Fri 10 September 2021:
The Transportation Security Administration (TSA) is doubling fines for first-time violators who don’t wear masks as starting Friday, and repeat offenders could face fines of up to $3,000.
The White House said President Joe Biden was directing the higher fines to “ensure that masking requirements remain in place on the other modes of transportation as we continue to battle COVID-19.”
TSA said the new fines will “be $500-$1,000 for first offenders and $1,000-$3,000 for second offenders.”
To address continued COVID-19 threats, the TSA last month extended the requirement for travelers to wear masks on airplanes, trains, and buses, as well as at airports and railway stations, until Jan. 18. The regulations were supposed to expire on September 13th.
TSA Administrator David Pekoske said “by doubling the range of penalties, we seek to reinforce the importance of voluntary adherence.”
TSA said that operators throughout the transportation network have reported over 4,000 face mask-related incidents. To date, almost 4,000 warning notices have been sent and 126 have been referred for civil penalty.
TSA said in January that first-time incidents would start at $250 for failing to wear masks.
For not wearing masks on airplanes and other disruptive behavior, the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) has imposed much higher fines.
The FAA has recommended penalties totaling over $1 million, including a number of $9,000 fines for not wearing masks on planes.
_____________________________________________________________________________
FOLLOW INDEPENDENT PRESS:
TWITTER (CLICK HERE)
https://twitter.com/IpIndependent
FACEBOOK (CLICK HERE)
https://web.facebook.com/ipindependent
Think your friends would be interested? Share this story!
