TSA Officers Finally Get Paid Amid Ongoing Homeland Security Shutdown

Most airport screeners receive back wages after 45-day partial government closure

Mar. 31, 2026 at 5:37am

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Most Transportation Security Administration officers received a paycheck on Monday covering four weeks of back wages that were held up by the funding lapse at the Department of Homeland Security during the ongoing partial government shutdown. The lack of pay had produced long wait lines at some of the nation's busiest airports as TSA officers quit or called out sick, but President Trump ordered the department to reprogram funds to compensate the essential workers.

Why it matters

The partial government shutdown of the Department of Homeland Security is now the longest in history, exceeding last year's 43-day record. The inability of Congress to reach a consensus on funding has caused major disruptions at airports nationwide as TSA officers, who are required by law to remain on the job even without pay, have quit or missed shifts in large numbers.

The details

The House and Senate passed competing measures on Friday to end the shutdown, but because the chambers diverged on how to fund the department, it remains shuttered. The shutdown began on February 14 after Democrats said they would only support a funding bill if it contained changes to how the Trump administration carried out immigration enforcement. Senators last week reached a deal to fund the department except for its immigration enforcement agencies, which received a massive influx from Republicans' spending and tax cuts law last year.

  • The 45-day partial government shutdown of DHS remains ongoing.
  • The shutdown began on February 14.
  • Most TSA employees received a retroactive paycheck on Monday that included at least two full paychecks.

The players

Donald Trump

The President of the United States who ordered the Department of Homeland Security and the White House Office of Management and Budget to reprogram funds to compensate the unpaid TSA officers.

Karoline Leavitt

The White House press secretary who urged Congress to pass full funding for the Department of Homeland Security.

Lauren Bis

A spokesperson for the Department of Homeland Security who said that most TSA employees received a retroactive paycheck on Monday.

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What they’re saying

“The president just can't keep signing presidential memorandums and proclamations every time Congress fails to do its job and every time Democrats hold our country hostage, picking and choosing the programs and agencies they want to fund just because they don't like this administration's policies. That's not how it's supposed to work.”

— Karoline Leavitt, White House Press Secretary

What’s next

The House and Senate have passed competing measures to end the shutdown, but because the chambers diverged on how to fund the Department of Homeland Security, it remains shuttered. Lawmakers from both chambers have left for a two-week recess after passing their respective bills, leaving the shutdown unresolved.

The takeaway

The ongoing partial government shutdown of the Department of Homeland Security, now the longest in history, has caused major disruptions at airports nationwide as TSA officers, who are required by law to remain on the job even without pay, have quit or missed shifts in large numbers. While the president has ordered funds to be reprogrammed to compensate the unpaid TSA workers, the inability of Congress to reach a consensus on funding the department has left the shutdown unresolved.