Loose change left behind in those bins at TSA checkpoints netted the agency over half a million dollars last year. $531,395.22 was collected in all, according to the TSA's fiscal report. Miami International Airport was the leader in loose change, with $39,000 culled from the bins, but NYC airports contributed their fair share too. Travelers kicked in $21,201 for security theater at JFK last year, while skinflints at LaGuardia dropped $11,189.17 in change.

The half-million chunk of change is the most ever taken in by the TSA, which has so many coins it doesn't know what the hell to do with them. The TSA is legally required to reinvest it back into airport security, but the Washington Post reports that it only spent approximately $6,500 of the money it collected last year. That has some lawmakers demanding a re-appropriation of the funds. From the Post:

On Tuesday, the House passed H.R. 1095, sponsored by Rep. Jeff Miller (R-Fla.), which would require the TSA to fork that cash over to nonprofit organizations that provide travel-related assistance to military personnel or their families. But here’s the funny part: Requiring TSA to hand over the unclaimed coins could actually cost the agency more money than it collects. A similar measure Miller introduced in the last Congress, H.R. 2179, would have awarded the money to United Service Organizations, Inc., the nonprofit that runs in-airport lounges for military personnel. The Congressional Budget Office estimated [pdf] that collecting, accounting for and transferring the money to the USO would cost $1.2 million — $700,000 more than the actual amount collected.

But if they just combine the loose change haul with money from the TSA Swear Jar, they'll surely have enough to cover it... or at least throw the safest pizza party in history.