Complaints that new uniforms are causing rashes and other irritations for Transportation Security Administration officers who screen passengers at airports have triggered an inquiry by the House Committee on Homeland Security.

In a letter to TSA Administrator Kip Hawley, the committee chairman, Rep. Bennie Thompson (D-Miss.) called the complaints "very troublesome" and requested that the agency fully investigate the issue and report back with proposed solutions to any problems found.

According to unions representing federal workers, hundreds of transportation security officers, or TSOs, have complained about the uniforms, most reporting skin rashes but others complaining of runny or bloody noses, lightheadedness, red eyes and swollen and cracked lips.

The TSA says the problem is not widespread and that fewer than 60 of the 45,000 employees issued the uniforms have requested alternative, all-cotton versions. "Although the numbers are very small, we are taking the issue very seriously," Christopher White, a TSA spokesman, said Wednesday.

The new, blue uniforms were introduced last year in an effort to give TSOs a more professional look than the white uniforms they replaced. Thompson noted in his letter that employees have given the new uniforms good reviews from the standpoint of appearance and ease of care, but that the TSA must ensure the uniforms are not causing health problems.

"To do anything less is troubling and must be remedied," Thompson wrote. "Therefore, I am writing to request that you fully examine and report on the physical reactions by TSOs to the new uniforms and your plans for resolving problems revealed in this examination in a timely, fair and effective manner."

"There is a potentially serious issue here for TSOs, and it is important to gather as much detailed information as we can about the possible impact, the production of the uniforms and other relevant matters," National Treasury Employees Union President Colleen M. Kelley said in a statement Wednesday.

The TSA and the manufacturer of the uniforms, VF Solutions of Nashville, dispute the unions' claims that formaldehyde is responsible for the rashes. Formaldehdye is a chemical byproduct of the permanent-press finish applied by clothing manufacturers to prevent mildew and stains. Tests conducted by an independent laboratory showed negligible amounts of the chemical in the TSA uniforms.

In his letter to Hawley, Thompson requested that the TSA provide more data about the test results as well as its efforts to conduct an independent government assessment of the results.

Thompson also asked why TSA has encouraged affected employees to file workers' compensation claims rather than allowing them to use administrative leave or other internal remedies.

Kelley said employees should be allowed to use administrative leave for medical appointments and treatment related to the uniforms. "For those who are affected, this is, of course, an issue not of their own making, so the responsibility for seeing that all necessary and proper steps are taken is fully in the hands of the agency," she said.

In a press released, the NTEU noted that employee morale "remains distressingly low" at TSA and that the agency has one of the highest turnover rates in government.

The complaints regarding skin irritations follow concerns that metal badges issued with the new uniforms were triggering the metal detectors at airports, something the embroidered versions on the old uniforms did not do. "It's been one thing after another," said a congressional staffer. "It was kind of silly - you're supposed to know that metal triggers metal detectors."

White said the TSA knew this. "A metal badge is going to set off a metal detector, he said. "You don't have to be an expert to know that."

The TSA has adjusted its procedures in response, White said. "We've had no operational problems since going to the new procedures," he added.