'It's a basic equity issue': California Dem demands Clear TSA line-cutting service be banned because it's unfair to those who didn't pay to skip ahead

Democratic California state Sen. Josh Newman has introduced a new bill that seeks to prevent Clear, a third-party screening company that gives travelers the option to pay $189 per year to pre-verify their information and skip security lines at airports, from continuing to operate as it has been in the state.

Currently, Clear customers use the TSA Pre-Check lineup, but are bumped ahead of TSA pre-checked passengers. If passed, SB 1372 would prohibit Clear from doing business in California unless it creates separate lineups in airports exclusively for its customers.

"It's a basic equity issue when you see people subscribed to a concierge service being escorted in front of people who have waited a long time to get to the front of TSA line," Newman said during an interview with CBS MoneyWatch. "Everyone is beaten down by the travel experience, and if Clear escorts a customer in front of you and tells TSA, 'Sorry, I have someone better,' it's really frustrating." 

"If you have money, by all means," Newman added, "but that business shouldn't be at the expense of the average traveler."

Clear currently operates in nine airports across California, employing hundreds of people and "sharing more than $13 million in annual revenue with our California airport partners and serving nearly 1 million Californians."

The company said it is "always working with our airline and airport partners as well as local, state, and federal governments to ensure all travelers have a safer, easier checkpoint experience."

As CBS News reports, SB 1372 has gained support from Republican state Sen. Janet Nguyen as well as the Association of Flight Attendants-CWA, and Transportation Security Officers unions in Oakland, Sacramento, and San Jose. Airlines that partner with Clear, such as Delta, Alaska, and United, have come out against it.