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Title 49 — TransportationRelease 119-73

§44916 Assessments and evaluations

Title 49 › Subtitle SUBTITLE VII— - AVIATION PROGRAMS › Part PART A— - AIR COMMERCE AND SAFETY › Subpart subpart iii— - safety › Chapter CHAPTER 449— - SECURITY › Subchapter SUBCHAPTER I— - REQUIREMENTS › § 44916

Last updated Apr 6, 2026|Official source

Summary

TSA must require every air carrier and every airport (with airport owners/operators working with the airlines and vendors at the airport) that provides intrastate, interstate, or foreign air travel to do regular checks for weak spots in their security systems. TSA will also perform regular audits of those checks. TSA must do regular, unannounced inspections of airport and airline security to find how well systems work and where they are weak. When the law allows, TSA may run anonymous tests of those security systems.

Full Legal Text

Title 49, §44916

Transportation — Source: USLM XML via OLRC

(a)The Administrator of the Transportation Security Administration shall require each air carrier and airport (including the airport owner or operator in cooperation with the air carriers and vendors serving each airport) that provides for intrastate, interstate, or foreign air transportation to conduct periodic vulnerability assessments of the security systems of that air carrier or airport, respectively. The Transportation Security Administration shall perform periodic audits of such assessments.
(b)The Administrator of the Transportation Security Administration shall conduct periodic and unannounced inspections of security systems of airports and air carriers to determine the effectiveness and vulnerabilities of such systems. To the extent allowable by law, the Administrator may provide for anonymous tests of those security systems.

Legislative History

Notes & Related Subsidiaries

Editorial Notes

Amendments

2018—Subsec. (a). Pub. L. 115–254, § 1991(d)(14)(A), substituted “Administrator of the Transportation Security Administration” for “Under Secretary of Transportation for Security”. Subsec. (b). Pub. L. 115–254, § 1991(d)(14)(B), substituted “Administrator of the Transportation Security Administration shall” for “Under Secretary shall” and “Administrator may” for “Under Secretary may”. 2001—Subsec. (a). Pub. L. 107–71, § 101(f)(3), substituted “Under Secretary of Transportation for Security” for “Administrator” in first sentence and “Transportation Security Administration” for “Administration” in second sentence. Subsec. (b). Pub. L. 107–71, § 101(f)(7), substituted “Under Secretary” for “Administrator” in two places.

Statutory Notes and Related Subsidiaries

Effective Date

Except as otherwise specifically provided, section applicable only to fiscal years beginning after Sept. 30, 1996, and not to be construed as affecting funds made available for a fiscal year ending before Oct. 1, 1996, see section 3 of Pub. L. 104–264, set out as an

Effective Date

of 1996 Amendment note under section 106 of this title.

Reference

Citations & Metadata

Citation

49 U.S.C. § 44916

Title 49 — Transportation

Last Updated

Apr 6, 2026

Release point: 119-73