A partial government shutdown affecting the Department of Homeland Security took effect at midnight Saturday, forcing Transportation Security Administration officers to keep screening passengers and baggage at airports across the country without receiving their paychecks.
Under the department’s contingency plan, about 95% of TSA workers are deemed essential and must remain on duty during the funding lapse, which resulted from lawmakers’ inability to agree on DHS’s annual funding before the deadline.
The lapse comes amid heightened tensions over immigration enforcement. Democrats are advocating for new restrictions on Immigration and Customs Enforcement operations, while Republicans favor a straightforward funding bill.
This shutdown, unlike the two previous ones—including a record 43-day stoppage last year— only affects DHS, limiting its broader reach. Still, air travel has felt the strain, with TSA employees, part of DHS, now working unpaid since early Saturday.
The contingency plan, released in September before last fall’s extended shutdown that caused nationwide air travel delays from employee callouts, specifies that just over 95% of TSA staff are exempt from furlough. That leaves an estimated 2,933 out of 64,130 workers furloughed.
Air traffic controllers, unlike TSA officers, continue to receive pay because they operate under the Federal Aviation Administration within the Department of Transportation, not DHS. But acting TSA administrator Ha Nguyen McNeill cautioned last week that the funding gap would nonetheless disrupt air travel.
“Many [TSA officers] work paycheck to paycheck trying to support themselves and their families,” McNeill told the House Appropriations Subcommittee on Homeland Security, The Hill reported. “During a shutdown, the ability to pay for rent, bills, groceries, child care, and gas just to get to work becomes very challenging, leading to increased unscheduled absences as a shutdown progresses.
“Higher callouts can result in longer wait times at checkpoints, leading to missed or delayed flights, which has a cascading negative impact on the American economy.”
FlightAware data showed more than 5,100 flights within, into, or out of the U.S. were delayed on Saturday, with nearly 460 canceled. By Sunday, nearly 4,700 flights faced delays, and over 240 were canceled. These figures do not distinguish between TSA-related delays and delays from other causes, such as weather or maintenance.
On Friday, before the lapse, more than 5,500 flights were delayed, and over 120 were canceled.
Three industry organizations — U.S. Travel, Airlines for America, and the American Hotel Association — issued a joint statement on Friday highlighting potential fallout, recalling last fall’s shutdown that inflicted $6 billion in economic damage and affected travel for more than 6 million people.
“Funding uncertainties create lasting damage to the entire travel ecosystem, especially the airlines, hotels, and thousands of small businesses the travel industry supports,” they wrote, per The Hill. “It also stifles recruitment, retention, preparedness and modernization efforts.”
TSA officials this week flagged disruptions to nonurgent activities, such as hiring and tech upgrades. Chief of staff Adam Stahl noted on Thursday that the shutdown would “suspend non-essential services” for the agency.
McNeill reported on Wednesday that about 1,110 officers departed TSA in October and November, a rise of more than 25% from the prior year. She emphasized that a “shutdown and funding uncertainties have real and measurable impacts on recruitment, retention, and employee morale.”
