An airport loose change bill that was recently passed by The House may benefit military members. Travelers leave hundreds of thousands of dollars behind in loose change every year.
Under the bill that was passed on Tuesday, the Transportation Security Administration has 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 may go towards programs that support service members as they travel, USA Today reports.
There is a USO lounge in about 40 major airports that offer food and other amenities to military members, so the money would mean a lot.
"What may seem like a small amount of change left behind... actually amounts to hundreds of thousands of dollars each year," GOP Rep. Jeff Miller of Florida, lead sponsor of the TSA Loose Change Act told USA Today. The bill "would ensure that thousands of coins, when bundled together, will be used in support of millions of our nation's warriors."
Miller has brought the bill up several times over the past few years but this is the first time it made it to the House. The bill was passed by voice vote without any dissent. Now the bill has to be passed by Senate.
Throughout 2012, the TSA collected more than $531,000 in coins and foreign exchange, which is a big increase from past years. In 2011, $487,870 was collected and $409,086 was collected in 2010. The most money in 2012 was collected at Miami International ($39,613), McCarran International serving Las Vegas ($26,900), and O'Hare International in Chicago ($22,116). However at least $1,000 was found at smaller airports.
According to travel experts who spoke to USA Today, people sometimes leave behind change when they're in a rush, they don't want to be bothered by picking coins up or when they're heading to a foreign country and can't use the change.
The TSA says they try their best to return to the change to the owners. However under current rules, the TSA gets to keep any money left behind, which they say goes towards "providing civil aviation security."
There are the top 10 airports in which money was left behind according to the TSA, USA Today reports:
1) Miami International - $39,613
2) McCarran International (Las Vegas) - $26,900
3) O'Hare International (Chicago) - $22,116
4) Los Angeles International - $21,916
5) John F. Kennedy International - $21,201
6) Dallas/Fort Worth International - $20,190
7) San Francisco International - $19,874
8) Washington Dulles International - $16,537
9) Logan International (Boston) - $16,406
10) George Bush Intercontinental (Houston) - $16,082
This article is copyrighted by Travelers Today, the travel news leader
