Story ID: 
House Clears TSA Fiscal 2015 Funding
By: Kerry Lynch
Caption: Fate of bill uncertain as Washington squabbles over immigration.
Word Count: 204
The Transportation Security Administration (TSA) is facing a nearly $100 million cut in its budget this year under the Fiscal Year 2015 Department of Homeland Security (DHS) funding bill that passed the House on January 14 by a 236-191 vote. The bill, however, faces a tough fight on the Senate floor, with lawmakers still at odds over immigration. Lawmakers late last year approved funding for the DHS only through February 27 in protest against the Obama Administration’s policies on immigration. The short-term funding approval was part of the continuing resolution and omnibus bill that provided a full-year fiscal 2015 budget for most of the federal government, including the FAA.

The Fiscal Year 2015 DHS bill cuts the TSA’s funding by $94.3 million, providing a full-year budget of $4.8 billion. The bill reduces the federal screener workforce, capping it at 45,000, and calls for more risk-based screening. At the same time, the bill, which also funds Customs and Border Patrol (CBP) and the U.S. Coast Guard, boosts CBP funding by $118.7 million, supporting 21,370 border patrol agents and 23,775 CBP officers. It also provides funding for 95,000 operational flight hours.

The White House supported the DHS funding measures, but said amendments on immigration would draw a veto.