TSA Announces New Partnership with Florida to Strengthen Security for Personnel at its Seaports
On March 18, 2004, the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) announced that it had entered into a new partnership with Florida state House and Senate leaders and with the Florida Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles to strengthen security for personnel at Florida's seaports.
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The TSA states that the partnership, formalized in a Memorandum of Agreement signed in mid-February 2004, will define requirements for background checks and state-of-the-art identification credentials for truck drivers, dockworkers and others who require unescorted access to the secure areas of the seaports, using the TSA's Transportation Worker Identification Credential (TWIC) program.
According to the TSA, this program provides a high-tech credential that verifies workers' identities and ties each worker to a background check to ensure that high-risk individuals are denied access to sensitive areas of the U.S.' transportation system.
The TWIC will contain a biometric identifier, like a fingerprint, to positively authenticate the identity of the holder.
The TSA notes that by having one universally recognized credential, workers will no longer have to carry numerous cards or go through redundant background investigations to enter secure areas at multiple facilities. Advanced technologies on the TWIC will also allow facilities to better manage access to various areas at a site.
The TSA adds that through this new partnership, Florida will be helping the TSA take the next step in its effort to implement a national credentialing program for the transportation workforce.
TSA press release (dated 03/18/04) available at http://www.tsa.gov/public/display?theme=44&content=09000519800923a6