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Transportation Security

The security of a nation’s surface transportation systems is of national priority and is essential for the security of the nation.  Federal, state, local, and tribal governments, the private sector, and the public sector together share the responsibility for the security of surface transportation.  Accordingly, it has been the policy of the U.S. to protect the people, property, and territory of the U.S. by facilitating the implementation of a comprehensive, coordinated, and efficient security program to protect surface transportation systems within and adjacent to the U.S. against terrorist attacks.

In the U.S., the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) was initially an administration of the Department of Transportation (DOT).  Later, in March 2003, TSA was transferred from DOT to the Department of Homeland Security (DHS).  TSA was created in the wake of 9/11 attacks in the U.S. to strengthen the security of the nation’s transportation systems.  TSA protects the nation’s transportation systems to ensure freedom of movement for people and commerce.  Generally, TSA employs a risk-based systematic plan of action to secure U.S. transportation systems, working closely with stakeholders in aviation, rail, transit, highway, and pipeline sectors, and partners in the law enforcement and intelligence community.

Pursuant to 6 USCS § 203, the functions, personnel, assets, and liabilities of TSA, including the functions of the secretary of transportation, and of the under secretary of transportation for security, were transferred to the secretary of homeland security (secretary).

The secretary has the authority to establish a National Transportation Security Center of Excellence (NTSCOE) for the following purposes[i]:

  • to conduct research and education activities, and
  • to develop or provide professional security training, including the training of transportation employees and transportation professionals.

 

NTSCOE shall consist of the following institutions[ii]:

  • the Texas Southern University in Houston, Texas;
  • the National Transit Institute at Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey;
  • the Tougaloo College;
  • the Connecticut Transportation Institute at the University of Connecticut;
  • the Homeland Security Management Institute, Long Island University;
  • the Mack-Blackwell National Rural Transportation Study Center at the University of Arkansas; and
  • any additional institutions or facilities designated by the secretary.

 

From the abovementioned institutions, the secretary shall select one of the institutions as the lead institution responsible for coordinating NTSCOE.  Such institution shall execute agreements with the other institutions of higher education to develop a consortium to assist in accomplishing the goals of NTSCOE.

Further, the secretary, acting through the administrator of TSA, may also develop Visible Intermodal Prevention and Response (VIPR) teams to increase the security of any mode of transportation at any location within the U.S.  In composing a VIPR team, the secretary[iii]:

  • may use any asset of DHS, including federal air marshals, surface transportation security inspectors, canine detection teams, and advanced screening technology;
  • may determine when a VIPR team shall be deployed, in addition to the duration of the deployment;
  • may consult with local security and law enforcement officials working in the jurisdiction where the VIPR team is or will be deployed, to develop and agree upon the appropriate operational protocols and to provide relevant information about the mission of the VIPR team, prior to and during the deployment; and
  • may consult with all transportation entities directly affected by the deployment of a VIPR team, including railroad carriers, air carriers, airport owners, over-the-road bus operators and terminal owners and operators, motor carriers, public transportation agencies, owners or operators of highways, port operators and facility owners, vessel owners and operators and pipeline operators, prior to and during the deployment.

 

Likewise, the secretary may

  • use the additional explosives detection canine teams as part of DHS’s efforts to strengthen security across the nation’s transportation network;
  • use the canine teams on a more limited basis to support other homeland security missions, as determined appropriate by the secretary;
  • make available explosives detection canine teams to all modes of transportation, for high-risk areas or to address specific threats, on an as-needed basis and as otherwise determined appropriate by the secretary;
  • encourage any transportation facility or system to deploy TSA-certified explosives detection canine teams; and
  • consider specific needs and training requirements for explosives detection canine teams to be deployed across the nation’s transportation network, including in venues of multiple modes of transportation[iv].

 

The secretary also has the authority to train, employ, and utilize surface transportation security inspectors.  These surface transportation security inspectors are used by the secretary[v]:

  • to assist surface transportation carriers, operators, owners, entities, and facilities in enhancing their security against terrorist attack and other security threats; and
  • to assist him/her in enforcing applicable surface transportation security regulations and directives.

 

Further, the secretary in consultation with the secretary of transportation may establish a program to provide appropriate information that DHS has gathered or developed on the performance, use, and testing of technologies.  Such information can be used to enhance railroad, public transportation, and surface transportation security to surface transportation entities, including railroad carriers, over-the-road bus operators and terminal owners and operators, motor carriers, public transportation agencies, owners or operators of highways, pipeline operators, and state, local, and tribal governments that provide security assistance to such entities[vi].

[i] 6 USCS § 1103(a).

[ii] 6 USCS § 1103(c)(2).

[iii] 6 USCS § 1112.

[iv] 6 USCS § 1116.

[v] 6 USCS § 1113.

[vi] 6 USCS § 1114.


Inside Transportation Security