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Airport Lines Worsen as TSA Agents Miss First Full Paycheck
Partial Government Shutdown Enters Fourth Week
Airports in the U.S. are reporting longer-than-normal wait times in security lines, as Transportation Security Administration agents are poised to miss their first full paycheck this week.
Airports, including Louis Armstrong New Orleans International Airport, those serving Houston and Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport, have warned travelers that they should expect longer lines and to arrive early for their flights, as a partial government shutdown impacting the Department of Homeland Security enters its fourth week.
William P. Hobby Airport in Houston experienced the highest wait times on March 8, at times surpassing three hours. In Atlanta, peak wait times reached an hour.
Historically, government shutdowns have coincided with larger numbers of employees taking sick days as they work without pay.
TSA is part of DHS, so the current funding lapse affects airport security screeners.
Some passengers took to social media March 8 to complain that it was taking them hours to get through security lines.
Security at Houston Hobby! I've never seen anything like this. 1.5 hour wait to check bags, 4-5 hours for regular security. We missed our flight after waiting in Clear line for 2 hours, pre-check wasn’t open originally & randomly opened at shift change & we sprinted to that line. pic.twitter.com/sFumU6Qu02 — Kelsey Wingert-Linch (@KelsWingert) March 8, 2026
TSA in posts to social media platform X was quick to blame the delays on Democrats, which have refused to support funding for DHS until reforms are made to immigration enforcement after federal agents killed two Americans in Minneapolis.
HOURS long waits at airports across the country. Security lines all the way in the PARKING LOTS.
This chaos is a direct result of Democrats refusal to fund DHS. Their political stunt is forcing patriotic TSA officers to work without pay — leading to financial hardship, absences,… pic.twitter.com/UzGIOVHx2W — Homeland Security (@DHSgov) March 9, 2026
“The shutdown is having very real consequences, and hardworking federal aviation workers, the airline industry and our passengers are being used as a political football once again,” Chris Sununu, president of Airlines for America and former Republican governor of New Hampshire, said in a statement.
Sununu, along with the heads of the U.S. Travel Association and the American Association of Airport Executives, warned last week that the continued lapse in DHS funding could lead to disruptions during the busy spring break travel period.
