Washington, D.C. — Congressman Paul Gosar issued the following statement after passage of H.R. 7365, the Veterans Expedited TSA Screening (VETS) Safe Travel Act, bipartisan legislation introduced by Congressman Gosar that would provide expedited security screening under the Transportation Security Administration’s (TSA) PreCheck program to severely injured or disabled veterans free of charge:

“I am very pleased that my bipartisan and common-sense bill passed overwhelmingly in the House of Representatives.

My great state of Arizona is home to over 450,000 veterans and nearly 30% of those live with a disability. Traveling through standard airport checkpoints with severe injuries can present significant challenges for disabled veterans. They often must wait in long and winding lines, remove their shoes, and maintain balance to stand in a security scanner.  For many disabled veterans, these can be difficult tasks that can present a fall hazard or require special assistance.

No American veteran, particularly disabled veterans, should be hassled at our airports.  With this successful passage, it is time the Senate takes up the VETS Safe Travel Act to help disabled veterans who have sacrificed so much for our country,” stated Congressman Gosar.

Background:

Congressman Gosar introduced the VETS Safe Travel Act on February 15, 2024 and the legislation was successfully marked up in the House Homeland Security Committee on September 25, 2024.

Under the VETS Safe Travel Act, the Department of Veterans Affairs would certify that a veteran is severely injured and therefore eligible to apply for the TSA PreCheck program free of charge. TSA would process the veteran’s application, granting access to TSA PreCheck program provided they successfully pass the necessary background check and interview process.

Using information from the Department of Veterans Affairs, approximately 325,000 veterans would become eligible for this free PreCheck screening program.

Supported by:

Wounded Warrior Project, Paralyzed Veterans of America, Disabled American Veterans, American Legion, Blinded Veterans Association, Veterans of Foreign Wars, Operation Second Chance, Inc., Unified Arizona Veterans, Texas Coalition of Veteran Organizations, and Veterans Airlift Command.

A copy of the bill text can be found by clicking here.