The Transportation Security Clearinghouse (TSC), the largest civilian
clearinghouse in the United States, recently surpassed the three million mark
for facilitating biometrically based background checks for aviation workers.
The TSC has also successfully handled more than 1.6 million biographical
background checks since its launch in late 2001.
The TSC is a non-profit arm of the American Association of Airport
Executives (AAAE) and operates in cooperation with the Transportation Security
Administration (TSA) to ensure criminal history record checks (CHRCs), such as
FBI background vetting checks, are accomplished for aviation workers who require
access to the secure areas of airports.
"The Transportation Security Clearinghouse has proven itself remarkably
effective in ensuring that workers at the nation's airports undergo necessary
background checks in a manner that avoids unnecessary disruptions to critical
airport operations, all while keeping costs to an absolute minimum," AAAE
President Charles Barclay said.
"The TSC has enabled employers at airports to meet their complex
employment needs and has ensured that the vigorous and sometimes shifting
background check standards established by the federal government can quickly be
met for the betterment of airport security," added Barclay
Operating since November 2001, the TSC has:
* Reduced the average response for aviation worker background checks
from 52 days to four hours, with many checks occurring in a matter of minutes.
* Reduced the cost per record for the aviation community twice since its
inception.
* Implemented the first high-speed, secure network for fingerprint
transmissions to the TSA.
* Successfully achieved an industry-low error rate for fingerprint
transmissions to the FBI of two percent through value-added processing prior to
submission.
The TSA requires CHRCs for airport employees who access security-
sensitive areas of airports, including the secure areas of terminals and the
Security Identification Display Area (SIDAs). Biographic checks are required for
everyone who requires an airport-issued ID badge at a commercial-service (Part
139) airport.
AAAE launched the TSC to give airports an efficient, cost-effective way
to comply with expanding background-check requirements after the Sept. 11, 2001,
terrorist attacks.
Airport badging offices collect biometric and biographical information
from workers. The data is submitted to the TSC via secure networks established
by the clearinghouse. Each data record undergoes a quality check to ensure
accuracy and integrity. The TSC then transmits the records to the appropriate
government agencies, which conduct the background checks.
The TSC's role extends beyond acting as the central point for data
submission and forwarding the records to the government. The clearinghouse also
serves as the central location for airports to retrieve background-check
results. On biographic checks, for example, a worker's status is communicated
via a secure Web site established and maintained by the TSC.
In addition to the aviation worker vetting program, the TSC, in
partnership with TSA, also supports background record checks for other key
programs, including:
* Background checks and application elements for federal Transportation
Security Officer screener candidates
* General aviation crews operating aircraft with a maximum certificated
take-off weight (MTOW) of 12,500 lbs. or more;
* General aviation crews and armed security officers flying into Reagan
Washington National Airport;
* Commercial charter pilots;
* Foreign applicants under the Alien Flight School Program
* and, Contract screeners at private screener airports.
The TSC also operates an interoperable information management system of
travelers' biometric data - the Central Information Management System (CIMS).
The CIMS is necessary to ensure interoperability, security and efficiency in the
Registered Traveler (RT) program. The CIMS is responsible for several key
functions, such as processing all records, interfacing with the TSA for
background checks, ensuring a chain of trust from vetted enrollments and issued
credentials, and sending alerts to all service providers regarding revoked
credentials.
