On September 16, the U.S. Transportation Security Administration (TSA) published in the Federal Register an Interim Final Rule (IFR) on air cargo screening. The IFR sets forth TSA’s approach for meeting the mandates of the Implementing Recommendations of the 9/11 Commission  Act of 2007, which established a requirement that 50% of all cargo shipped on passenger aircraft be screened by February 2009, with 100% to be screened by August 2010. While most observers expected TSA to issue an IFR prior to the February deadline, internal reviews delayed publication and compelled TSA to promote its principal screening initiative, the Certified Cargo Screening Program (CCSP), as a pilot. However, once the IFR takes effect on November 16, the legal status of the CCSP will change and the program will be institutionalized. 

The CCSP will allow entities in the air cargo supply chain to screen cargo prior to delivery to airlines, thereby spreading screening capabilities throughout the supply chain and, hopefully, limiting backups on airport property. As detailed in earlier TIACA papers, airlines have neither the space nor resources necessary to screen all cargo tendered to them at their airport locations. TSA therefore created the CCSP to allow for screening by other parties in the air cargo supply chain. Participation is open to a variety of supply chain entities, including manufacturers, warehouses, third party logistics operators, distribution centers, and forwarders. Each certified location will be known as a Certified Cargo Screening Facility (CCSF). 

The IFR provides the regulatory requirements for CCSFs. In particular, it specifies that CCSFs must screen cargo using TSA-approved measures and must implement chain-of-custody controls that ensure the screened cargo remains secure throughout the supply chain, up to and including tendering to airlines. (Unless new technology allowing for screening of consolidated cargo is developed and approved, the former requirement means screening must be at the piece level.) The rule sets forth the qualifications for screening personnel, and requires CCSF employees to receive background checks known as Security Threat Assessments (STAs), at a fee to be determined via a final rule, but which TSA estimates to be between $13 and $21. Companies in the CCSP must be re-certified every three years, a timeframe that parallels that for the Customs-Trade Partnership Against Terrorism (C-TPAT), a program maintained by TSA’s sister agency in the Department of Homeland Security, U.S. Customs and Border Protection. 

In addition to institutionalizing the CCSP, the IFR also allows independent validators to assess CCSFs, and establishes the standards companies must meet in order to be certified as validators.  

Of particular interest to TIACA members are the IFR’s statements related to cargo destined for the United States that originates on flights from foreign airports. The IFR acknowledges that the 9/11 Act applies to such cargo but notes that the IFR itself “does not apply to either U.S. aircraft operators or foreign air carriers when they load cargo outside the U.S. and transport it into the U.S??Instead, TSA will take a different approach with respect to foreign-originating cargo destined for the United States : ?span>This approach focuses on harmonization efforts including bi-lateral and multilateral agreements, working on updating International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) standards, and applying risk assessment for inbound cargo. Note that U.S. aircraft operators and foreign air carriers that load cargo in other countries inbound to the United States must carry out security measures for that cargo that are set out in their TSA-approved or accepted security programs.?TIACA will continue to work with TSA as it fleshes out this approach, and will report on noteworthy developments to the membership. 

The IFR is effective as of November 16, 2009, which is also the deadline for submitting comments on the rule to TSA. TIACA intends to submit comments and would welcome input from members in this regard. Members seeking additional information, or recommending specific points for TIACA’s comments, may contact Sue Presti, TIACA’s representative in Washington , at spresti@cox.net. 

To read the full rule, click here

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