Overview
- Sen. Tammy Duckworth asked the TSA to bring back shoes-off screening in a letter to Acting Administrator Ha Nguyen McNeill.
- She cited a DHS inspector general finding that some checkpoint scanners fail to detect threats hidden in footwear.
- Duckworth said the agency missed a 90-day legal deadline to file a corrective action plan after receiving the watchdog report.
- Former DHS Secretary Kristi Noem ended the rule on July 8, 2025, which TSA adopted in 2006 after the 2001 shoe-bomb attempt.
- TSA has not announced a reversal under new DHS Secretary Markwayne Mullin, so travelers keep shoes on as airports weigh faster lines against a documented screening gap during a busy travel year.