Abandoned loose change at airports to benefit military

[article]

WASHINGTON — The jingle of loose change abandoned at airport checkpoints might soon be sweet music to America's military personnel.

The House passed a bill Tuesday that would require the Transportation Security Administration to give nonprofits such as the United Service Organization the approximately $500,000 in quarters, dimes, nickels and pennies collected every year at airport screening stations. The money would help finance airport programs that support service members as they trek from city to city.

The USO operates lounges in nearly 40 major airports that offer food and other amenities exclusively to military personnel.

"What may seem like a small amount of change left behind... actually amounts to hundreds of thousands of dollars each year," said GOP Rep. Jeff Miller of Florida, lead sponsor of the TSA Loose Change Act. The bill "would ensure that thousands of coins, when bundled together, will be used in support of millions of our nation's warriors."

 

Seriously? TSA Loose Change Act? Where is the "Congress Loose Screw Act"?

 

Sorry, but I can't support this. I'm heartily sick of the increasing fetishization of the military in our society.

 

Thanks, HaveMilesWillTravel, for the laughs! But, don't forget that these are the same folks who fought endlessly over the federal budget, leaving federal employees unpaid, while all the time Congress was very well-paid, and they continue to increase their princely salaries, benefits, and retirements! It would be difficult to find a greater argument to support term limits! Nah, let's just continue to let the TSA "keep the change"!

 

Agreed, there are lots of other worthy causes.

That said, it is such a tiny amount of money that it's quite unbelievable that Congress spent time and money on this topic. The USO has an annual budget of $132 Million. That $500,000 pile of change conveniently pays just about the salary of its CEO. http://www.charitynavigator.org/index.cfm?bay=search.summary&orgid=13122

What happens to all the other stuff people abandon at the airport? Surely there are established lost&found processes for each airport.

 

They hold auctions of all confiscated items -- or as they call it "voluntarily abandoned"

 

That's our Congress for you. Nothing's too inconsequential to waste the taxpayers' time and money on.

 

The politicians will go out and pay 2 million in salaries to their friend a year to spend the $500k that others forgot.

Now if you want to cut the TSA line and keep your shoes on spend $85 buck and it will not be a problem...they will have 5 GUYS waiting fir you, and they will not have a BURGER till break time....