TSA Leadership: Administrator, Acting Leadership and Executive Structure
TSA leadership can change before older biographies, news articles and archived calendars are updated. That is why a page about the agency’s leadership needs to separate three different things: the person currently exercising the Administrator’s authority, a presidential nominee awaiting Senate action and a Senate-confirmed Administrator serving a statutory term.
Current Leadership Status
As of July 25, 2026, David Cummins has been nominated to become Administrator of the Transportation Security Administration but has not yet been confirmed by the full Senate.
The White House sent his nomination to the Senate on May 11, 2026. Senate committees held nomination hearings, and the nomination was placed on the Senate Executive Calendar on July 22, 2026. Placement on that calendar means the nomination is eligible for further Senate consideration; it does not mean the nominee has already taken office.
Until a nominee is confirmed, sworn in and formally assumes the office, TSA continues to operate under acting leadership and delegated authority. Public reporting has identified Ha Nguyen McNeill as the Acting Administrator during this transition. Because acting assignments can change without the five-year term associated with a confirmed Administrator, readers should verify the current leadership directly through TSA, DHS and Senate sources whenever the identity matters.
Do not confuse nomination with confirmation.
A nominee does not become TSA Administrator merely because the President announced the selection, a committee held a hearing or the nomination reached the Senate calendar.
How the TSA Administrator Is Appointed
Federal law establishes the Administrator as the head of TSA. Under 49 U.S.C. § 114, the Administrator:
- is appointed by the President;
- requires the advice and consent of the Senate;
- must be a U.S. citizen;
- must have experience directly related to transportation or security; and
- serves a five-year term once confirmed and appointed.
A five-year term does not guarantee that every Administrator remains for all five years. A resignation, removal, transition or vacancy can result in acting leadership before the next confirmed Administrator takes office.
What the Administrator Is Responsible For
The Administrator leads an agency of more than 60,000 employees responsible for protecting U.S. transportation systems. The role is broader than airport checkpoint management.
At the agency level, the Administrator sets direction and oversees work involving:
- passenger and baggage screening;
- aviation, surface, cargo and pipeline security programs;
- Law Enforcement/Federal Air Marshal Service operations;
- intelligence and threat assessment;
- workforce policy, training and technology;
- security regulations and directives;
- coordination with DHS, other federal agencies, state and local partners, transportation operators and foreign governments; and
- allocation of personnel, funding and operational priorities.
The Administrator also represents TSA before Congress, the Department of Homeland Security, transportation stakeholders and the public. Day-to-day decisions are distributed across deputy administrators, executive assistant administrators, assistant administrators, Federal Security Directors and other executives.
What Acting Leadership Means
An Acting Administrator exercises the authorities assigned to the agency head during a vacancy or transition. Acting service is not the same as Senate confirmation to a new five-year term.
The distinction matters because:
- an acting official can begin serving without completing a new Senate confirmation for the Administrator position;
- the acting assignment can change during a transition;
- a nominee may remain outside the agency or in another role while the Senate considers the nomination; and
- archived TSA pages can use titles that were accurate on publication but no longer reflect the present structure.
For time-sensitive research, check the date on every biography, press release, hearing notice and executive calendar entry.
TSA’s Executive Structure
The Administrator and Deputy Administrator sit above a larger Transportation Security Executive Service structure. TSA’s public executive-career materials identify leadership roles including:
- Executive Assistant Administrator;
- Deputy Executive Assistant Administrator;
- Assistant Administrator;
- Deputy Assistant Administrator;
- Executive Director;
- Chief Counsel and Deputy Chief Counsel;
- Federal Security Director and Deputy Federal Security Director;
- Supervisory Air Marshal in Charge; and
- regional and international security directors.
These titles do not all sit at the same level or report through one identical chain. Airport security, Law Enforcement/Federal Air Marshal Service, Mission Support, international operations and headquarters functions each have their own leadership structures.
Candidates interested in executive work should use the TSA jobs hub and current TSA executive-position guidance rather than assuming that progression from Transportation Security Officer automatically leads to an executive appointment.
Complete TSA Administrator and Acting Administrator Chronology
The chronology below preserves the full succession of confirmed and acting TSA leaders. The status column distinguishes Senate-confirmed leadership from temporary acting service so that short transition periods are not lost or presented as equivalent appointments.
| # | Leader | Period in office | Status |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | John Magaw | January 18, 2002 – July 18, 2002 | Confirmed leader |
| 2 | James Loy | July 19, 2002 – December 7, 2003 | Confirmed leader |
| 3 | David M. Stone | December 8, 2003 – June 3, 2005 | Confirmed Administrator |
| 4 | Kenneth Kasprisin | June 4, 2005 – July 26, 2005 | Acting Administrator |
| 5 | Kip Hawley | July 27, 2005 – January 20, 2009 | Confirmed Administrator |
| 6 | Gale Rossides | January 20, 2009 – June 24, 2010 | Acting Administrator |
| 7 | John S. Pistole | June 25, 2010 – December 31, 2014 | Confirmed Administrator |
| 8 | Melvin J. Carraway | January 1, 2015 – June 1, 2015 | Acting Administrator |
| 9 | Mark Hatfield Jr. | June 1, 2015 – June 4, 2015 | Acting Administrator |
| 10 | Francis X. Taylor | June 4, 2015 – July 3, 2015 | Acting Administrator |
| 11 | Peter V. Neffenger | July 4, 2015 – January 20, 2017 | Confirmed Administrator |
| 12 | Huban A. Gowadia | January 20, 2017 – August 10, 2017 | Acting Administrator |
| 13 | David P. Pekoske | August 10, 2017 – January 20, 2025 | Confirmed Administrator |
| 14 | Melanie Harvey | January 20, 2025 – February 18, 2025 | Acting Administrator |
| 15 | Adam Stahl | February 18, 2025 – April 21, 2025 | Acting Administrator |
| 16 | Ha Nguyen McNeill | April 21, 2025 – present as of July 25, 2026 | Acting Administrator |
The earliest leadership titles reflected TSA’s original placement within the Department of Transportation before the agency moved to the Department of Homeland Security. For that reason, the first entries are described here as confirmed leaders rather than retroactively forcing every early office into exactly the same later title.
Why Older Lists Become Inaccurate
Leadership pages often fail for predictable reasons:
- they label an acting official as permanently confirmed;
- they continue naming a former Administrator after a transition;
- they treat a nominee as already in office;
- they mix Administrator and Deputy Administrator roles;
- they omit short acting periods; or
- they repeat an old employee count without a date or source.
This page therefore uses a visible last-checked date and explains the appointment status instead of presenting “current” as a permanent fact.
Frequently Asked Questions
Who is the current TSA Administrator?
As of July 25, 2026, David Cummins is the pending nominee, not a confirmed Administrator. TSA remains under acting leadership while the nomination awaits further Senate action.
Is David Cummins already the TSA Administrator?
No. His nomination was placed on the Senate Executive Calendar on July 22, 2026, but he had not been confirmed by the full Senate as of this page’s last check.
How long is a TSA Administrator’s term?
Federal law provides a five-year term for a confirmed Administrator.
Does the Administrator run individual airport checkpoints?
The Administrator leads the agency nationally. Federal Security Directors and local leadership manage airport operations within the broader TSA structure.
Is the TSA Administrator the same as the DHS Secretary?
No. TSA is an administration within the Department of Homeland Security. The TSA Administrator leads TSA and reports within the DHS structure.
Can a Transportation Security Officer become TSA Administrator?
There is no automatic promotion path. The Administrator is a presidentially appointed, Senate-confirmed position requiring senior transportation or security experience.
Next steps in your TSA search
Compare Security careers, Mission Support careers and law-enforcement careers. TSO candidates should read the TSA test-prep hub and optional JobTestPrep TSA PrepPack.