THE AVIATION AND TRANSPORTATION SECURITY ACT

The U.S. Congress responded to the events of 9/11 in November 2001 by creating an entirely new security agency within the Department of Transportation, the Transportation Security Administration (TSA). The role of TSA is to begin revamping the nation's transportation security regime so that the hijackings of 9/11 could never happen again. This article will provide an overview of the TSA's implementation of the Security Act six months after the agency was created, and it will assess the significant legislative and regulatory developments that will most likely occur in the remainder of 2002. Since the Security Act and its established deadlines have been primarily aviation related, the TSA's implementation of the Security Act has similarly been largely concerned with that mode. That emphasis is also followed in this article, highlighting the major developments that have taken place since the Security Act was enacted on November 19, 2001.