Title 6, Domestic SecurityRelease 119-110

§563 5-year Technology Investment Plan

Title 6 › CHAPTER 1 — HOMELAND SECURITY ORGANIZATION › SUBCHAPTER XII–A — TRANSPORTATION SECURITY › Part B — Transportation Security Administration Acquisition Improvements › § 563

Last updated Sep 22, 2026|Official source

Summary

The Administrator must create and send Congress a 5-year technology investment plan not later than 180 days after December 18, 2014. The plan can include a classified add-on for sensitive risks and vulnerabilities, and should be published for the public in an unclassified form when possible. The Administrator must work with the Under Secretary for Management, the Under Secretary for Science and Technology, the Chief Information Officer, and the aviation industry stakeholder advisory committee. The plan cannot be published publicly until the Secretary approves it. The plan must explain transportation security risks and the technology gaps to fix them, list and prioritize needed technology programs with goals and timelines, and cover travel trends, aging equipment, testing and evaluation needs, partnership and small-business opportunities, acquisition workforce needs, security protections against theft or cyberattack, steps to make buying processes clearer for businesses, passenger impact, how airports and carriers will be consulted when equipment is removed, and standards for making screening systems work together with NIST. The plan must use private-sector input and identify existing or developing technologies with the Under Secretary for Science and Technology. The Administrator must list nongovernment contributors and send an annual unclassified update to Congress in the budget appendix showing plan updates, whether recent purchases match the plan, and acquisitions made. Updates must be done with the people above and the Surface Transportation Security Advisory Committee and may include a classified addendum. The Administrator must notify the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation and the House Committee on Homeland Security within 90 days of any covered change that raises or lowers dollars for, or the number of, a technology.

Full Legal Text

Title 6, §563

Domestic Security, Source: USLM XML via OLRC

(a)In general
The Administrator shall—
(1)not later than 180 days after December 18, 2014, develop and submit to Congress a strategic 5-year technology investment plan, that may include a classified addendum to report sensitive transportation security risks, technology vulnerabilities, or other sensitive security information; and
(2)to the extent possible, publish the Plan in an unclassified format in the public domain.
(b)Consultation
The Administrator shall develop the Plan in consultation with—
(1)the Under Secretary for Management;
(2)the Under Secretary for Science and Technology;
(3)the Chief Information Officer; and
(4)the aviation industry stakeholder advisory committee established by the Administrator.
(c)Approval
The Administrator may not publish the Plan under subsection (a)(2) until it has been approved by the Secretary.
(d)Contents of Plan
The Plan shall include—
(1)an analysis of transportation security risks and the associated capability gaps that would be best addressed by security-related technology, including consideration of the most recent quadrennial homeland security review under section 347 of this title;
(2)a set of security-related technology acquisition needs that—
(A)is prioritized based on risk and associated capability gaps identified under paragraph (1); and
(B)includes planned technology programs and projects with defined objectives, goals, timelines, and measures;
(3)an analysis of current and forecast trends in domestic and international passenger travel;
(4)an identification of currently deployed security-related technologies that are at or near the end of their lifecycles;
(5)an identification of test, evaluation, modeling, and simulation capabilities, including target methodologies, rationales, and timelines necessary to support the acquisition of the security-related technologies expected to meet the needs under paragraph (2);
(6)an identification of opportunities for public-private partnerships, small and disadvantaged company participation, intragovernment collaboration, university centers of excellence, and national laboratory technology transfer;
(7)an identification of the Administration’s acquisition workforce needs for the management of planned security-related technology acquisitions, including consideration of leveraging acquisition expertise of other Federal agencies;
(8)an identification of the security resources, including information security resources, that will be required to protect security-related technology from physical or cyber theft, diversion, sabotage, or attack;
(9)an identification of initiatives to streamline the Administration’s acquisition process and provide greater predictability and clarity to small, medium, and large businesses, including the timeline for testing and evaluation;
(10)an assessment of the impact to commercial aviation passengers;
(11)a strategy for consulting airport management, air carrier representatives, and Federal security directors whenever an acquisition will lead to the removal of equipment at airports, and how the strategy for consulting with such officials of the relevant airports will address potential negative impacts on commercial passengers or airport operations; and
(12)in consultation with the National Institutes of Standards and Technology, an identification of security-related technology interface standards, in existence or if implemented, that could promote more interoperable passenger, baggage, and cargo screening systems.
(e)Leveraging the private sector (f) Disclosure
To the extent possible, and in a manner that is consistent with fair and equitable practices, the Plan shall—
(1)leverage emerging technology trends and research and development investment trends within the public and private sectors;
(2)incorporate private sector input, including from the aviation industry stakeholder advisory committee established by the Administrator, through requests for information, industry days, and other innovative means consistent with the Federal Acquisition Regulation; and
(3)in consultation with the Under Secretary for Science and Technology, identify technologies in existence or in development that, with or without adaptation, are expected to be suitable to meeting mission needs.
(g)Update and report
The Administrator shall, in collaboration with relevant industry and government stakeholders, annually submit to Congress in an appendix to the budget request and publish in an unclassified format in the public domain— (1)
(2)a report on the extent to which each security-related technology acquired by the Administration since the last issuance or update of the Plan is consistent with the planned technology programs and projects identified under subsection (d)(2) for that security-related technology; and
(3)information about acquisitions completed during the fiscal year preceding the fiscal year during which the report is submitted.
(h)Additional update requirements
Updates and reports under subsection (g) shall—
(1)be prepared in consultation with—
(A)the persons described in subsection (b); and
(B)the Surface Transportation Security Advisory Committee established under section 204 of this title; and
(2)include—
(A)information relating to technology investments by the Transportation Security Administration and the private sector that the Department supports with research, development, testing, and evaluation for aviation, including air cargo, and surface transportation security;
(B)information about acquisitions completed during the fiscal year preceding the fiscal year during which the report is submitted;
(C)information relating to equipment of the Transportation Security Administration that is in operation after the end of the life-cycle of the equipment specified by the manufacturer of the equipment; and
(D)to the extent practicable, a classified addendum to report sensitive transportation security risks and associated capability gaps that would be best addressed by security-related technology described in subparagraph (A).
(i)Notice of covered changes to plan
(1)Notice required
The Administrator shall submit to the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation of the Senate and the Committee on Homeland Security of the House of Representatives notice of any covered change to the Plan not later than 90 days after the date that the covered change is made.
(2)Definition of covered change
In this subsection, the term “covered change” means—
(A)an increase or decrease in the dollar amount allocated to the procurement of a technology; or
(B)an increase or decrease in the number of a technology.

Legislative History

Notes & Related Subsidiaries

Editorial Notes

Amendments

2018—Subsec. (g). Pub. L. 115–254, § 1917(1)(A), substituted “The Administrator shall, in collaboration with relevant industry and government stakeholders, annually submit to Congress in an appendix to the budget request and publish in an unclassified format in the public domain—” for “Beginning 2 years after the date the Plan is submitted to Congress under subsection (a), and biennially thereafter, the Administrator shall submit to Congress—” in introductory provisions. Subsec. (g)(3). Pub. L. 115–254, § 1917(1)(B)–(D), added par. (3). Subsecs. (h), (i). Pub. L. 115–254, § 1917(2), added subsecs. (h) and (i).

Reference

Citations & Metadata

Citation

6 U.S.C. § 563

Title 6, Domestic Security

Last Updated

Sep 22, 2026

Release point: 119-110