GAO: Air Passenger Screening - TSA Could Improve Complaint Process

Good writeup @ InfoWars which I'll cover in the first response. Basically they've been lying to us, which should come as no surprise.

Here is the report:

Government Accounting Office: Air Passenger Screening - TSA Could Improve Complaint Process

 

This is dynamite -- GAO is finally exposing Pistole, Napolitano & Co. as lying sacks of trash.

Info Wars: Federal Audit Proves TSA Is Misleading Public, Covering Up Passenger Complaints

• GAO report says many complaints to TSA going undocumented
• Agents implementing complaints process at their own discretion; Could be covering each other’s backs

A Federal report released last week concludes that the TSA does not have an adequate system to measure passenger complaints, has failed to factor in many complaints in its evaluations, does not consistently inform travelers of how they can file complaints, and could be ignoring complaints altogether because the agents investigating the cases are in the same chain of command as those being investigated.​

The report (PDF), compiled by the Government Accountability Office, will serve as a compelling source for reporters and activists who have claimed that the TSA is knowingly misleading the public on the level of backlash the agency has received.​

Dated November 15, the fifty page report indicates that almost 40,000 complaints were formally filed with the TSA Contact Center (TCC), between October 2009 and June 2012. The report notes, however, that the TCC is only one of five ways that travelers are able to submit complaints, yet it is the only avenue that is currently being evaluated by the TSA.​

So how many complaints were logdged & ignored through the other four ways to submit complaints? Appears as though total number of complaints must be far higher than 40,000.

The report notes that the other four areas that deal with complaints are not factored in. They are the ​

• Office of the Executive Secretariat (mail complaints),
• the multicultural branch (civil rights),
• the disability branch, and
• local TSA airport offices.

Note that the 40,000 complaints include NO complaints that are mailed in and NOcomments cards or other written complaints that are delivered locally.

The report also flags up a potentially huge conflict of interest owing to “the lack of independence of the complaint investigators.”​

“Specifically, TSA airport officials responsible for resolving air passenger complaints are generally in the same chain of command as TSA airport staff who are the subjects of the complaints,” the report notes, suggesting that greater independence as regards complaint investigation is needed ... It also notes that as things stand, TSA’s complaint resolution process fails to meet proper investigation standards of either the U.S. Ombudsman Association or the American Bar Association.​

And a few seconds of fame for our member RB as well as Jon Corbett (Affection):

Indeed, many have complained that though they wanted to submit formal complaints, they do not believe they were taken seriously. Blogger Ron Bonner notes that he has attempted twice to file formal complaints to the TSA, but has been stalled or blocked from doing so: “I spent many hours over a period of weeks trying to find out any outcome to the investigation and never got a word from the TSA. In fact, to this day I’m not sure that the TSA investigated my complaint at all.” Bonner states.​

Wrapup -- the figure of 17,000 that came to light a few days ago for was just for the physical assaults euphemistically known as "pat downs" out of a total of 40,000 for just that one way to file complaints:

The new GAO report indicates that at the end of 2010 there was a massive increase in complaints, owing to the fact that the agency introduced enhanced pat-downs, as well as a raised public awareness due to media coverage of the first national TSA opt-out campaign. At the peak of this increase complaints numbered in the region of 5000. The report indicates that over 17,000 complaints were made regarding pat-downs in the two and a half year period. The report also notes that thousands of additional written complaints were received by the Office of the Executive Secretariat and the other offices the TSA chooses to ignore.​

Nothing new here -- we've been saying this for years:

This indicates that TSA has attempted to downplay and cover up the amount of complaints it has received.​

 

Problem is that this GAO report won't change one thing. TSA has ignored the public at every turn.

 

Nice summary!
This story may start to get more attention, since it has been completely ignored in the press up until now.
(Combine w/earlier thread, Mike).

I think the importance of this, and its timing, is as yet another large performance failure by TSA leadership. It gives DC more reason to simply remove Pistole going into the second term.

 

It has to be kept in the forefront. Keep posting about it every place you can, including the TSA Blog.

 

Since I got a mention in the InfoWars article let me say this about TSA. Had TSA dealth with my concerns in a timely and professional manner I probably wouldn't be following TSA, at least not like I do now. I was blown off by the FLL FSD and ran into a dead end when trying to get a resolution of an issue at DFW. I don't go to an airport looking for trouble with TSA but they seem to have an uncanny ability to be the most offensive federal employees I have ever come in contact with.

I was not against TSA until TSA gave me cause to be against TSA.

 

The TSA is a fairly unique agency. I am not aware of any other groups of federal employees hired for their total lack of marketable skills and ability to "just follow orders."

 

That was Info Wars.

It's a source you often have to be careful with but they were right on the mark with this one. The report was released > a week ago now and has been completely ignored by the mainstream media, just sitting there on a gov't server waiting for someone to notice it.

 

Government Security News: TSA addressing GAO report critical of customer complaint processes

“TSA is committed to ensuring all travelers have consistent, quality methods of reaching TSA and providing direct feedback,” said Pistole. “We appreciate GAO’s review of this important topic and anticipate completing the recommendations in early 2013.”​

​

TSA noted that it screens about 1.8 million travelers each day, and of those, just .01 percent of travelers file a complaint with the agency.​

​

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Do the math, Pissy. That's .01 * 1800000 = 18,000 complaints daily!

 

Just like the TSA says "only" 3% of travelers get groped every day. That adds up to 54,000 passengers a day - the number of people who would populate a small city.

 

I heard the GAO rep today on Federal News Radio (DC) and he weasel worded his responses to make it appear that GAO is just trying to consolidate the processes so that complaints can be rolled up in a manner that would help management improve screening.

At least the host, Frank Rose, asked the questions, albeit tactfully regarding the hats and whys of the errors and omissions. The fact is that everyone knows that TSA has complicated the process and obfuscated the results to downplay their abuses.

Can anyone name another agency, let alone a private sector company with this high of a complaint ratio?

 

Can anyone name another federal entity with such a high percentage of *known* thieves, felons, and perverts?