436
submitted 1 year ago by MicroWave@lemmy.world to c/news@lemmy.world

A new bill, the first of its kind in the U.S., would ban security screening company Clear from operating at California airports as lawmakers take aim at companies that let consumers pay to pass through security ahead of other travelers

Sen. Josh Newman, a California Democrat and the sponsor of the legislation, said Clear effectively lets wealthier people skip in front of passengers who have been waiting to be screened by Transportation Security Administration agents. 

"It's a basic equity issue when you see people subscribed to a concierge service being escorted in front of people who have waited a long time to get to the front of TSA line," Newman told CBS MoneyWatch. "Everyone is beaten down by the travel experience, and if Clear escorts a customer in front of you and tells TSA, 'Sorry, I have someone better,' it's really frustrating." 

If passed, the bill would bar Clear, a private security clearance company founded in 2010, from airports in California. Clear charges members $189 per year to verify passengers' identities at airports and escort them through security, allowing them to bypass TSA checkpoints. The service is in use at roughly 50 airports across the U.S., as well as at dozens of sports stadiums and other venues.

you are viewing a single comment's thread
view the rest of the comments
[-] cbarrick@lemmy.world 27 points 1 year ago

Clear doesn't bypass TSA. It just skips you to the front of the line.

[-] Nougat@fedia.io 6 points 1 year ago

It does bypass TSA. The Clear agent goes up to the front of the TSA line, tells the TSA agent "This one is okay, I checked, you don't need to," and through you go.

[-] cbarrick@lemmy.world 13 points 1 year ago

How often do you fly in the United States? That's not how it works.

They walk you up to the front of the ID check line. TSA still checks your ID, and you still go through security.

[-] tarius@lemmy.ml 10 points 1 year ago

They take you to the front of the line but, they still need to go through the actual screening (metal detector, bag scanning).

From the clear website: Simply step up to a CLEAR Pod at the airport where you’ll scan your boarding pass and eyes or fingerprints, and an Ambassador will escort you to the front of the security line for your screening.

[-] Nougat@fedia.io 4 points 1 year ago

The TSA Precheck line for xray and metal detector is far less stringent than the "regular" line. They use metal detectors only, not body scanners. You don't have to take your shoes off or electronics out of your bags. It's like going to the airport in the 1990s.

Clear and its counterparts allow you to have access to that lower level of screening without having TSA Precheck.

[-] dogslayeggs@lemmy.world 6 points 1 year ago

Not at all airports. In LAX and DEN CLEAR only skips you to the front of the normal line, not the TSA Pre line.

[-] bdonvr@thelemmy.club 6 points 1 year ago

Unless you already have TSA Pre

[-] dogslayeggs@lemmy.world 1 points 1 year ago

Right, I didn't realize that part when I posted. So the people who skip the TSA Pre line are paying for both, not just Clear. Just paying for Clear only brings you to the front of the normal line.

[-] bdonvr@thelemmy.club 3 points 1 year ago* (last edited 1 year ago)

Nope definitely not. I had a one year trial of it. They skip you to the front of the precheck line and you don't need to show ID, but your stuff still needs to go through the xray and you have to go through the detector.

Edit: in some airports I guess it depends on if you have TSA Pre as well which line you get put into the front of.

[-] dogslayeggs@lemmy.world 2 points 1 year ago

It doesn't bypass TSA. Maybe it is different at different airports, but all of the ones I fly through on a regular basis the Clear people only take you to the normal TSA screener, where you still get screened. They don't bypass that screening and they don't take you to the TSA Pre line. In other airports they might take you to the TSA Pre line, but you still get screened there. Just less intense baggage and body scanning.

this post was submitted on 23 Apr 2024
436 points (100.0% liked)

News

29306 readers
3499 users here now

Welcome to the News community!

Rules:

1. Be civil


Attack the argument, not the person. No racism/sexism/bigotry. Good faith argumentation only. This includes accusing another user of being a bot or paid actor. Trolling is uncivil and is grounds for removal and/or a community ban. Do not respond to rule-breaking content; report it and move on.


2. All posts should contain a source (url) that is as reliable and unbiased as possible and must only contain one link.


Obvious right or left wing sources will be removed at the mods discretion. Supporting links can be added in comments or posted seperately but not to the post body.


3. No bots, spam or self-promotion.


Only approved bots, which follow the guidelines for bots set by the instance, are allowed.


4. Post titles should be the same as the article used as source.


Posts which titles don’t match the source won’t be removed, but the autoMod will notify you, and if your title misrepresents the original article, the post will be deleted. If the site changed their headline, the bot might still contact you, just ignore it, we won’t delete your post.


5. Only recent news is allowed.


Posts must be news from the most recent 30 days.


6. All posts must be news articles.


No opinion pieces, Listicles, editorials or celebrity gossip is allowed. All posts will be judged on a case-by-case basis.


7. No duplicate posts.


If a source you used was already posted by someone else, the autoMod will leave a message. Please remove your post if the autoMod is correct. If the post that matches your post is very old, we refer you to rule 5.


8. Misinformation is prohibited.


Misinformation / propaganda is strictly prohibited. Any comment or post containing or linking to misinformation will be removed. If you feel that your post has been removed in error, credible sources must be provided.


9. No link shorteners.


The auto mod will contact you if a link shortener is detected, please delete your post if they are right.


10. Don't copy entire article in your post body


For copyright reasons, you are not allowed to copy an entire article into your post body. This is an instance wide rule, that is strictly enforced in this community.

founded 2 years ago
MODERATORS