Biden to nominate Pekoske to serve new term as TSA chief

US President Joe Biden intends to nominate David Pekoske to serve another term as head of the Transportation Security Administration (TSA), the White House said on Friday. Pekoske was first nominated by former President Donald Trump in 2017. Pekoske's five-year term as head of the TSA began in August 2017. The TSA, created by Congress in November 2001 after the Sept. 11 attacks, is responsible for security operations at 430 US airports and is the lead federal agency for security of highways, railroads, mass transit systems and pipelines. Pekoske led the TSA's operations during the COVID-19 pandemic and the agency's enforcement of mask requirements at US airports that were only lifted last month when a judge declared the mandate unlawful. A total of 35 TSA employees died of COVID and 23,468 were infected with the virus since the beginning of the pandemic through early May, the TSA said. Pekoske said in June 2021 that since the start of the pandemic there had been over 85 physical assaults on TSA officers. The White House in March said it wants to boost the number of TSA officers by 2,540 as it forecasts a faster return to pre-COVID US air travel levels. The White House seeks to boost the number of TSA budgeted security officer positions by about 5% and add $242.6m.<br/>