Two of  the most important of these responsibilities are passenger and checked  baggage screening. Although Progress Has Been Made, Concerns Remain Regarding Hiring and Deploying the Screener Workforce

Although TSA successfully met its mandate to establish a federal screener  workforce by November 2002, it continues to face challenges in hiring and  deploying passenger and baggage screeners. However, staffing shortages at some airports and TSA’s hiring  process have hindered the ability of some FSDs to fully staff screening  checkpoints without using additional measures, such as overtime and the  use of a National Screening Force. TSA Has Enhanced Its Screener Training Programs, but Access to Programs Is Sometimes Limited

TSA has taken steps to enhance its training programs for passenger and  baggage screeners. However, staffing shortages and lack of high-speed  connectivity at airport training facilities have made it difficult for  screeners to fully utilize these programs. TSA Continues to Strengthen its Efforts to Measure Screener Performance in Detecting Threat Objects

TSA has undertaken several initiatives to measure the performance of  passenger screeners in detecting threat objects. While TSA is making  progress in each of these areas, it has collected limited data on the  performance of its baggage screening operations. Officials stated that they  have collected limited performance data related to baggage screeners due  to their focus on passenger screener performance, but plan to collect  additional performance data in the future. Covert Testing

TSA’s Office of Internal Affairs and Program Review conducts  unannounced covert tests of passenger and baggage screeners to assess  their ability to detect threat objects and adherence to TSA-approved  procedures. TSA Faces Challenges in Its Efforts to Deploy and Leverage Screening Equipment and Technologies

TSA has made progress in its checked baggage screening operations, but  continues to face operational and funding challenges in screening all  checked baggage using explosive detection systems, as mandated by  ATSA. Although TSA has deployed EDS and ETD equipment to all airports,  TSA has not been able to fully utilize this equipment to screen 100 percent  of checked baggage for explosives by December 31, 2003, due to screener  and equipment shortages and equipment being out of service for  maintenance and/or repairs. TSA has ongoing initiatives to increase the  efficiency of screening checked baggage using EDS, including the  development and construction of in-line baggage screening systems at  larger airports—which, streamlines the screening processes. TSA is also  conducting research and development activities to strengthen passenger  and baggage screening. These efforts are designed to improve detection  capability, performance, and efficiency for current technologies, and to  develop the next generation of EDS equipment. Future Challenges

As TSA moves forward with passenger and baggage screening R&D, it  faces a number of organizational, funding, and coordination challenges.
Why GAO Did This Study

Securing commercial aviation is a daunting task--with hundreds of airports and thousands of flights daily carrying millions of passengers and pieces of baggage. In an effort to strengthen the security of commercial aviation, the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) was created and charged with making numerous enhancements to aviation security, including federalizing passenger and baggage screening and screening checked baggage using explosive detection systems. To assess the progress of passenger and baggage screening operations, GAO was asked to describe TSA's efforts to (1) hire and deploy passenger and baggage screeners, (2) train the screening workforce, (3) measure screener performance in detecting threat objects, and (4) leverage and deploy screening equipment and technologies.

What GAO Found

TSA met its mandate to establish a federal screener workforce by November 2002, but continues to face challenges in hiring and deploying passenger and baggage screeners. Staffing shortages at some airports and TSA's hiring process have hindered TSA's ability to fully staff screening checkpoints without using additional measures, such as overtime. In addition, while TSA has taken steps to enhance its screener training programs, staffing shortages and lack of high-speed connectivity at airport training facilities have made it difficult for screeners at some airports to fully utilize these programs. TSA has also undertaken several initiatives to measure the performance of passenger screeners in detecting threat objects. These efforts include increasing covert testing at screening checkpoints and conducting annual recertifications of screeners. While TSA is making progress in measuring the performance of passenger screeners, it has collected limited performance data related to its baggage screening operations. However, TSA has begun collecting additional performance data related to its baggage screening operations, and plans to increase these efforts in the future. TSA also continues to face challenges in deploying and leveraging screening equipment and technologies. TSA deployed Explosive Detection Systems and Explosive Trace Detection equipment to all airports to screen checked baggage. However, TSA has been unable to fully utilize this equipment to screen 100 percent of checked baggage due to screener shortages, and equipment out of service for maintenance and/or repairs. When this equipment is not available, TSA continues to screen checked baggage using alternative means. TSA also has ongoing initiatives designed to increase the efficiency of screening checked baggage, including implementing in-line baggage screening systems and streamlining screening processes. TSA is also conducting research and development (R&D) activities to strengthen passenger and baggage screening. These efforts are designed to improve detection capability, performance, and efficiency for current technologies, and to develop next generation screening equipment. TSA faces a number of challenges with its R&D program, including balancing funding with competing priorities, and working with other components of the Department of Homeland Security to develop a strategy for merging their R&D programs.