Leak Of Bush Administration Spending Plans For Homeland Security Also Include Connectivity Upgrades

The Bush Administration is planning to unveil their new budget for the Department of Homeland Security on February 7, but already some details of the proposal have leaked out, and the news is not good for airline ticket prices.

The proposal includes an increase in the Airport Security Fee that all airline travelers pay when they purchase an airline ticket. Under the plan, the fee for a one-way ticket will rise 220 percent, from $2.50 to $5.50, and the round-trip fee will get bumped by 160 percent from $5 to $8. The funds gathered from the fee are supposed to be used to help pay for airport security, and the Associated Press reports the estimate is the fee increase will add an additional $48 million to the DHS budget of $41 billion.

Another part of the budget calls for spending just over $170 million to upgrade dial-up connections at many of the country's largest airports to broadband speeds. The TSA has complained in the past that many of the airports do not have high speed connectivity in the screening, baggage and administrative areas, and they are concerned that if there is a security situation, personnel at those locations will take longer to hear about it.

FMI: www.dhs.gov, www.tsa.gov