( CNN ) -- Calling for an airport screening process that maximizes security but cuts down on passenger hassles , the U.S. Travel Association on Wednesday recommended key changes to the current system . The group , along with a panel of experts , suggested creating a trusted traveler program that would allow fliers who volunteer certain information about themselves to go through less rigorous security before their flight . It also proposed allowing each traveler to check one bag without a fee to reduce the amount of luggage going through security checkpoints . `` We need to do better , '' said Jim Turner , a former ranking Democratic member of the House Homeland Security Committee and co-chairman of the panel , during a news conference in Washington . `` We owe it to the traveling public to make the system make more sense . '' Traveler frustration with the current routine -- which includes the familiar rules about taking off shoes , going through a metal detector or full-body scan ( or both ) and facing the possibility of a pat down -- prompted the report , titled `` A Better Way , '' the U.S. Travel Association said . What are the chances Congress would approve any portion of the plan ? It 's very difficult to get action in this area , Turner admitted . But if implemented , the recommendations could shorten wait times at security checkpoints and allow the Transportation Security Administration to screen passengers based on risk , the report said . 'Shrink the haystack ' Right now , `` everyone who checks in is treated as a potential terrorist , '' said Tom Ridge , the former secretary of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security and co-chairman of the panel . The group called it a `` one-size-fits-all solution '' in which children and the elderly can be pulled aside for extra screening . But having everyone go through the system is n't the way to eliminate risk , Ridge said . `` If you want to find a needle in a haystack , you shrink the haystack , '' he said . That 's where the trusted traveler program would come in , designating some passengers as low-risk based on information such as a background check , employment history , lack of criminal record and other factors . Once travelers enroll in the program and their identity is confirmed at the airport with the help of biometric information , they would be subject to less security , Ridge said . The program should be extended to qualified international passengers , the panel recommends . The TSA screens more than 628 million airline passengers every year at U.S. airports , and the vast majority present little to no risk of committing an act of terrorism , TSA Administrator John Pistole said in a speech earlier this month . In response to Wednesday 's report , TSA spokesman Nicholas Kimball said Pistole 's vision for the future of airport security screening is `` one that is more risk-based and intelligence-driven , shifting away from a one-size-fits-all approach at checkpoints . '' `` Last fall , [ Pistole ] directed the agency to explore ways to further develop this strategy , with plans to announce more details this year . We welcome dialogue with stakeholders and the traveling public as the process moves forward , '' he said . The bag problem . Meanwhile , the U.S. Travel Association report also sets its sights on baggage . Passengers are bringing more carry-ons onto flights to avoid paying checked-bag fees , which increases checkpoint congestion and requires the TSA to devote more resources to screen passenger bags , the report says . The solution ? The Department of Transportation should require airlines to allow each passenger to check one bag as part of the base airfare , the panel recommends . Congress must improve the current system , said Roger Dow , president and CEO of the U.S. Travel Association . There are economic considerations at stake as well , he said . Dow cited a 2010 survey by Consensus Research , which found that U.S. travelers would take an additional two to three flights per year if the hassles in security screening system were eliminated . The additional flights would add nearly $ 85 billion in consumer spending and 900,000 jobs to the American economy , the report said .
NEW : TSA welcomes `` dialogue with ... the traveling public '' on panel 's recommendations . U.S. Travel Association and panel of experts call for airport security changes . Report : Create trusted traveler program that would allow low-risk fliers to skip some security . Report : Allow each traveler to check one bag without a fee to reduce bags at checkpoints .