After nixing a rule that required people going through airport security in the U.S. to take off their shoes, Department of Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem hinted this week that even more changes are coming. Here’s a clue: you won’t have to stock up on tiny bottles before flights.
“But I will tell you – I mean the liquids – I’m questioning. So that may be the next big announcement is what size your liquids need to be,” Noem told NewsNation’s host Blake Burman at the Hill Nation Summit, according to The Hill. “We’re looking at, you know, our scanners.”
For nearly 20 years, fliers have had to be careful about any liquids they bring with them on flights. In the early 2000s, concerns about flight safety were high. In 2001 alone, the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks killed thousands and a man named Richard Reid attempted to detonate explosives hidden in his shoes on a flight from Paris to Miami. Rules about taking off shoes and liquids came soon after, in 2006.
According to the Transportation Security Administration, travelers are allowed to bring one quart-sized bag of liquids, aerosols, gels, creams and pastes in carry-on bags and through security checkpoints. These bags can be filled with travel-sized containers that are 3.4 ounces or less per item, though there are some exemptions for medications, infant and child nourishments and duty-free liquids purchased internationally during the course of a trip. Larger containers can be put in checked baggage. This is called the 3-1-1 rule.
Noem said Wednesday that the TSA is currently weighing changes to the size rules. She also said the government is speaking with “several” companies about the changes.
“Well, hopefully the future of an airport where I’m looking to go is that you walk in the door with your carry-on suitcase, you walk through a scanner and go right to your flight,” Noem said.
This isn’t the first time that such a proposal has been made. Archived DHS content from 2007 shows that there were efforts underway to find a way to phase the rule out shortly after it was implemented.
“Today, when you pack for the airport, you might have to place your toothpaste tubes, shampoo bottles, and cosmetics in a sandwich bag” said Brian Tait, who at the time managed SENSIT research, an initiative looking into airport security improvements. “We want to make that practice a thing of the past.”
He said getting rid of the rule would make people happy, and reactions from the crowd at the Hill Nation Summit seemed to prove his point – they cheered when the news about the shoe rule being dropped was mentioned.
While Tait said work had started on ways to remove the liquids rule quite some time ago, it is obviously still in place years later. Noem said this week that plans are moving forward, with the government checking out different technologies. She said some airports will pilot the tech before it is implemented nationwide.
“So… it’s not certainly anything we’ll be announcing in the next week or two, but we’re working to see what we can do to make the traveling experience much better and more hospitable for individuals, but also still keep safety standards,” Noem told The Hill after the Hill Nation Summit. During the summit, she criticized the former administration of President Joe Biden for not doing more to improve traveler experiences at airports.
While travelers are getting a break from revealing their toes at airports and might be able to bring more than 3.4 ounces of hair conditioner in their carry-on soon, Audacy does want to stress that they still can’t use their Costco membership cards as identification at airports.