Sen. Lee wants TSA to stop accepting an agency’s app as ID for migrants

When passengers get on a plane, they typically show a passport or official ID. A Biden administration policy allows migrants to use a federal agency’s app instead. Two senators want to change that.

Sens. Mike Lee and Rick Scott want Congress to adopt a change to the Federal Aviation Administration reauthorization (which spans over 1,000 pages) — they want to prohibit the TSA from accepting the U.S. Customs and Border Protection app as the sole form of identification for migrants.

The deadline for reauthorization is May 10.

Lee and Scott introduced the VALID Act earlier this spring. It was co-sponsored by Sens. Roger Marshall, Marsha Blackburn, Mike Braun and Johne Thune. Rep. Burgess Owens introduced the companion legislation alongside House Committee on Homeland Security Chairman Mark Green.

Reps. Dan Bishop, Dan Crenshaw, Jeff Duncan, John Rose, Scott Perry and Eli Crane were among the original co-sponsors of the legislation. If the amendment is added to the FAA reauthorization bill, TSA would also be prevented from using a Notice to Appear or a Notice to Report as identification for getting onto a plane.

“Every American needs to show ID to enter our country. So why do we make it simpler for illegal immigrants to come in than for our own people?” said Lee in a press release. “As our nation grapples with an unprecedented invasion at our southern border, the VALID Act resolves to close the loopholes that have allowed 200,000 illegal immigrants into the country unchecked.”

“The Biden administration’s policies have blatantly facilitated this crisis, encouraging illegal immigration and compromising our nation’s security,” continued Lee. In the same press release, Scott said he supported the legislation because he thinks it “is unacceptable and dangerous” to have migrants fly into U.S. airports using the app.

“President Biden must put the safety and security of the American people above his open border agenda,” said Owens in a press release. “The VALID Act closes this loophole, restores common sense, and shuts down the government’s ability to facilitate the travel of illegal immigrants across state lines at taxpayers’ expense.”

On Monday, Lee and Scott sent out a letter to their colleagues encouraging them to co-sponsor the amendment. Lee posted the letter on his social media account. The pair said this reauthorization was likely the last chance they had this year to do so.

The letter stated that the House Homeland Security Committee released data showing around 200,000 migrants over a period of eight months came to the U.S. on planes using travel appointments through the CBP One Mobile App.

“It a universally held position — and has been since 9/11 — that passengers should provide legitimate identification before boarding a plane flying in our airspace,” wrote Lee and Scott. They said they want to hold migrants to that same standard.

Earlier this year, a spokesperson for the Department of Homeland Security told Fox News the organization works to mitigate national security threats. “Recent reports that noncitizens have lower security bars for traveling on domestic flights are false. Noncitizens without acceptable forms of ID must undergo additional, more robust screenings to fly within the U.S.”

“The use of CBP One to verify noncitizens’ identities allows TSA to verify that individuals are who they claim to be and that they have been vetted and processed by DHS into an appropriate immigration pathway. These individuals are most commonly awaiting a hearing before an immigration judge and have a legal basis to remain in the United States for that hearing. Collaboration between CBP and TSA on this enhanced security program began in 2021,” said the spokesperson.