By William Armbruster
The JOURNAL of COMMERCE ONLINE

NEWPORT, R.I. -- Legislation to require physical inspection of all cargo booked on passenger planes is likely to gain traction because of election-year politicking, a top spokesman for the air cargo industry warned.

The House approved such legislation in 2003, but the lack of Senate action blocked implementation. The sponsors of the bill, Democratic Rep. Ed Markey of Massachusetts and Christopher Shays, a Republican from Connecticut, tried again in 2004 and narrowly lost.

This year, however, Markey and Shays may have a better chance of getting the bill signed into law because of heightened public concern about cargo security in the wake of the Dubai ports controversy.

"Votes to ensure that Republicans are on the record opposing inspection amendments will be held as often as Democrats can schedule them," said Brandon Fried, executive director of the Airforwarders Association. "If some Republicans start feeling cornered on the issues and are facing a tough race, there could be defections that allow the passage of this legislation.

Fried spoke at the annual trade and transportation conference of the Coalition of New England Companies for Trade.

Peter Friedmann, the association's Washington counsel, said the legislation could be blocked because the airlines have a very powerful lobby, while airports have a somewhat less powerful lobby. "That's going to hold off the worst of it," he said, "but it's going to be a live issue for many years to come."

The impact of such legislation would be devastating, Fried warned. With no technology adequate to scan all cargo, full inspection would require the opening of each box, pallet and machinery part. That would cost the taxpayer $700 million annually and require the hiring of 7,000 inspectors, he said.

Full inspections would also create bottlenecks at the airports and wreak havoc on shippers' just-in-time supply chains, he said.

In addition, the insurance industry would be overwhelmed by claims incurred due to damage created during the inspection process, Fried said.

In contrast to the draconian approach taken by Markey and Shays, the Transportation Security Administration will soon be issuing new regulations tightening security but maintaining a layered approach, said Fried, who participated in working groups of TSA's Aviation Security Advisory Committee.

The changes are likely to include tighter vetting of forwarders through a centralized inspection system; strengthening rules for recertification, and increased requirements for accepting and processing cargo.

Other changes will include tighter requirements for validating so-called known shippers, a term referring to those with whom the forwarder does business on a regular basis and whose facilities have been physically inspected.

In addition, the TSA rules are expected to mandate background checks for all employees having unescorted access to cargo.