In the rush to catch their flights, airline passengers left more than $500,000 behind at security checkpoints in each of the past two fiscal years, according to data released by the Transportation Security Administration. Under current law, the TSA is allowed to keep unclaimed checkpoint money and spend it on aviation security projects, but one congressional lawmaker is pushing a proposal that would redirect the loose change to members of the military. Rep. Jeff Miller, R-Fla., has introduced legislation that would require the TSA to transfer unclaimed money recovered from airport security checkpoints to nonprofit organizations that operate airport programs in support of the military. The TSA has been keeping the pennies, nickels, dimes, and quarters from your change purse to pay for their bloated bureaucracy, Miller said in a statement. If TSA representatives get to play finders keepers with your hard-earned cash, what’s the incentive to try to get the loose change to its rightful owners? In 2012, more than $531,000 was collected at security checkpoints, up $44,000 from 2011, according to data released by Millers office. In 2010, passengers left behind $433,000 at TSA checkpoints. Millers bill, which recently cleared the Homeland Security Committee, was recently evaluated by the Congressional Budget Office, which said the agency is expected to spend unclaimed money gradually over the next several years. According to a Bloomberg Businessweek report, earlier CBO estimates of the bill said the proposal would cost $1 million to implement. “I was pretty aggravated that they said it was going to cost money to give money away,” Miller told the magazine. Below is a rundown compiled by Businessweek of the money travelers left at some airports last year: Miami: $39,613 Las Vegas: $26,900 Chicago O’Hare: $22,115 Los Angeles International: $21,916 New York-JFK: $21,201 Dallas-Fort Worth: $21,090 San Francisco: $19,873 Boston: $16,405 Houston-Intercontinental: $16,000 Washington-Dulles: $16,000 Phoenix-Sky Harbor: $10,492 Atlantic City: $350.56 Guam: $1.70
Posted on: Sat, 30 Nov 2013 17:25:27 +0000
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