California Bill Would Prevent CLEAR Passengers From Line-Jumping At Airports

A proposed bill in California would prohibit security screening company CLEAR from skipping the general security lines at state airports, an unprecedented proposal.

State Sen. Josh Newman (D), the sponsor of the legislation, said the bill is not banning CLEAR from state airports but rather moving the service to its own security lane.

“General passengers don’t have anyone cutting in front of them anymore, and CLEAR passengers can still fly through their dedicated security lane. It will speed up security for everyone!” he wrote in an X post on Monday.

CLEAR was founded in 2010 and allows subscribers to bypass normal airport security by using biometric technology. Subscribers can walk up to a CLEAR pod, scan their boarding pass and verify their identity by scanning their eyes or fingerprints, followed by a physical screening.

“CLEAR has been leading the way on identity verification technology for 14 years and continues that leadership with NextGen Identity+,” the spokesperson wrote in a statement. “We are always working with our airline and airport partners as well as local, state and federal governments to ensure all travelers have a safer, easiest checkpoint experience.”

The proposed bill has support from both sides of the aisle and went before the California State Senate’s transportation committee on Tuesday.