U.S. President Donald Trump announced plans to sign an order to pay airport security personnel, as travelers nationwide face record-long lines amid a partial government shutdown.
In a post on social media, Trump said he instructed the Department of Homeland Security “to immediately pay our TSA Agents in order to address this Emergency Situation,” though he did not provide further details.
The announcement comes after hundreds of Transportation Security Administration (TSA) officers resigned since the shutdown began in February, leaving checkpoints understaffed and wait times at historic highs.
Travelers at major hubs, including George Bush Intercontinental Airport, have endured waits exceeding four hours. In some airports, queues have stretched all the way to parking areas. Earlier this week, nearly 40% of security staff at Houston’s airport failed to report for duty, the highest absentee rate in the country.
Acting TSA chief Ha Nguyen McNeill told a congressional oversight committee that these are the longest waits in the agency’s 24-year history. With approximately 50,000 agents nationwide, the partial staffing has strained operations and created chaos for travelers.
The DHS, which oversees the TSA, has remained unfunded since February after Congress failed to pass a budget, triggering the partial federal shutdown. TSA officers are deemed essential workers and must report to duty without pay during shutdowns, with salaries dependent on congressional appropriations linked to DHS funding.
Democrats have refused to approve a funding deal without reforms to the Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), further delaying resolution. In response, ICE agents have been deployed to major airports to assist as lines continue to stretch for hours.
With the order from Trump, the administration aims to provide immediate financial relief to TSA workers and ease mounting disruption for millions of air travelers, though logistics and timing for the payments remain unclear.
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