Problems at US airports could worsen beyond hours-long security lines and missed flights if Congress does not agree on a way to pay Transportation Security Administration officers. Federal officials have warned that staffing shortages may close some smaller airports to passengers and commercial flights.
Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy and the TSA’s acting leaders said they expected more airport screeners to quit or call out of work after Friday, when TSA personnel were set to miss their second full paychecks since mid-February.
Johnny Jones, the leader of the labor union that represents TSA officers, said Thursday that the agency 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.
Jones suggested that could mean that flights at decent-sized airports surrounding large hubs could be grounded if the security officers are reassigned. Previously most of the speculation had focused on tiny airports with only a few officers operating a single checkpoint.
Jones said he hasn’t seen the list, and the airports on it haven’t been made public.
But President Donald Trump said Thursday that he will sign an emergency order to pay TSA officers as Congress struggles to reach a deal to fund the Department of Homeland Security.
The officers have been required to work without pay since funding for DHS, which the TSA falls under, lapsed on Feb. 14. If Trump succeeds in finding a way to pay them, that may bring an end to the recent extreme security delays at airports.
