TSA lets three airports hire private screeners under Gold+ initiative

TSA let Tampa International Airport, Charleston International Airport and Des Moines International Airport bring in private screeners under its Gold+ initiative, making them the first airports to opt into the agency’s new voluntary model.

Under the program, airport operators hire private screening contractors paid by TSA, but the federal agency keeps control of the security rules. TSA remains responsible for setting screening requirements, overseeing operations and conducting inspections, so the screeners may change while the chain of command does not.

The application process itself underscored that federal control. A TSA Screening Partnership Program instruction document says each airport must file a separate application, and an authorized representative of the airport or airport owner must complete it. TSA then reviews the application and provides a copy to the Federal Security Director.

Gold+ is part of a push for more efficient, high-tech checkpoints and a way to avoid delays tied to lengthy federal budget cycles. The Screening Partnership Program has existed for years as a private-screening option under federal oversight, but Gold+ expands and formalizes the model at a small set of airports rather than opening it nationwide.

The split over the change was immediate. The American Federation of Government Employees, which represents TSA workers, will fight the privatization push and warned that the flying public should be concerned. In Charleston, airport officials said the transition could bring stability and new technology.

Tampa’s participation had already drawn union criticism. Together with Charleston and Des Moines, it now serves as a test case for whether private contractors can handle checkpoint operations more flexibly than the federal workforce while TSA still holds the authority to write the rules, inspect the work and keep oversight in federal hands.