Nexstar Media Wire News

Why aren’t TSA agents getting paid?

by Michael Bartiromo - 03/16/26 2:08 PM ET

NOW PLAYING

(NEXSTAR) – The U.S. Government is currently facing its second partial shutdown of the 2026 calendar year, albeit one that only affects the Department of Homeland Security.

Agencies under the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) include the Coast Guard, the Secret Service, Customs and Border Protection (CBP), Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and the Transportation Security Administration (TSA), among others. The majority of employees at these agencies will continue to work, but many — and specifically those in the TSA — are working without pay until the shutdown is resolved.

TSA agents missed their first full paycheck Friday, March 13.

During last year’s government shutdown, outgoing DHS Secretary Kristy Noem had indicated that some DHS employees would still be paid with funds from the One Big Beautiful Bill Act. TSA agents at major airports across the country, however, are not among those receiving their biweekly checks, the DHS has repeatedly emphasized in messages posted to X.

Blaming the Democrats for the shutdown is also a common theme among posts from the DHS, a tactic the department used during the shutdown in late 2025. (Similar language also prompted complaints that certain government agencies had violated the Hatch Act by using their websites to place blame for the shutdown on the “Radical Left.”)

A representative for the DHS did not immediately respond to Nexstar’s request for additional information.

Airline passengers wait in long lines to get through the TSA security screening at William P. Hobby Airport in Houston, Sunday, March 8, 2026. (Brett Coomer/Houston Chronicle via AP)

The partial government shutdown began on Feb. 14, after congressional Democrats and President Trump failed to reach a deal on legislation to fund the DHS through September. Democrats in Congress refused to fund the department over objections to its immigration enforcement tactics, and say they will hold their votes until new restrictions are placed on federal immigration operations following the fatal shootings of Alex Pretti and Renee Good in Minneapolis earlier this year.

Democrats are seeking several changes to DHS policies, including prohibiting ICE enforcement operations at sensitive locations like schools and churches, allowing independent investigations into alleged wrongdoing, requiring warrants to be signed by judges before federal agents can forcibly enter private homes or other nonpublic spaces without consent, and requiring agents to wear identification and remove their masks.

As the shutdown drags on, passengers at airports across the U.S. have experienced longer wait times at security checkpoints. DHS has also claimed that more than 300 agents have quit since the start of the shutdown on Feb. 14.

Several airline CEOs, including those from America, Delta, JetBlue, Southwest and United, have since called on Congress to restore funding to DHS through a bipartisan solution.

“This problem is solvable, and there are solutions on the table,” reads a letter posted to the Airlines 4 American website. “Now it’s up to you, Congress, to move forward on bipartisan proposals that will get federal aviation workers — including TSA officers, U.S. Customs clearance officers at airports and air traffic controllers — paid during shutdowns.”

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

Add as preferred source on Google