TSA Pay Update: Relief Arrives Today, But Shutdown Standoff Continues

It has now been 44 days since America’s TSA officers have worked with pay.

While there was hope for a deal to fund most parts of the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) late last week, those hopes were squashed Friday night. Following an overnight session where the Senate passed a version of funding, the House of Representatives rejected the deal and instead sent its own 60-day stopgap measure back to the Senate.

With the Senate now in a two-week recess, any path for a legislative deal is effectively closed until mid-April. However, for the travel industry, there is some relief on the horizon.

Border Czar Tom Homan told the morning shows on Sunday that the administration expects TSA officers to receive paychecks as early as today, Monday, or Tuesday. This follows the President’s Friday signing of a memorandum that authorizes the use of existing funds to pay more than 60,000 TSA employees despite the ongoing budget impasse.

Even with the promise of pay, TSA callouts remain high, exceeding 10% nationwide. Staffing levels are particularly strained at Houston’s two airports, George Bush Intercontinental (IAH) and William P. Hobby (HOU), where callouts are over 30%, along with Baltimore/Washington International Thurgood Marshall (BWI), John F. Kennedy International (JFK) in New York, and Atlanta’s Hartsfield-Jackson International (ATL). These shortages, combined with the 500 TSA officers who have quit since Feb. 14, have pushed security wait lines to more than 4 hours at some hubs over the past couple of weeks.

The good news for travelers is that, as of 7 a.m. EST on Monday, the only two airports with waits exceeding 30 minutes were George Bush (IAH) and Hartsfield-Jackson (ATL). Other major hubs that have been routinely seeing hour-plus waits over the past couple of weeks—including John F. Kennedy International (JFK), Miami International (MIA), Newark Liberty (EWR), and Dallas/Fort Worth (DFW)—were closer to 15 minutes this morning.

Industry Reaction

On Friday, Airlines for America (A4A) CEO Chris Sununu applauded the news that TSA agents would get paid, but also stressed the need for a more permanent solution, which A4A believes is the Keep America Act, something U.S. Travel Association CEO Geoff Freeman has also called for Congress to pass.

That Act would effectively de-link aviation security from politics, ensuring that TSA officers and air traffic controllers are paid automatically during any future government shutdowns.