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WASHINGTON (AP) — The head of the Transportation Security Administration says the agency will add 768 new screeners by mid-June to deal with growing airport security lines.
Peter Neffenger told a House committee that TSA officers are being moved to staff checkpoints at the busiest airports at the busiest times, and the agency is launching an incident command center that includes officials from major airlines and industry associations. He says the center will track daily screening operations and shift officers, canine units and other resources to shorten lines.
Neffenger says the agency expects to screen 740 million passengers this year, a 15 percent increase over 2013. It comes amid a 12 percent drop in the TSA's workforce and what he calls "a renewed focus on security."
The chairman of the panel, Republican Michael McCaul of Texas, says Americans are "angry and frustrated" heading into the summer travel season. He said the crisis "didn't just come out of nowhere," and that "airports and airlines have been sounding the alarm for months."
Long lines have been plaguing airports since early spring, but the issue came to a head in recent weeks when thousands of passengers in Chicago missed flights because of lengthy checkpoint waits.
%@AP Links
179-a-09-(Peter Neffenger (NEHF'-ehn-jur), administrator, Transportation Security Administration, testifying before House Homeland Security Committee)-"the right number"-TSA Administrator Peter Neffenger says the agency is working to resolve its staffing problem. (25 May 2016)
<<CUT *179 (05/25/16)££ 00:09 "the right number"
180-a-08-(Peter Neffenger (NEHF'-ehn-jur), administrator, Transportation Security Administration, testifying before House Homeland Security Committee)-"in real time"-TSA Administrator Peter Neffenger says the agency has established a command center to keep tabs on wait times on an hourly basis. (25 May 2016)
<<CUT *180 (05/25/16)££ 00:08 "in real time"
APPHOTO DCSA106: Transportation Security Administration (TSA) chief Peter Neffenger testifies on Capitol Hill in Washington, Wednesday, May 25, 2016, before the House Homeland Security Committee which is looking for answers on how to balance security with long lines at airport checkpoints. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite) (25 May 2016)
<<APPHOTO DCSA106 (05/25/16)££
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