H.R. 5109 — To require the Administrator of the Transportation Security Administration of the United States to develop guidelines to improve returning citizens' access to the Transportation Worker Identification Credential program, to assist individuals in custody of Federal, State, and local prisons in pre-applying or preparing applications for Transportation Worker Identification Credential cards, and to assist individuals requesting an appeal or waiver of preliminary determination of ineligibility, and for other purposes.

This section states 22 congressional findings on the Maritime Transportation Security Act of 2002 (MTSA); the Transportation Worker Identification Credential (TWIC) program administered jointly by the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) and Coast Guard, which issues cards valid for five years to approximately 2.3 million workers accessing secure maritime areas; prison releases and supervision (e.g., over 13,000 annual releases and 44,000 supervised in Louisiana); port-related employment (e.g., 525,000 jobs in Louisiana ports, 260,000 in oil and gas); national port economic impacts (e.g., job growth from 23.1 million to 30.8 million during 2014-2018); security assessments of low terrorism risk for most with criminal histories; current restrictions barring pre-release TWIC applications; waiver processes taking up to 90 days with 98% approval rates; and employment benefits of pre-release applications to reduce recidivism.

This section directs the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) Administrator to develop guidelines to improve returning citizens' access to the Transportation Worker Identification Credential (TWIC) program (i.e., biometric credentials required for unescorted access to secure areas regulated by the Maritime Transportation Security Act of 2002 and certain other transportation facilities). Specifically, within one year of enactment, TSA must issue guidelines (1) to assist individuals in federal, state, or local custody with pre-applying or preparing TWIC applications and (2) to assist individuals requesting appeals or waivers of preliminary ineligibility determinations. The section further requires TSA to brief Congress on such improvements within one year of enactment and directs the House Clerk to transmit the Act to specified Senate and House committees, the Secretary of Homeland Security, the TSA Administrator, and congressional presiding officers.