After weeks of delay, the U.S. House voted Thursday to fund much of the Department of Homeland Security and send the bipartisan package to President Donald Trump to sign, ending the longest agency shutdown in U.S. history. The funding will notably pay Transportation Security Administration and other agency airport personnel.
Trump swiftly signed legislation promptly.
The White House had warned that temporary funding Trump had tapped for the TSA would “soon run out,” and that sparked new threats of major airport disruptions.
“DHS will soon run out of critical operating funds, placing essential personnel and operations at risk,” said a memo Tuesday from the Office of Management and Budget. Most of its employees are considered essential and have remained on the job.
More than 1,000 TSA officers have quit since the shutdown began, according to Airlines for America, the U.S. airlines trade group that on Wednesday called on Congress to fully fund the Cabinet department.
“The urgency to provide predictable and stable funding for TSA is growing stronger by the day,” the group said in a statement. “Time and time again, our nation’s aviation workers and customers have been the victim of Congress’ failure to do their jobs.”
Before the temporary funding, which saw many customs officials return to work, airport line-ups in some facilities stretched for up to four hours.
Johnny Jones, the leader of the labor union that represents TSA officers, said last week that the
agency had created a list of about 75 airports that could be closed to free up officers to send to major hubs with long security wait times. He suggested that could mean that flights at decent-sized airports surrounding large hubs could be grounded if the security officers were reassigned. Previously most of the speculation had focused on tiny airports with only a few officers operating a single checkpoint.
Aviation security expert Sheldon Jacobson, whose research contributed to the design of TSA PreCheck, said the financial strains would have continued to pile up for TSA officers going without pay.
With there being a slew of potential economic repercussions from air travel disruptions, Jacobson said the administration was “playing with fire” by threatening such a large contributor to our GDP.”
U.S. Travel welcomed the development, but warned, “Over the past seven months, it has become clear that some in Congress are increasingly willing to use government shutdowns to advance political goals. That approach carries real consequences for our national security and the travelling public.
“Congress must ensure that TSA officers and air traffic controllers are never again treated as political footballs. Lawmakers should act to guarantee that these critical workers are paid during any future shutdown.”
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