TSA reported that 446 airports currently are responsible for issuing badges to employees for access to secured areas of the airports. As of August 27, 2012, TSA reported that approximately 3.7 million badged employees had access to secured areas within the Nation’s airports. The badge vetting process is initiated when the airport transfers an applicant’s biographical and fingerprint information to a Designated Aviation Channeler (DAC), referred to in our report as a vendor. The vendor ensures that the information is properly formatted and complete before relaying the information to TSA for vetting against Federal criminal and immigration databases. Appendix C provides more details about the Aviation Channeling Services Provider (ACSP) process.