the House of Representatives, the Committee 
on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs and the 
Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation of 
the Senate, and the Comptroller General of the United 
States a cost and feasibility study of a statistically signifi-
cant number of Category I, II, and X airports to ensure 
that all employee entry and exit points that lead to secure 
areas of such airports are comprised of the following: 
(1) A secure door utilizing card and pin entry 
or biometric technology. 
(2) Surveillance video recording, capable of 
storing video data for at least 30 days. 
(3) Advanced screening technologies, including 
at least one of the following: 
(A) Magnetometer (walk-through or hand- 
held). 
(B) Explosives detection canines. 
(C) Explosives trace detection swabbing. 
(D) Advanced imaging technology. 
(E) X-ray bag screening technology. 
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(b) CONTENTS.—The study required under sub-
section (a) shall include information related to the em-
ployee screening costs of those category I, II, and X air-
ports which have already implemented practices of screen-
ing 100 percent of employees entering secure areas of air-
ports, including the following: 
(1) Costs associated with establishing an oper-
ational minimum number of employee entry and exit 
points. 
(2) A comparison of costs associated with im-
plementing the requirements specified in paragraph 
(1), based on whether such implementation was car-
ried out by the Administration or airports. 
(c) COMPTROLLER GENERAL ASSESSMENT.— 
(1) IN
GENERAL.—Upon completion of the 
study required under subsection (a), the Comptroller 
General of the United States shall review such study 
to assess the quality and reliability of such study. 
(2) ASSESSMENT.—Not later than 60 days 
after the receipt of the study required under sub-
section (a), the Comptroller General of the United 
States shall report to the Committee on Homeland 
Security of the House of Representatives and the 
Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental 
Affairs and the Committee on Commerce, Science, 
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and Transportation of the Senate on the results of 
the review required under paragraph (1). 
SEC. 4. AIRPORT WORKER EDUCATION AND SECURITY 
AWARENESS. 
(a) COOPERATIVE EFFORTS TO ENHANCE AIRPORT 
SECURITY AWARENESS.—Not later than 180 days after 
the date of the enactment of this Act, the Administrator 
shall work with air carriers, foreign air carriers, airport 
operators, airport vendors, and airport concessionaires to 
enhance security awareness of credentialed airport popu-
lations regarding insider threats to aviation security and 
best practices related to airport access controls. 
(b) CREDENTIALING STANDARDS.— 
(1) IN
GENERAL.—Not later than 180 days 
after the date of the enactment of this Act, the Ad-
ministrator shall, in consultation with air carriers, 
foreign air carriers, airport operators, vendors, and 
airport concessionaires, assess credentialing stand-
ards, policies, and practices to ensure that insider 
threats to aviation security are adequately ad-
dressed. 
(2) REPORT.—Not later than 30 days after 
completion of the assessment required under para-
graph (1), the Administrator shall report to the ap-
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propriate congressional committees on the results of 
such assessment. 
(c) SIDA APPLICATIONS.—Not later than 60 days 
after the date of the enactment of this Act, the Adminis-
trator shall revise the application submitted by an indi-
vidual applying for a credential granting access to the Se-
cure Identification Display Area (as such term is defined 
in section 1540.5 of title 49, Code of Federal Regulations) 
of an airport to require the social security number of such 
individual in order to strengthen security vetting effective-
ness. 
SEC. 5. SECURING AIRPORT WORKER ACCESS. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—The Administrator shall work 
with airport operators to identify advanced technologies, 
including biometric identification technologies, for secur-
ing employee access to the secure and sterile areas of air-
ports (as such terms are defined in section 1540.5 of title 
49, Code of Federal Regulations). 
(b) RAP BACK VETTING.—Not later than 180 days 
after the date of the enactment of this Act, the Adminis-
trator shall ensure that all credentialed aviation worker 
populations are continuously vetted through the Federal 
Bureau of Investigation’s Rap Back Service, in order to 
more rapidly detect and mitigate insider threats to avia-
tion security. 
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(c) INSIDER THREAT EDUCATION
AND MITIGA-
TION.—Not later than 180 days after the date of the en-
actment of this Act, the Administrator shall identify 
means of enhancing the Administration’s ability to lever-
age the resources of the Department of Homeland Secu-
rity and the intelligence community to educate Adminis-
tration personnel on insider threats to aviation security 
and how the Administration can better mitigate such in-
sider threats. 
(d) PLAYBOOK OPERATIONS.—The Administrator 
shall ensure that Administration-led employee screening 
efforts, known as Playbook operations, are targeted, stra-
tegic, and focused on providing the greatest level of secu-
rity effectiveness. 
(e) COVERT TESTING.— 
(1) IN GENERAL.—The Administrator shall in-
crease covert testing of employee screening oper-
ations at airports and measure existing levels of se-
curity effectiveness. The Administrator shall provide 
to air carriers, foreign air carriers, airport operators, 
airport vendors, and airport concessionaires— 
(A) the results of such testing; and 
(B) recommendations based on such re-
sults and measurements on how to improve 
such security screening operations. 
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(2) ANNUAL
REPORTING.—The Administrator 
shall submit to the appropriate congressional com-
mittees an annual report on the frequency, method-
ology, strategy, and effectiveness of employee screen-
ing operations at airports. 
(f) CENTRALIZED DATABASE.—Not later than 180 
days after the date of the enactment of this Act, the Ad-
ministrator, in consultation with the Aviation Security Ad-
visory Committee, shall— 
(1) establish a national database of Administra-
tion employees who have had either their airport or 
aircraft operator-issued badge revoked for failure to 
comply with aviation security requirements; 
(2) determine the appropriate reporting mecha-
nisms for airports and air carriers and foreign air 
carriers to— 
(A) submit to the Administration data re-
garding employees described in paragraph (1); 
and 
(B) access the database established pursu-
ant to such paragraph; and 
(3) establish a process that allows individuals 
whose names were mistakenly entered into such 
database to have their names removed and have 
their credentialing restored. 
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SEC. 6. INSIDER THREAT COORDINATION EFFORTS. 
The Department of Homeland Security is the lead 
interagency coordinator pertaining to insider threat inves-
tigations and mitigation efforts at airports. The Depart-
ment shall make every practicable effort to coordinate with 
other relevant Government entities when undertaking such 
investigations and efforts. 
SEC. 7. INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY SECURITY. 
Not later than 90 days after the date of the enact-
ment of this Act, the Administrator shall submit to the 
appropriate congressional committees a plan to conduct 
recurring reviews of the operational, technical, and man-
agement security controls for Administration information 
technology systems at airports. 
Æ 
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