In the News

As any parent is likely willing to attest, traveling with children, especially infants, can be stressful.

It’s a stress that Rep. Brittany Pettersen, D-Colo., knows all too well. Pettersen gave birth in January and made the trek from Colorado to Washington, D.C. and back with her baby, Sam, 24 times in the last year. 

“Sam was a part of many historic moments that I look forward to telling him about when he grows up,” said Pettersen with a smile as she recounted their travels to Spectrum News. “But, traveling is incredibly stressful when you’re traveling for anybody, but when you’re doing that with kids and with a baby, it is difficult to manage.”

One stress Pettersen she often encountered was inconsistent TSA enforcement for milk and formula. She recalled several times that the TSA required her to dump milk and formula.

“Nothing is more stressful than when your baby or your toddler is screaming for food and they’re hungry, and you’re unable to meet their needs and rushing through trying to get to a plane,” said Pettersen. 

So Pettersen joined forces with Reps. Eric Swalwell, D-Calif., Anna Paulina Luna, R-Fla., and Maria Salazar, R-Fla., to introduce the Bottles and Breastfeeding Equipment Screening (BABES) Enhancement Act, which President Donald Trump signed into law just before Thanksgiving.

The BABES Enhancement Act directs the Transportation Safety Authority to update guidelines for screening breast milk, formula and feeding equipment, requires that TSA officers receive training on the new procedures, and informs parents about their rights at screening checkpoints.

“This is really just about providing consistency across the United States,” explained Pettersen. “It’s already law that that formula, milk, that these things are exempt from being poured out. But I can tell you, if you ask any parents who’ve traveled, they have probably encountered these inconsistencies.”

Currently, formula, breast milk, juice in quantities greater than 3.4 ounces or 100 milliliters are allowed in carry-on baggage and do not need to fit within a quart-sized bag, and travelers must remove them from carry-on bags to be screened separately from the rest of your belongings. The TSA classifies breast milk and formula as medically necessary liquids along with breast milk pumping equipment, but there have been reported discrepancies from airport to airport.

“With this law now in place, TSA officers will receive the proper training and follow strong, hygienic standards so parents can travel with confidence and babies get the nutrition they need without stress or uncertainty,” said Swalwell in a release announcing the bill was signed by the president. “This is about dignity, peace of mind, and protecting families at one of the most vulnerable moments of parenthood.”

The bill also had bipartisan support in the Senate, including from Sens. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, and Mazie Hirono, D-Hawaii.

Pettersen described it as a “really challenging time with the enormous guts to our health care system,” and an ongoing affordability crisis. “I recognize that we have so much more work to do to address the needs that families urgently need addressed here,” said Pettersen. “But this is something that I’m proud of that we were able to actually get across the finish line to make sure that parents know that when they show up and go through the security line and go through this process, that they their milk and their formula won’t be thrown out, and that TSA agents also have that clarity and training so that they’re not dealing with a really stressful situation.”

A TSA spokesperson told Spectrum News on Tuesday that “TSA supports the BABES Act and will implement screening procedure changes as prescribed in the law. Once the screening protocol changes are ready, TSA will update the general public.”

The BABES Enhancement Act requires the TSA to enact those provisions within 90 days of the president’s signature, giving the agency until the end of February to be compliant.