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New legislation being proposed in California would ban instant security screening company Clear from operating in the state's airports, as supporters say the service raises equity issues as it effectively frees wealthy people from being screened by the Transportation Security Administration. (TSA) agents.
The bill, SB-1372, the first of its kind in the US, would require third-party vendors like Clear to get their own dedicated security lanes or lose the ability to operate in California airports.
Clear charges members $189 per year to verify travelers' identities at airports, allowing them to bypass TSA checkpoints. According to its website, the service is in use at more than 55 airports across the US, as well as dozens of sports stadiums and other venues. Members verify their identity at the Clear Kiosk. This is separate from TSA Pre-Check, although many Clear members use both services.
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Passengers use a Clear kiosk that allows quick and secure identity verification. (Lindsay Nicholson/UCG/Universal Images Group via Getty Images/Getty Images)
State Senator Josh Newman, a Democrat, is sponsoring the legislation.
“It's a fundamental equity issue when you see people who subscribe to a concierge service being moved ahead of people who are waiting a long time to get to the front of the TSA line,” Newman told CBS MoneyWatch. ”
“Everyone is frustrated with the travel experience, and if Clear takes a customer in front of you and tells TSA, 'Sorry, I have someone better,' that's really disappointing.”
Republican Senator Janet Nguyen has expressed similar concerns but is not supporting the bill, a spokesperson told Fox Business.
“I understand the frustration expressed in Senator Newman's bill,” Nguyen, who sits on the Transportation Committee, told POLITICO. “It becomes a case of rich versus poor, where those who can afford it get the jump on the rest of us. They also cut TSA pre-boarding passes in front of passengers who have been screened by the TSA “
Six major airlines — Delta, United, Southwest, Alaska, JetBlue and Hawaiian — are opposed to the bill and wrote a letter this month to Senate Transportation Committee Chairman Dave Cortez arguing that its passage would result in revenue losses. .
They wrote that the services were used more than 5 million times in California in 2023.
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A Transportation Security Administration official at Ronald Reagan National Airport in Arlington, Virginia, on November 21, 2023. (Haiyun Jiang/Bloomberg via Getty Images/Getty Images)
The airlines argued that the bill “not only threatens to increase fees on air carriers, but also severely restricts the ability of airports to effectively manage lines at the security checkpoint, resulting in our California “There will be a negative travel experience for customers.”
An unnamed spokesperson reiterated the airline's concerns.
“We will continue to work constructively with legislators as well as the federal government and our airport partners to ensure operations at California airports are as seamless and efficient as possible,” Ricardo Quintero said in a statement to POLITICO.
Supporters of the bill include the Association of Flight Attendants-CWA and the union representing transportation security officers in Oakland, Sacramento and San Jose.
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On January 10, passengers at Los Angeles International Airport were forced to undergo security screening by the TSA. (Irrfan Khan/Los Angeles Times via Getty Images/Getty Images)
James Murdock, president of AFGE Local 1230 of the TSA officers union, said, “Airport security is nothing more than a luxury resale of space in the queue where paying passengers can skip the line at the direct expense of every other passenger.” The local chapter wrote in a separate letter to Cortez, according to CBS.
“While Clear may save time for its paying customers, non-customers suffer from Clear's aggressive sales tactics and long security queues when they enter a required security screening process.”
The bill was scheduled to come before the California State Senate's Transportation Committee on Tuesday.
Editor's note: This report has been updated to clarify the bill's impact on CLEAR at California airports.
