Transportation Security Administration
The Transportation Security Administration is an agency of the United States Department of Homeland Security that has authority over the security of transportation systems within and connecting to the United States. It was created as a response to the September 11 attacks to improve airport security procedures and consolidate air travel security under a combined federal law enforcement and regulatory agency.
The TSA develops key policies to protect the U.S. transportation system, including highways, railroads, bus networks, mass transit systems, ports, pipelines, and intermodal freight facilities. It fulfills this mission in conjunction with other federal, state, local and foreign government partners. However, the TSA's primary mission is airport security and the prevention of aircraft hijacking. It is responsible for screening passengers and baggage at more than 450 U.S. airports, employing screening officers, explosives detection dog handlers, and bomb technicians in airports, and armed Federal Air Marshals and Federal Flight Deck Officers on aircraft.
At first a part of the Department of Transportation, the TSA became part of DHS in March 2003 and is headquartered in Springfield, Virginia. As of the fiscal year 2023, the TSA operated on a budget of approximately $9.70 billion and employed over 47,000 Transportation Security Officers, Transportation Security Specialists, Federal Air Marshals, and other security personnel.
The TSA has screening processes and regulations related to passengers and checked and carry-on luggage, including identification verification, pat-downs, full-body scanners, and explosives screening. Since its inception, the agency has been subject to criticism and controversy regarding the effectiveness of various procedures, as well as incidents of baggage theft, data security, and allegations of prejudicial treatment towards certain ethnic groups.
History and mission
The TSA was created largely in response to the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001, which revealed weaknesses in existing airport security procedures. At the time, a myriad of private security companies managed air travel security under contract to individual airlines or groups of airlines that used a given airport or terminal facility. Proponents of placing the government in charge of airport security, including Transportation Secretary Norman Mineta, argued that only a single federal agency could best protect passenger aviation.Congress agreed, and authorized the creation of the TSA in the Aviation and Transportation Security Act, which was signed into law by President George W. Bush on November 19, 2001. Bush nominated John Magaw on December 10, and he was confirmed by the Senate the following January. The agency was initially placed under the United States Department of Transportation but was moved to the Department of Homeland Security when that department was formed on March 9, 2003.
The new agency's effort to hire screeners to begin operating security checkpoints at airports represents a case of a large-scale staffing project completed over a short period. The only effort in U.S. history that came close to it was the testing of recruits for the armed forces in World War II. During the period from February to December 2002, 1.7 million applicants were assessed for 55,000 screening jobs.
Private screening did not disappear entirely under the TSA, which allows airports to opt-out of the federal screening and hire firms to do the job instead. Such firms must still get TSA approval under its Screening Partnership Program and follow TSA procedures. Among the handful of U.S. airports with privately operated checkpoints are San Francisco International Airport, Kansas City International Airport, Greater Rochester International Airport, Tupelo Regional Airport, Key West International Airport, and Charles M. Schulz–Sonoma County Airport.
However, the bulk of airport screening in the U.S. is done by the TSA's 46,661 Transportation Security Officers.
They examine passengers and their baggage, and perform other security duties within airports, including controlling entry and exit points, and monitoring the areas near their checkpoints.
In August 2017, the General Services Administration announced a new headquarters for the TSA would be built in Springfield, Virginia. The new, 625,000-square-foot headquarters was built near the outskirts of Fort Belvoir and the Franconia-Springfield Metro station, and cost $316 million.
Administration and organization
Leadership
When the TSA was part of the Department of Transportation, the head of the agency was referred to as the undersecretary of transportation for security. Following the move to the Department of Homeland Security in March 2003, the position was reclassified as the administrator of the Transportation Security Administration.There have been seven administrators and six acting administrators in the TSA's 23-year history. Several have come to the job after previously serving as Coast Guard flag officers, including Loy, Neffenger, and Pekoske.
Following the passage of the FAA Reauthorization Act of 2018, which included a provision known as the TSA Modernization Act, the administrator's term was set as a five-year term retroactive to the start of current administrator David Pekoske's term. It also made the deputy administrator a politically appointed position.
| # | Picture | Name | Period | Notes |
| 1 | John Magaw | January 28, 2002 – July 18, 2002 | Under Secretary of Transportation for Security | |
| 2 | James Loy | July 19, 2002 – December 7, 2003 | Under Secretary of Transportation for Security until Department of Homeland Security transition. | |
| 3 | David M. Stone | December 8, 2003 – June 3, 2005 | Acting until July 2004 when confirmed by United States Senate. | |
| — | Kenneth Kasprisin | June 4, 2005 – July 26, 2005 | Acting | |
| 4 | Kip Hawley | July 27, 2005 – January 20, 2009 | ||
| — | Gale Rossides | January 20, 2009 – June 24, 2010 | Acting | |
| 5 | John S. Pistole | June 25, 2010 – December 31, 2014 | ||
| — | Melvin J. Carraway | January 1, 2015 – June 1, 2015 | Acting, reassigned to DHS Office of State and Local Law Enforcement following leak of DHS Inspector General red team test results showing screening failures at TSA checkpoints. | |
| — | Mark Hatfield Jr. | June 1, 2015 – June 4, 2015 | Acting | |
| — | Francis X. Taylor | June 4, 2015 – July 3, 2015 | Acting, served concurrently as Under Secretary of Homeland Security for Intelligence and Analysis. | |
| 6 | Peter V. Neffenger | July 4, 2015 – January 20, 2017 | ||
| — | Huban A. Gowadia | January 20, 2017 – August 10, 2017 | Acting | |
| 7 | David Pekoske | August 10, 2017 – January 20, 2025 | Served concurrently as acting Deputy Secretary of Homeland Security from April 11 to November 13, 2019, with day-to-day operations delegated to Acting Deputy Administrator Patricia Cogswell. Served concurrently as acting Secretary of Homeland Security from January 20, 2021, until Alejandro Mayorkas was confirmed by the Senate. While serving as acting secretary, TSA was overseen by Executive Assistant Administrator for Security Operations Darby LaJoye. Fired by President Donald Trump on January 20, 2025. | |
| — | Melanie Harvey | January 20, 2025 – February 18, 2025 | Acting | |
| — | Adam Stahl | February 18, 2025 – April 21, 2025 | Acting | |
| — | Ha Nguyen McNeill | April 21, 2025 – present | Acting |
Organizational structure
At the helm of the TSA is the administrator, who leads the organization's efforts in safeguarding the nation's airports, railways, seaports, and other critical transportation infrastructure. Assisting the administrator is a deputy administrator, whose role is to provide support and guidance in executing the agency's mission. In addition, the TSA benefits from the expertise and leadership of several deputy assistant administrators and other executive officers, who contribute their knowledge and skills to various aspects of the agency's operations. Together, this structured leadership team forms the backbone of the TSA, working collectively to uphold and enhance the security of the nation's transportation networks. The executive assistant administrator for law enforcement is also the executive director of the Federal Air Marshal Service.Rank structure
Headquarters- Administrator of the TSA
- Deputy Administrator
- * Chief of Staff
- ** Assistant Administrator, Legislative Affairs
- ** Assistant Administrator, Strategic Communications and Public Affairs
- ** Executive Director, Strategy, Policy Coordination, and Innovation
- *** Chief Innovation Officer
- * Executive Assistant Administrator, Enterprise Support
- ** Assistant Administrator/Component Acquisition Executive, Acquisition Program Management
- ** Assistant Administrator/Head Contracting Authority, Contracting and Procurement
- ** Assistant Administrator, Human Capital
- ** Assistant Administrator/Chief Information Officer, Information Technology
- ** Assistant Administrator, Operations Management
- ** Assistant Administrator, Security and Administrative Services
- ** Assistant Administrator, Training and Development
- * Executive Assistant Administrator, Law Enforcement/Federal Air Marshal Service
- ** Assistant Administrator, Law Enforcement Operations
- ** Assistant Administrator, Mission Operations
- ** Assistant Administrator, Operations Management
- * Executive Assistant Administrator, Operations Support
- ** Assistant Administrator, Enrollment Services and Vetting Programs
- ** Assistant Administrator, Intelligence and Analysis
- ** Assistant Administrator, Policy, Plans, and Engagement
- ** Assistant Administrator/Component Requirements Executive, Requirements and Capabilities Analysis
- * Executive Assistant Administrator, Security Operations
- ** Assistant Administrator, Compliance
- ** Assistant Administrator, Domestic Aviation Operations
- ** Assistant Administrator, International Operations
- ** Assistant Administrator, Operations Management
- ** Assistant Administrator, Surface Operations
- * Chief Counsel
- * Chief Culture Officer
- * Assistant Administrator/Chief Financial Officer, Chief Finance Office
- * Assistant Administrator, Civil Rights and Liberties, Ombudsman and Traveler Engagement
- * Assistant Administrator, Inspection
- * Assistant Administrator, Investigations
- Regional Surface Director
- Federal Security Director
- Deputy Federal Security Director
- * Assistant Federal Security Director for Mission Support
- * Assistant Federal Security Director for Screening
- * Assistant Federal Security Director for Inspection
- * Assistant Federal Security Director for Law Enforcement
- * Assistant Federal Security Director Generalist
- Transportation Security Manager
- * Supervisory Transportation Security Officer
- ** Lead Transportation Security Officer
- *** Transportation Security Officer