TSA Fined Less Than 1% Of Travelers Who Blew Off Federal Mask Mandate In Airports
Washington DC Nov 1 2021 Despite receiving over 5,000 reports of travelers failing to wear a face mask in airports since the federal mask mandate went into effect last February, the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) let off the vast majority of offenders without so much as a slap on the wrist.
The federal mask mandate applies to individuals across all transportation networks throughout the United States, including at airports, onboard commercial aircraft, on over-the-road buses, and on commuter bus and rail systems. Originally set to expire in May 2021, the mandate has been extended several times and is now set to stay in place through January 18, 2022. There are exemptions for travelers under the age of 2 years old and those with certain disabilities.
The stated existing civil penalty fine structure for failing to comply with the mandate starts at $500 and rises to up to $3,000 for repeat offenders, according to a TSA spokesperson.
But in the seven months between February and September 2021, the TSA issued just $2,350 in total fines to 10 passengers, a number countable with just the fingers on both hands. That works out to 0.2% of reported passengers receiving fines so far.
Roughly 2,000, or about 40%, of the accused offenders have received warnings. In addition, “more than 160 have received notice of a civil penalty,” said a TSA spokesperson. If those travelers eventually receive fines, that would mean that 3% of the reported incidents result in civil penalties.
In a terse letter to TSA Administrator David Pekoske yesterday, House Homeland Security Committee Chair Bennie Thompson and Representative Bonnie Watson Coleman, who chairs the house transportation subcommittee, said “we are concerned that TSA is not fully utilizing its authorities to deter this reckless and dangerous behavior.”
Thompson and Coleman pointed out that another federal agency had drawn a much harder line in enforcing mask mandates on airplanes. “In contrast, the Federal Aviation Administration has fielded complaints about more than 3,500 mask-related incidents since the start of the year and has issued over $1 million in proposed fines against disruptive passengers generally,” continues the letter.
The two members of Congress asked TSA Administrator Pekoske to reply to their letter by November 15 with responses to a number of questions, including:
“How does TSA determine whether to issue a warning or a civil penalty in cases of noncompliance with the mandate to wear masks in transportation settings?”
And: “How many civil penalties has TSA issued for violations of the mask mandate to date? Of those, how many recipients have paid the penalties assessed by TSA? Does TSA regularly track the final outcomes of fines it assesses? If not, will TSA commit to doing so in order to better understand the effectiveness of its compliance efforts?”
And: “What difficulties does TSA face in pursuing more aggressive enforcement action in cases of non-compliance with the mask mandate? What solutions is TSA implementing in response?”
During a recent congressional subcommittee hearing about the escalation of air rage in the United States, flight attendants and other industry representatives painted a stark picture of how unfriendly the skies have become during the Covid-19 pandemic, noting that many incidents involve travelers who refuse to wear face masks. Many times, disruptive passengers reveal themselves before ever getting on the plane.
“Nearly half of the incidents could be prevented by identifying problems on the ground or pre-flight, which is an opportunity for dramatically reducing the threat in the air,” testified Sara Nelson, the president of a union representing cabin crew workers from 17 airlines. “Our ground service members have seen that incidents of assault against passenger service agents are rarely investigated or prosecuted.”
A TSA spokesperson pushed back on assertion that the agency has been too lax in meting out consequences. “We have made each of these people who have been warned or sent a notice of proposed civil penalty ineligible to receive TSA PreCheck expedited screening due to their violation of a TSA security directive,” she said. “Additionally, working with our law enforcement partners, almost 200 people have also faced criminal penalties including arrest.”
