Air Carrier Inspections and Foreign Airport Assessments

To assess whether air carriers properly implement security regulations,  TSA conducts regulatory compliance inspections of U.S. and foreign- flagged air carriers at all foreign airports with U.S.-bound flights. NCSP Recognition

In addition to conducting air carrier inspections and foreign airport  assessments, TSA has also developed the NCSP Recognition Program,  for which TSA compares and assesses foreign air cargo security  programs and standards to determine if those programs provide a level of  security that is commensurate with TSA’s air cargo security standards. Based on our analysis of PARIS data, TSA conducted close to 5,000 air  carrier cargo inspections (including both passenger air carriers and all- cargo air carriers) from fiscal year 2012 through fiscal year 2017 and  found air carriers in full compliance with applicable security requirements  in 84 percent of these inspections. Based on the results of TSA’s foreign  airport assessments conducted during fiscal years 2012 through 2017,  TSA inspectors assessed most noncompliance issues identified as a “2”  or “3.”
As of December 2017, TSA officials reported that certain foreign airports  took corrective actions to address noncompliance issues. TSA Has Recognized the Air Cargo Security Programs of the European Union and 12 Other Countries and Monitors Their Implementation

		TSA Has Increased the Number of Countries Recognized, as well as the Scope of Its Recognition Program

As of June 2018, TSA has recognized the passenger air cargo security  programs of the European Union, which covers the 28 European Union  member states, and 12 other countries. TSA’s NCSP  recognition process involves three phases: (1) a technical review and  analysis of a foreign country’s air cargo security program’s requirements  with TSA requirements to determine if the programs align on basic  principles; (2) validation visits to the foreign country to determine if the air  cargo security program aligns with TSA practices; and (3) a decision on  whether to recognize the foreign government’s air cargo security program  as commensurate with TSA’s air cargo security requirements. According to TSA  officials, in this instance, TSA requires air carriers in that country to  continue to implement specific TSA requirements on U.S.-bound air  cargo to account for the variation. TSA Uses a Variety of Mechanisms to Monitor and Revalidate Recognized Governments’ NCSP Implementation

Once TSA determines a foreign government’s NCSP is commensurate  with TSA requirements, it monitors NCSP implementation through air  carrier cargo inspections, foreign airport assessments, ongoing  engagements with foreign government officials, and revalidation of NCSP  recognition (see fig. TSA’s Existing Performance Measures Do Not Allow It to Specifically Determine the Effectiveness of Its Efforts to Secure U.S.-Bound Air Cargo

TSA has taken steps to broadly measure the effectiveness of its air  carrier inspections and foreign airport assessments, but these efforts do  not allow TSA to specifically determine the effectiveness of the cargo  portions of such inspections or assessments. Such a broad  measure of the effectiveness of foreign airport assessments could  obscure progress made (or lack thereof) in resolving cargo-specific  vulnerabilities. TSA officials stated that they are coordinating with the Office of  Management and Budget to develop a performance measure to gauge  the effectiveness of air carrier inspections. Given TSA’s assessment that the security threat in air cargo is significant,  developing and monitoring an outcome-based performance measure  specific to the cargo portions of foreign airport assessments—along with  differentiating the extent to which air carriers correct violations related to  cargo from those related to passengers as it develops and monitors  outcome-based performance measures for its air carrier inspection  program–could help TSA better determine the effectiveness of these  efforts and whether they are improving the security of U.S.-bound air  cargo. For example,  TSA has not measured the extent to which non-recognized countries  implement recommendations that TSA has made to them during the  NCSP recognition process. Further, developing  and monitoring output and outcome-based performance measures for its  recognition programs will help TSA better determine the effectiveness of  the NCSP Recognition Program and whether the resources TSA has  invested are yielding their intended results. GAO staff who made  key contributions to this report are listed in appendix V.

Appendix I: Objectives, Scope, and Methodology

This report: (1) describes steps the Transportation Security Administration  (TSA) takes to help ensure that U.S-bound air cargo is secure, (2)  describes the status of TSA’s efforts to recognize and monitor foreign  governments’ air cargo security programs, and (3) analyzes the extent to  which TSA measures the effectiveness of its efforts to secure U.S.-bound  air cargo. This report is a public version of a sensitive report that we issued in  October 2018.TSA deemed some of the information in our October  report to be Sensitive Security Information, which must be protected from  public disclosure.
Why GAO Did This Study

According to TSA, the federal agency responsible for securing the nation's civil aviation system, the introduction of explosive devices in air cargo shipments is a significant threat. To mitigate this threat, TSA is to review the security procedures carried out by all air carriers with U.S.-bound flights and at foreign airports servicing those air carriers. In addition, TSA assesses the commensurability of foreign countries' air cargo security programs.
GAO was asked to evaluate TSA's progress in assessing and mitigating air cargo security risks. This report addresses (1) steps TSA takes to help ensure that U.S-bound air cargo is secure, (2) the status of TSA's efforts to recognize and monitor foreign governments' air cargo security programs, and (3) the extent to which TSA measures the effectiveness of its efforts to secure U.S.-bound air cargo. GAO reviewed TSA policies and procedures, analyzed TSA program data, observed a nongeneralizable sample of 17 air carrier inspections at two foreign airports (selected based on high air cargo volume and other factors), and interviewed TSA, foreign government, and air carrier representatives.

What GAO Found

The Transportation Security Administration (TSA) inspects air carriers and assesses foreign airports to help ensure the security of U.S.-bound air cargo.
Air carrier inspections . GAO observed 17 air carrier inspections and found that TSA inspectors consistently followed TSA procedures. Further, GAO's analysis of TSA data found air carriers were in full compliance with cargo security requirements in 84 percent of the nearly 5,000 cargo inspections conducted during fiscal years 2012 through 2017. TSA officials were able to resolve a majority of the violations identified during the inspection process.
Foreign airport assessments . GAO analysis of TSA data found that about 75 percent of the foreign airport assessments that TSA conducted during fiscal years 2012 through 2017 fully complied with international air cargo security standards. As of the end of 2017, foreign officials had addressed about 40 percent of the non-compliance issues. TSA continues to work with foreign officials to address the remaining non-compliance issues.
As of June 2018, TSA had recognized the national cargo security programs (NCSP) of the European Union and 12 other countries as commensurate with TSA's, and TSA uses a variety of mechanisms to monitor NCSP implementation. TSA's process for NCSP recognition, which is voluntary, involves comparing air cargo security requirements to TSA's and conducting visits to the countries to validate their use. Once TSA determines a program is commensurate with TSA's, it monitors NCSP implementation through regular air carrier inspections, foreign airport assessments, and dialog with government officials. TSA may decide not to recognize a country's NCSP but, instead, make recommendations for improving air cargo security. In countries where TSA has not recognized their NCSP, all U.S.-bound cargo is subject to TSA security requirements.
TSA's performance measures do not allow it to specifically determine the effectiveness of its efforts to secure U.S.-bound air cargo. For example, TSA measures whether foreign airports take actions to address all noncompliance issues identified during airport assessments, but such a broad measure could obscure progress made in resolving cargo-specific vulnerabilities. Similarly, TSA officials stated that they are developing a measure to gauge the effectiveness of air carrier inspections, but they do not plan to differentiate efforts to secure air cargo from those for securing passengers. Developing and monitoring outcome-based performance measures that separately account for cargo noncompliance issues and violations could help TSA better determine the extent to which its foreign airport assessments and air carrier inspections improve the security of U.S.-bound air cargo. In addition, TSA measures the number of countries it has recognized in the NCSP Recognition Program, but this metric does not address the effectiveness of the program. Developing and monitoring outcome-based performance measures for the NCSP Recognition Program would help TSA better determine whether the resources invested are yielding the intended results. This is a public version of a sensitive report issued in October 2018. Information that TSA deemed to be sensitive is omitted from this report.

What GAO Recommends

GAO is recommending that TSA develop and monitor outcome-based performance measures to assess the effectiveness of (1) the cargo portion of foreign airport assessments, (2) air carrier cargo inspections, and (3) the NCSP Recognition Program. TSA concurred with the recommendations.