Travelers left more than $675,000 in loose change at Transportation Security Administration airport checkpoints last year.
Where did passengers leave the most money?
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About $41,500 in loose change was discarded and never picked up by travelers at Los Angeles International Airport in fiscal year 2014, an amount second only to the $42,550 left behind at New York's John F. Kennedy Airport. TSA agents at San Francisco turned over $34,889 in unclaimed changed, third on the list.
The agency makes "every effort" to return the money, usually removed from pockets and placed in containers at checkpoints before passengers pass through screening areas, according to the TSA. But money that goes unclaimed is turned into the TSA financial office.
The money is deposited into a special fund account and used for security operations in accordance with a 2005 law passed by Congress.
The $675,000 left at checkpoints in fiscal year 2014 is a nearly $37,000 increase over 2013. The figure is a significant increase over 2008, when $383,400 went unclaimed.
