Airport Security Gaps Under Scrutiny

Security gaps at airports. It's something the NBC Connecticut Troubleshooters looked into earlier this year. Those gaps were again the subject of a "federal" hearing.

Several NBC investigations including one by the Troubleshooters looked into hundreds of missing airport worker badges. That was one of the issues addressed this morning, along with word of a new, covert investigation that gave failing grades to the TSA again.

A report by the Inspector General for the Department of Homeland Security shared some of the unclassified information about the TSA investigation, where passenger checkpoints were closely monitored at eight undisclosed airports this September. DHS Inspector General John Roth said,

“The results were consistent across every airport. Our testing was designed to test airports across the country in real world conditions. The failures included failures in the technology, failures in TSA procedures, and human errors."

The subject of airport worker badges, something we looked at at Bradley Airport this summer, was also discussed.

The Office of the Inspector General is looking at the idea of giving the TSA more control over the badges.

It said "...the responsibility for executing perimeter and airport facility security is in the purview of the 450 local airport authorities rather than the TSA...and the potential lack of local government resources makes it difficult for TSA to issue and enforce higher standards..."

We reached out to the Connecticut Airport Authority for comment on this. We have not heard back.

You can watch the hearing here: https://oversight.house.gov/hearing/tsa-security-gaps/

Here’s the Inspector General’s written statement: https://www.oig.dhs.gov/assets/TM/2016/OIGtm-JR-110315.pdf

TSA written statement: https://oversight.house.gov/wp-content/uploads/2015/11/11-3-2015-Committee-Hearing-on-TSA-Neffenger-TSA-Testimony.pdf

Statement of Govt. Accountability Office: https://oversight.house.gov/wp-content/uploads/2015/11/11-3-2015-Committee-Hearing-on-TSA-Grover-GAO-Testimony.pdf

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