In the framework of the International Transgender Awareness Day to be celebrated this Thursday, March 31, the U.S. Transportation Security Administration (TSA) announced the launch of new rules for the screening of transgender, non-binary and gender nonconforming passengers at airport checkpoints in the U.S. The new measures will include the improvement of body scanning equipment through an update of the algorithm that will increase its accuracy and efficiency, replacing the current system, based on gender, with a new body scanning system based on gender.
Among the points to be addressed by these new measures are the improvement of body scanning equipment through an updated algorithm that will increase its accuracy and efficiency, replacing the current gender-based system with new technology that, they claim, «will advance civil rights and improve the experience of travelers who previously had to undergo additional screening due to alarms in sensitive areas.»
The TSA received $18.6 million in funding for fiscal year 2022 to carry out these efforts, with improvements expected to begin rolling out at airports later this year.
This will also result in less invasive screening for passengers who activate the scanner in sensitive areas, which will be accompanied by an update to standard operating procedures for TSA agents, reducing the number of pat-downs but, they say, without compromising security.
This new policy will also advance passenger identification, eliminating gender-based considerations for validating identity at checkpoints. The TSA Precheck will include the «X» option as a gender category, allowing passengers to select it independently of the gender listed on their identification documents.
Two airlines will also move in that direction, allowing their passengers to select either the «X» or «U» options in their reservation systems starting today. A third will be added before the end of the year, while the others allow it, but require the passenger to communicate specially for that purpose.
In this context, the TSA updated its website dealing with transgender, non-binary and gender nonconforming passengers to provide the entire public with information about these new policies.
«On this internationally recognized day for the transgender community, TSA is proud to announce significant initiatives as a direct result of close partnership with community stakeholders,» said TSA Administrator David Pekoske.
«Over the coming months, TSA will move swiftly to implement more secure and efficient screening processes that are gender neutral, as well as technological updates that will enhance security and make TSA PreCheck® enrollment more inclusive. These combined efforts will greatly enhance airport security and screening procedures for all,» he concluded.
