GOP lawmaker moves to pay TSA agents as shutdown chaos hits US airports
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FIRST ON FOX: A House GOP lawmaker is unveiling new legislation aimed at easing airport chaos affecting travelers across the country during the ongoing partial government shutdown.
Rep. Nick Langworthy, R-Y., introduced a bill Monday that would ensure Transportation Security Administration (TSA) employees are paid during closures by creating a Transportation Security Trust Fund to assist operations and personnel wherever they are needed.
This amount will be funded by the Aviation Passenger Security Fee, also called the 9/11 passenger security fee following the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks. This is a small cost ($5.60 for a one-way trip and up to $11.20 for a roundtrip) collected by airlines for flights originating from the United States and intended to address passenger safety.
Langworthy’s offer comes just days after TSA agents went without their first paychecks due to a nearly month-long shutdown with no end in sight.
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TSA agents scan luggage at Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport in Arlington, Virginia. (Valerie Plesch/Getty Images)
Although they are entitled to back pay once the shutdown ends, the lack of a consistent paycheck and uncertainty about its duration has forced many TSA officers to call in sick and seek other ways to generate income to pay bills and feed their families.
Travelers to places like Louisiana and Texas have been asked to arrive hours early for flights to accommodate longer wait times for safety reasons.
Delays were exacerbated by bad weather in some parts of the country, including up and down the East Coast.
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Rep. Nick Langworthy, R-Y., during a news conference at the U.S. Capitol in Washington, Oct. 30, 2025. (Eric Lee/Bloomberg via Getty Images)
“This is the third incident in just six months where TSA agents have been forced to work without pay,” Langworthy told Fox News Digital. “Morale and recruiting are taking a deep hit, and we’ve already lost more than 300 agents, putting the agency’s mission at serious risk.”
He said his bill “will help ensure that our hard-working representatives are paid and that we maintain the vigilant, professional workforce needed to protect the traveling public.”
“Doing nothing is a national security crisis waiting to happen,” Langworthy warned.
Democrats withdrew from bipartisan funding negotiations earlier this year after Congress passed federal budgets for all aspects of the federal government except the Department of Homeland Security (DHS).
Democratic leaders are turning down multiple compromise offers for guardrails from the White House, protesting the Trump administration’s handling of illegal immigration and its lack of support for any spending bills that would fund Trump’s crackdown.
DHS oversees a wide range of federal agencies, including TSA, Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), U.S. Secret Service, and others.
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House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (DY) announced Monday that Democrats will seek a vote on funding for all of DHS except immigration-related agencies; This is probably a non-starter for Republicans.
This has taken on new meaning as more and more TSA agents are forced to choose between working for free or finding a second job to make ends meet. The US and Israel’s operation against Iran further increased concerns; This operation increased the level of national security threat within the country.
