A new bill is under consideration in California that would place a ban on the expedited security screening company CLEAR from functioning in the state’s airports.
Advocates of the bill believe that the service raises equity issues as it helps the wealthy—those who can afford the service—skip queues and go ahead of passengers waiting in line for screening by Transportation Security Administration (TSA) agents.
California Bill Targets CLEAR For Security
The bill, SB-1372 is the first of its kind in the U.S. And will demand that third-party vendors like CLEAR own their own security lane, if not they will no longer be able to operate in Californian airports.
Members are charged $189 every year by CLEAR to verify their identities at airports, thus bypassing the long queues at TSA checkpoints. Per the company’s website, their services are employed at over 55 airports across the United States. It is also in use at dozens of sports stadiums and at other venues.
What Is CLEAR?
CLEAR is a tech company that provides passengers with a platform that makes the customer identity verification process easier. Through its free mobile app, customers can enter select stadiums and arenas, while its main program CLEAR® Plus is a consumer aviation subscription service.
Members verify their identity at CLEAR kiosks. It is separate from the TSA Pre-Check, although many Clear members use both services.
How Does CLEAR Work?
CLEAR Plus which is popularly known as CLEAR, makes use of biometric data to verify your identity and speed up the airport security screening process.
Only United States citizens are eligible for its membership and legal permanent residents aged 18 and older with a valid government-issued photo ID. Members can simply stroll through the dedicated CLEAR lane, step up to the pod, scan their boarding pass, and confirm their identity with their eyes or a fingerprint before being escorted to physical screening.
CLEAR Unfairly Benefits The Rich
California State Sen. Josh Newman, D-Anaheim, introduced the SB-1372 to tackle claims that CLEAR provides unfair benefits to rich travelers.
“The least you can expect when you have to go through the security line at the airport is that you don’t suffer the indignity of somebody pushing you out of the way to let the rich person pass you,” the lawmaker said.
It’s A Basic Equity Issue
Sen. Josh Newman, a Democrat, is also sponsoring the legislation with unusual bipartisan support from Republican Sen. Janet Nguyen. “It’s a basic equity issue when you see people subscribed to a concierge service being escorted in front of people who have waited a long time to get to the front of the TSA line,” Newman said.
“Everyone is beaten down by the travel experience, and if CLEAR escorts a customer in front of you and tells TSA, ‘Sorry, I have someone better,’ it’s really frustrating.”
Addressing Airport Queue Disparity: Haves vs. Have-Nots
Nguyen, a member of the transportation committee stated that he ‘understands the frustration stated in Senator Newman’s bill.”
He added that it creates ‘A haves vs. have-nots’ where the rich can pay a few quid and skip the long wait in queues. “They even cut in front of TSA Pre-boarding pass travelers who have been screened by the TSA,” he said.
Bill Will Restore Equity Among Travelers, AFA-CWA Says
In a letter penned to State Sen. Dave Cortese, D-Cupertino, and chair of the state’s Senate Transportation Committee, the Association of Flight Attendants-CWA (AFA-CWA)—in support of the bill—claimed that the bill would go a long way in restoring equity among travelers by promoting a different security lane for CLEAR subscribers.
“This separation would preserve CLEAR’s ability to operate in California but in a way that streamlines the security process for everyone moving through California’s airports, whether CLEAR customers or not,” the union wrote.
Let TSA Do Its Job!
AFA-CWA also referenced a report stating the company once permitted a passenger with arms to use a fake boarding pass. That mistake showed the deficiencies in the company’s methods of I.D verification, according to the union.
“We appreciate the work of the TSA and its entire workforce. CLEAR is not TSA. One passenger using a ‘cut the line’ program with a false identity to board an aircraft is one too many,” AFA-CWA said. “Let TSA do its job.”
Major Airlines Oppose California Bill On Airport Security Fees
Six major airlines — Delta, United, Southwest, Alaska, JetBlue, and Hawaiian — are against the bill and penned a letter to Senate Transportation Committee Chair Dave Cortese this month stating that if the bill is passed, it would result in revenue losses.
They wrote that the services were used more than 5 million times in California in 2023. The airlines claimed that the bill “not only threatens to increase fees on air carriers but also severely restricts airports’ ability to effectively manage lines at the security checkpoint, resulting in a negative travel experience for our California customers.”
CLEAR Spokesperson And Bill Supporters Speak Out
A CLEAR spokesperson repeated the airline’s worries. “We will continue to work constructively with legislators as well as the federal government and our airport partners to ensure operations at California airports are as seamless and efficient as possible,” Ricardo Quinto said in a statement to Politico.
The bill has backing from the Association of Flight Attendants-CWA and the union that represents Transportation Security Officers in Oakland, Sacramento, and San Jose.
Critics Condemn CLEAR’s Airport Security Queue Practices
James Murdock, who is the president of AFGE Local 1230, the local chapter of the TSA officer union, wrote a separate letter to Cortese, as reported by CBS.
“CLEAR is nothing more than the luxury resale of upcharge of space in the airport security queue, where those who pay can skip the line at the direct expense of every other traveler,”
CLEAR Customers Benefit, Non-Customers Suffer
He added that even though CLEAR “may save time for its paying customers, non-customers suffer from CLEAR’s aggressive sales tactics and longer security queues while they enter an essential security screening process.”
The bill is scheduled to be discussed at the California State Senate’s transportation committee on Tuesday.
A Case For CLEAR’s Continued Operation
CLEAR informed The National Desk (TND) that it has generated hundreds of jobs and distributed over $13 million in annual revenue among nine California airports.
CLEAR has been leading the way in identity verification technology for 14 years,” the company stated. “We are always working with our airline and airport partners as well as local, state, and federal governments to ensure all travelers have a safer, easier checkpoint experience.”
