TSA Screening Regulations

[katbuad]

I was reading the USA Today for Wed Mar 5th and came across an article about seven Montana airports asking for TSA security checkpoints to be put into their airports.

The below link has only a portion of the printed article

Airports seek millions to screen few - USATODAY.com

My first thought was why would any airport want TSA to setup check points in their airport? The article says that "screeners will help security and draw passengers to the small airports." Draw passangers?? Maybe I am a little jaded but IMO TSA security checkpoints don't draw passengers. Am I mistaken?

The printed article has a statment not in the online article. "Federal regulations require passengers to be screened only if they are boarding planes with more than 61 seats." Anybody ever heard of that before? I never knew that. If that is correct many regional jet passengers aren't required to be screened. Why not divide the passangers at security? If nothing else, it would ease the congestion of security checkpoints. Reduce a lot of TSA cost and passengers' hassel. Of course, airlines and passangers would have to become concerned about last min equipment switches.