Alaska Lawmaker Finds Name on No - Fly List

Earlier this month, Donald E. Young, the chairman of the House of Transportation Committee, was mistaken by Alaska Airlines to be Donald Lee Young, a individual listed on the government’s no-fly list. Consequently, the chairman was not able to board his flight from Anchorage to Seattle. Massachusetts Senator Edward M. Kennedy, along with Georgia Senator John Lewis have both been confused as people on the government’s no-fly list in the past, too. The Transportation Security Administration is currently in the process of taking over the task of comparing the names of airline passengers with the names on the government’s watch list.

Florida Republican John Mica currently amended a bill requiring that the government develop a process that would permit those passengers branded as threats to petition the classification and correct inaccurate information. Mica also added an amendment requiring that the government check for watch-list names before take off. These precautions are part of legislation approving a budget for more than $1.5 billion to be used for safety measures in 2005.