Big Bucks Being Left At Airport Checkpoints

By Author: Steve Robinson
Total Articles: 468
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It is ironic that travelers generally so consumed with finding the cheap travel options such as cheap airplane tickets, cheap vacation packages, and discount travel packages would also be the ones that left over $500,000 in cash at U.S. airport checkpoints last year.

Almost all of this cash was left in loose change. This money really adds up, given that almost $1.4 million was left behind over the last three years.

Miami International, Las Vegas McCarran International and Chicago O’Hare International Airports collected the largest amount of money in 2012, at least $22,000 each. Smaller airports such as in Pensacola, Des Moines, and Reno, each found at least $1,000 left in plastic tubs passengers use when walking through metal detectors.

The Transportation Security Administration (TSA) released its annual survey in April which has generated debate over what to do with the abandoned money.

Total cash left behind in fiscal 2012, including foreign coins, was $531,302.22, a 9 percent increase over the prior year ($487,869.50) and almost 30 percent more that in fiscal 2010 ($409,085.56).

Fliers ...
... leave money behind for a number of different reasons. Sometimes they are rushing through a checkpoint to catch a plane or heading to a country where U.S. currency cannot be used.

Currently abandoned change is spent on civil aviation security, as dictated by Congress. GOP Rep. Jeff Miller wants to turn over this change to non-profit groups, specifically the United Service Organizations, to help finance airport programs that support the military.

He contends that the TSA is keeping all of this change to “pay for their bloated bureaucracy.” Miller believes that “The lost change should be put to good use, and I know that the thousands of coins have a positive impact on millions of our nation’s warriors.”

TSA security officers do what they can to return money to passengers, particularly when there is identifying information in a wallet or money clip. TSA says that it returns loose change, including bills when possible. There have been numerous instances where security officers have noticed that someone left money behind and sought out that individual to return the money.

Passengers have up to 60 days to recover money left at a TSA checkpoint by filing a claim.

The following are the airports that collected the largest amounts of money over the last three fiscal years (2010 to 2012):

New York (JFK): $112,384
Miami: $79,819
Los Angeles: $74,528
Las Vegas: $63,209
San Francisco: $61,692
Chicago (O'Hare): $60,633
Dallas/Fort Worth: $48,656
Washington (Dulles): $41,703
Atlanta: $38,235
New York (LaGuardia): $34,430
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