PlainBillCongress, translated.Legislation. Context. Public interest.Congressional Research Service
Version 07 · Reported to House · Dec 14, 2022
Securing Air Travel Act
This bill addresses penalties for, and other matters pertaining to, carrying firearms beyond airport security checkpoints or on aircraft.
Specifically, the bill establishes minimum civil monetary penalties for repeat or egregious violations of prohibitions against carrying unauthorized firearms at airports or on aircraft. It also makes individuals who violate the prohibitions ineligible for programs that expedite security screenings at airports.
Additionally, the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) must display signage and carry out a campaign to inform travelers of the prohibitions and of the penalties for violating them.
The bill also requires the TSA and the Government Accountability Office to report to Congress about the bill's implementation and related issues.
People & committees
Rep. Watson Coleman, Bonnie [D-NJ-12] · D–NJ
Legislative record
A procedural vote is different from passage. Passage in one chamber does not establish enactment. Explore the glossary.
Placed on the Union Calendar, Calendar No. 461.
Reported (Amended) by the Committee on Homeland Security. H. Rept. 117-641.
Reported (Amended) by the Committee on Homeland Security. H. Rept. 117-641.
Subcommittee on Transportation and Maritime Security Discharged.
Ordered to be Reported in the Nature of a Substitute by the Yeas and Nays: 21 - 12.
Committee Consideration and Mark-up Session Held.
Referred to the Subcommittee on Transportation and Maritime Security.
Referred to the House Committee on Homeland Security.
Introduced in House
Introduced in House
Primary sources
Text links open the official source. We currently store references to these documents.
No related bills are listed in this snapshot. This does not establish whether the proposal has appeared in earlier Congresses.
Source last updated: Apr 7, 2025. Consult Congress.gov for the current record.
AI Conversation Starters
Choose a perspective, copy a prompt, and paste it into your preferred AI. Each prompt includes the bill version and available official source links, and asks for counterarguments as well as supporting evidence.
Analyze H.R.6856 as objectively as possible. Explain its main provisions, who would be affected, possible benefits and harms, implementation, exceptions, and uncertainties. Present the strongest arguments for and against it, and identify evidence needed to assess its public impact.
Examine H.R.6856 through a progressive lens, focusing on fairness, access, economic inequality, and effects on vulnerable communities. Explain potential benefits, costs, and unintended consequences. Consider the strongest counterarguments and distinguish stated goals from demonstrated outcomes.
Examine H.R.6856 through a conservative lens, focusing on fiscal responsibility, institutional stability, federalism, and the scope of government. Explain potential benefits, costs, and unintended consequences. Consider the strongest counterarguments and any provisions that challenge this perspective.
Examine H.R.6856 through a civil-liberties and limited-government lens. Consider individual rights, privacy, voluntary choice, accountability, and government power. Explain tradeoffs, possible safeguards, and the strongest counterarguments without assuming the proposal is beneficial or harmful.