00:00After 9-11, the government took away airport security from private companies.
00:04Now it's trying to give it back with TSA Gold Plus.
00:08So, what is this and who's paying for it?
00:10Here's what's happening.
00:11Now, while this new program sounds like an upgraded version of TSA PreCheck
00:16where you just walk your bag right through security for a price, that's not what this is.
00:20Under Gold Plus, a private company takes over security for an airport,
00:24hires the screeners, and owns the scanners.
00:26The government just writes the rules and grades the work.
00:29Compare that to today where the government is responsible for nearly all airport security.
00:34So why do it?
00:35Money.
00:36Under the normal budget process,
00:38the TSA's plan to upgrade its scanners to the newest tech stretches into the 2040s.
00:43A top TSA official told Congress the agency cannot depend on predictable congressional funding.
00:49So instead of waiting on Congress,
00:50they're letting private companies front the cash for the equipment.
00:53The program's own website calls these new contracts, quote,
00:56investable partnerships.
00:58What does it change for you?
01:00Almost nothing you'll notice.
01:01It'll be the same lines and the same rules.
01:03They gave Gold Plus a premium name and a slick website with a rendering of a glowing sci-fi tunnel,
01:09but you can't sign up because you were never the customer.
01:12The airports are.
01:13But the union representing TSA officers says there's a catch.
01:16A private company's job is profit, and that, they argue, is the last thing you want screening your bag.
01:23Private screening is the exact thing the TSA was built to replace.
01:27But supporters argue this system protects against future government shutdowns.
01:31They point to San Francisco, where private screeners kept getting paid during the recent shutdown,
01:36while federal officers worked weeks without a paycheck.
01:38So here's the question.
01:40Is this a smart fix for a broken budget,
01:42or is the government handing your security to the highest bidder?
01:46Drop your take in the comments and follow us here for more.
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