I was watching a little bit about this bill on CNN and how it could negatively impact shipping tropical fish. Long bottlenecks in moving freight, will surely mean more mortality for fish and corals. This Ed Markey is really pushing hard to get all freight inspected.
http://www.usatoday.com/news/washington ... argo_x.htm
Bill would order all air cargo screened
Updated 1/8/2007 9:30 AM ET E-mail | Save | Print | Reprints & Permissions |
Enlarge By Jessica Webb, Daytona Beach News-Journal via AP
Aviation workers load cargo onto a Delta flight at Daytona Beach International Airport in October 2006. The industry fears that a House bill to require widespread bomb inspections would cause crippling delays.
By Thomas Frank, USA TODAY
WASHINGTON — The House of Representatives could approve an aviation-security measure Tuesday that would require all cargo on passenger planes to be inspected for bombs.
The measure is part of a 277-page Democratic bill that is likely to pass in the House. Its final approval is uncertain, however, amid criticism from industry groups that warn that it could prevent quick delivery of vital goods.
Each year, U.S. passenger planes carry about 6 billion pounds of cargo, typically sent by businesses that want fast shipment. Such cargo is carried on passenger planes to speed delivery and is stored in the belly of jets along with passenger luggage.
Democrats, who took control of Congress last week, are pushing for the air cargo provision as part of a bill aiming to bolster homeland security. They say it would close a major hole in security.
Inspections are now done on only a small portion of cargo on passenger planes.
"Passenger planes are still at the top of the terrorist target list," said Rep. Ed Markey, D-Mass., Congress' leading advocate for cargo inspection. "Here is a backdoor way onto planes."
Cargo aircraft, which carry about 75% of air shipments and have far fewer people on board, would not have their goods inspected.
Airlines and cargo companies say inspections would take so long that passenger planes could not carry goods that require fast delivery. That includes live seafood and other perishables, and items such as auto parts that manufacturers want brought directly to plants to avoid storage costs.
"These requirements will slow down the flow of commerce," said Brandon Fried, executive director of the Airforwarders Association, whose members move cargo from businesses to air carriers.
Airlines might cancel certain passenger routes if those flights can no longer carry cargo, said David Castelveter, spokesman for the Air Transport Association, which represents major U.S. airlines. That's because cargo shipments can provide a large portion of a flight's revenue, and a route may not be profitable without cargo.
Markey dismissed gloomy scenarios and noted that under the legislation, passenger airlines would not have to inspect all cargo until September 2009.
The Transportation Security Administration regulates air cargo largely by setting security requirements for companies that ship goods on passenger planes and inspecting those companies.
Markey's four-year push for cargo inspections has its best chance of passing now that Democrats control the House and Senate, said Fried, who told an aviation security conference last month that he vows a "massive lobbying campaign" against such cargo inspection.
Markey said he's not sure whether the Senate will retain a cargo-screening provision in its bill. House approval "will result in more pressure," he said.
On Friday, 10 groups including the U.S. Chamber of Commerce sent lawmakers a letter urging "realistic solutions" that focus inspections on high-risk shipments and encourage companies to tighten cargo security.
Sen. Jay Rockefeller, D-W.Va., chairman of the Senate aviation subcommittee, has asked the TSA whether cargo can be secured without inspecting every package, his spokeswoman Wendy Morigi said. If it can't, Rockefeller "will look to see how we can realistically achieve 100% physical screening," Morigi said.
Posted 1/7/2007 11:01 PM ET
Updated 1/8/2007 9:30 AM ET
http://www.usatoday.com/news/washington ... argo_x.htm
Bill would order all air cargo screened
Updated 1/8/2007 9:30 AM ET E-mail | Save | Print | Reprints & Permissions |
Enlarge By Jessica Webb, Daytona Beach News-Journal via AP
Aviation workers load cargo onto a Delta flight at Daytona Beach International Airport in October 2006. The industry fears that a House bill to require widespread bomb inspections would cause crippling delays.
By Thomas Frank, USA TODAY
WASHINGTON — The House of Representatives could approve an aviation-security measure Tuesday that would require all cargo on passenger planes to be inspected for bombs.
The measure is part of a 277-page Democratic bill that is likely to pass in the House. Its final approval is uncertain, however, amid criticism from industry groups that warn that it could prevent quick delivery of vital goods.
Each year, U.S. passenger planes carry about 6 billion pounds of cargo, typically sent by businesses that want fast shipment. Such cargo is carried on passenger planes to speed delivery and is stored in the belly of jets along with passenger luggage.
Democrats, who took control of Congress last week, are pushing for the air cargo provision as part of a bill aiming to bolster homeland security. They say it would close a major hole in security.
Inspections are now done on only a small portion of cargo on passenger planes.
"Passenger planes are still at the top of the terrorist target list," said Rep. Ed Markey, D-Mass., Congress' leading advocate for cargo inspection. "Here is a backdoor way onto planes."
Cargo aircraft, which carry about 75% of air shipments and have far fewer people on board, would not have their goods inspected.
Airlines and cargo companies say inspections would take so long that passenger planes could not carry goods that require fast delivery. That includes live seafood and other perishables, and items such as auto parts that manufacturers want brought directly to plants to avoid storage costs.
"These requirements will slow down the flow of commerce," said Brandon Fried, executive director of the Airforwarders Association, whose members move cargo from businesses to air carriers.
Airlines might cancel certain passenger routes if those flights can no longer carry cargo, said David Castelveter, spokesman for the Air Transport Association, which represents major U.S. airlines. That's because cargo shipments can provide a large portion of a flight's revenue, and a route may not be profitable without cargo.
Markey dismissed gloomy scenarios and noted that under the legislation, passenger airlines would not have to inspect all cargo until September 2009.
The Transportation Security Administration regulates air cargo largely by setting security requirements for companies that ship goods on passenger planes and inspecting those companies.
Markey's four-year push for cargo inspections has its best chance of passing now that Democrats control the House and Senate, said Fried, who told an aviation security conference last month that he vows a "massive lobbying campaign" against such cargo inspection.
Markey said he's not sure whether the Senate will retain a cargo-screening provision in its bill. House approval "will result in more pressure," he said.
On Friday, 10 groups including the U.S. Chamber of Commerce sent lawmakers a letter urging "realistic solutions" that focus inspections on high-risk shipments and encourage companies to tighten cargo security.
Sen. Jay Rockefeller, D-W.Va., chairman of the Senate aviation subcommittee, has asked the TSA whether cargo can be secured without inspecting every package, his spokeswoman Wendy Morigi said. If it can't, Rockefeller "will look to see how we can realistically achieve 100% physical screening," Morigi said.
Posted 1/7/2007 11:01 PM ET
Updated 1/8/2007 9:30 AM ET
