TSA collected nearly $1M in loose change last year
Forgetful travelers are giving the Transportation Security Administration a nice financial boost.
Airport screeners collected $960,105.49 in unclaimed money from the nation's airports.
The agency says it always tries to make sure all traveler property, including loose change, finds its way back to the proper owner.
However, anything they can't return gets deposited into a special fund account and directed to critical aviation security programs.
So far, the TSA has not expended any of the funds collected last year, but in previous years it's used funds to pay for checkpoint maintenance, translation and checkpoint signage into different foreign languages, PreCheck, and Adjudication Center system enhancements.
The John F. Kennedy International airport collected the most loose change last year at $72,392.74. Chicago's O'Hare International Airport came in fourth at $49,597.23.
Here are the five airports in which TSA collected the most in FY2018:
1) John F. Kennedy Intl (JFK) $72,392.74
2) Los Angeles Int'l Airport (LAX) $71,748.83
3) Miami Int'l Airport (MIA) $50,504.49
4) O'Hare Int'l Airport (ORD) $49,597.23
5) Newark Int'l Airport (EWR) $41,026.07
