A lapse in federal funding for the U.S. Department of Homeland Security is about to hit home for Transportation Security Administration officers at Orlando’s airports, less than a year after braving the longest federal government shutdown in history.
TSA officers at the Orlando Executive Airport and Orlando International Airport, one of the nation’s busiest air hubs due to its proximity to Disney World, process more than 75,000 passengers daily. They’re set to miss their first full paychecks from the federal government later this week as a result of lapsed funding for their federal agency.
As an effort to step up, the Greater Orlando Aviation Authority — which oversees both Orlando airports — is launching a food drive Friday to help collect grocery necessities for officers affected by the funding lapse that began last month who have to continue working, even if they don’t receive pay.
The workers’ labor union, the American Federation of Government Employees Local 5556, is also collecting food and toiletries for TSA officers at MCO and 10 other airports in North and Central Florida.
“It is going to be a struggle, but we have been here, we have survived it, we will do it again,” Tatiana Finlay, the fair practice coordinator for AFGE Local 556, told Spectrum News 13.
The GOAA will be collecting the following items to distribute to officers beginning Friday, March 6 through Monday, March 9 (although additional days may be added):
- Nonperishable food items
- Cleaning and laundry supplies
- Diapers
- Pet supplies
- $10 gift cards for gas or grocery stores
You can drop these items off at Terminal C Departures at MCO from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. or at the Orlando Executive Airport at 465 Rickenbacker Drive from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.
Air traffic controllers, who are paid by the federal government through the Federal Aviation Authority, are not affected by the partial government shutdown and funding lapse.
“We remain committed to the best in traveler safety and security and are working closely with our federal coworkers, who are critical to air travel,” the GOAA said in a statement about the funding lapse and food drive. “During this time, we encourage passengers to use the FlyMCO website or Orlando MCO app to stay up to date on airport operations.”
Why are TSA officers going without pay?
The lapse in funding began on Feb. 14, due to the inability of Congress to determine a federal budget for DHS for the fiscal year that ends Sept. 30. It’s driven over disagreements in Congress over proposed reforms to DHS — the agency that includes U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement — after ICE agents killed U.S. citizens Alex Pretti and Renee Good in Minneapolis in January.
Because of the tens of millions of dollars in funding established for ICE under the Trump administration’s “One Big Beautiful Bill,” sworn law enforcement officers within ICE, Customs and Border Patrol, and the U.S. Secret Service will continue to be paid during the shutdown, while more than 61,000 TSA officers, plus most employees of the U.S. Coast Guard and Federal Emergency Management Agency, are not.
Republicans in Congress have so far refused efforts by Democrats to establish what they describe as “completely reasonable” reforms for DHS. Proposals include barring ICE agents from wearing masks (similar to a proposal in the Florida legislature that’s gone nowhere) and requiring agents to comply with the conventional practice of obtaining a judicial warrant before barging into a person’s home.
The White House provided Democratic leadership with their own counterproposal last Friday, although details of it haven’t been revealed publicly. Republicans have, as of this past weekend, also been leveraging the U.S.-Israel war against Iran in order to break Democrats resolve on DHS funding. Democrats say they’re not falling for it and have refused to back down on their demands.
“I’ve heard Republicans suggest that we should fund ICE because they started an illegal war with Iran — that’s ridiculous,” said Sen. Chris Murphy (D-Conn.), a ranking member of the DHS Appropriations subcommittee. “The American public wants ICE to stop murdering people, and they also don’t want us at war with Iran.”
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