Privacy and travel

Bob Barr is fairly peeved at the Transportation Security Administration for their new list of fines. $1,500 for “non-physical interference with screening” does seem a little high, particularly since attitude is one of the aggravating factors.

The new TSA guidelines are available as a Word document. I’ve also stuck the ones relevant to travellers in the continuation of this post. I can’t get that miffed about high fines for people bringing hand grenades on flights, mind you, but I do keep coming back to $1,500 for non-physical interference. Would that be filing charges?

Anyway, here’s the fun stuff.

Security Violations by Individuals for Prohibited Items Discovered in Checked Baggage

Applicable TSA Regulation: 49 C.F.R. § 1540.111©

1. Weapons

   1. Firearms

      1. Loaded $1,000-$2,000 + crim. referral
      2. Unloaded and undeclared/not properly packaged $500-$1,000

2. Incendiaries

   1. General penalty range $250-$1,500

3. Explosives

   1. Penalty range A* $6,000-$10,000 +crim. referral
   2. Penalty range B** $250-$1,500

*Penalty Range A:
Blasting Caps
Dynamite
Hand grenades
Plastic explosives
All other “high explosives”

**Penalty Range B:
Ammunition (note: See exception for ammunition in Checked Baggage, 49 C.F.R. § 1540.111(d)).
Fireworks
Flares in any form
Gunpowder (note: volume over 10 ounces standard package justifies use of Penalty Range A.)

Other Security Violations by Individuals or Persons

1. Interference With Screening (49 C.F.R. § 1540.109)

   1. physical contact $1,500-$5,000
   2. non-physical $500-$1,500
   3. false threats $1,000-$2,000

2. Entering Sterile Area Without Submitting To Screening $1,000-$3,000 49 C.F.R. § 1540.107
3. Tampering or interfering with, compromising, modifying, attempting to circumvent, or causing a person to tamper or interfere with, compromise, modify or attempt to circumvent any security system, measure, or procedure. (49 C.F.R. § 1540.105(a)) $2,500-$6,000
4. Entering or being present within a secured area, AOA, SIDA, or sterile area without complying with the systems measures or procedures being applied to control access to, or presence or movement in, such areas. (49 C.F.R. § 1540.105(a)(2)) $1,000-$3,000
5. Improper use of airport access medium. (49 C.F.R. § 1540.105(a)(3)) $1,000-$3,000
6. Fraud and Intentional Falsification (C.F.R. § 1540.103) $2,500-$6,000 +crim. referral
7. Failure to allow inspection of airman certificate, Authorization, FAA license. 49 C.F.R. § 1540.113 $1,000-$3,000

The following is a non-exclusive list of aggravating and mitigating factors frequently encountered in cases of violations by individuals:

Aggravating factors

• Artful concealment
• Number of weapons, or volume of explosives and incendiaries
• Type of weapon, explosive or incendiary
• Display or use of weapon, explosive or incendiary
• Past violation history of violator
• Experience level of violator (e.g., airport/air carrier employees are trained and experienced).
• Evidence of intent to interfere with operations (e.g., testing the system with a prohibited item, attempting to enter sterile area with prohibited item after previously being allowed to leave in order to divest).
• Attitude of violator

Mitigating Factors

• Disclosure by violator
• Inexperienced flyer
• Violator is a juvenile
• Other penalties assessed by federal, state, or local law enforcement