Contact:  Steve Hansen (Director of Communications)  (202) 225-7749
 Email: Steve.Hansen@mail.house.gov
     Justin Harclerode (Deputy Director of Communications)  (202) 226-8767
  Email: Justin.Harclerod@mail.house.gov

To:  National Desk/Transportation Reporter
September 17, 2002

        The following is U.S. Rep. John Mica’s (R-FL) statement from today’s Congressional oversight hearing in Orlando, Florida, regarding the current status of efforts to improve airport security - including the federal government’s ability to meet the upcoming deadlines for a federal screening workforce and the unexpected growth of the number of employees at the Transportation Security Administration.

        Mica is the Chairman of the House Subcommittee on Aviation and authored several of the provisions included in the Aviation and Transportation Security Act that was signed into law by President Bush on November 19, 2001.

        Last week, as a nation, we stopped to remember all those who lost their lives in last year’s terrorist attacks and reflect on the tasks that lay ahead.

        It’s been 10 months since Congress made the decision to Federalize the airport security screener workforce and, even though that was not the course I would have preferred, it is the course that Congress decided to take.
 
        It is now time to take stock, see where we are, and where we need to go to fulfill the promise of the Act passed last November.

        I know the President, Secretary Mineta, Deputy Secretary Jackson, and Acting Under Secretary Loy are doing their best to launch a new agency and to meet the aggressive deadlines in the law.

        They have made a lot of progress.

        As of September 10th, the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) has deployed federal screeners to 93 airports and hired nearly 32,000 passenger screeners.

        Unfortunately, some of the critical elements of developing a seamless Transportation Security System have not been coming together.

        I want to hear from TSA about the progress they have made towards deploying explosives detection technology and the challenges that they face in meeting these deadlines.

        I am concerned that TSA may need more employees than they are now telling us.

        The Inspector General now estimates that this massive new bureaucracy will add 67,000 new employees to the Federal payroll.
 
        Congressional appropriators are balking at multi-billion dollar equipment costs, diverting funds and imposing a limit of 45,000 Federal employees.

        Even a second grade student will tell you the math on this project does not work.

        I would like to hear from airport officials about how the transition is going from their perspective and how well the coordination has been with TSA.

        I also want to hear from existing screeners about their treatment by TSA and NCS Pearson.

        It is critical that this process succeed.  Central Florida is dependent on air travel and tourism.

        I look forward to hearing from today’s panel and I now recognize my good friend from Jacksonville, Congresswoman Brown.