Latest Status
As of Mar. 28, the central question is not whether airport security is feeling the shutdown, but whether Congress can reopen most of DHS without resolving the ICE and Border Patrol fight.
Live Count
The DHS Shutdown Has Lasted
-- days, -- hours, -- minutes, -- seconds
Last updated Mar. 28, 2026. Congress is still deadlocked, and TSA remains the most visible pressure point at US airports.
Status Updates
Rolling updates on the Department of Homeland Security funding lapse, with a focus on TSA staffing, airport wait times, and the latest Capitol Hill moves.
- Shutdown remains unresolved entering day 43. The Senate moved to fund most of DHS except ICE and Border Patrol, while the House instead backed a separate short-term stopgap.
- President Trump orders DHS to start paying TSA officers using other available funds after another missed paycheck loomed, but lawmakers still had not reached a full deal.
- Reuters, AP, and NPR report nearly 500 TSA officers have quit since the Feb. 14 lapse began; nationwide callouts rose above 11%, with several large airports above 30%.
- Acting TSA Administrator Ha Nguyen McNeill tells Congress that roughly 95% of TSA’s workforce is still screening passengers without pay and delayed payroll is nearing $1 billion.
- The DHS funding lapse begins at 12:01 a.m. ET after Congress fails to pass a new homeland security package.
Resources
TSA Watch
TSA says it is still screening about 3 million passengers on peak days, but staffing losses and elevated callouts are stretching checkpoints well beyond normal capacity.
Worker Strain
Congressional testimony describes officers missing rent, childcare, and loan payments, sleeping in cars, selling plasma, and taking extra jobs to stay afloat.
Travel Outlook
Spring-break traffic and summer planning pressure are colliding with a thin workforce, making long lines and delayed screening the clearest public sign of the standoff.
Shutdown Data Brief
The latest reporting shows a partial DHS shutdown that is increasingly defined by TSA disruption: unpaid workers, heavy attrition, long checkpoint lines, and a still-fractured funding strategy in Congress.
Current Status
Start: Feb. 14, 2026 at 12:01 a.m. ET.
Scope: Partial shutdown centered on the Department of Homeland Security.
Duration: Tracking… since the lapse began.
Latest status: the Senate has backed reopening most DHS except ICE and Border Patrol, but the House pursued a different stopgap and the broader standoff is still unresolved.
TSA Workforce
- About 95% of TSA employees, more than 61,000 people, are considered essential and have remained on duty.
- TSA told Congress it had worked 87 days without timely pay in fiscal 2026, with delayed payroll approaching $1 billion by Mar. 27.
- Since the Feb. shutdown began, roughly 460 to 500 TSA officers have quit, worsening staffing gaps at checkpoints.
Source base: TSA testimony, Reuters, AP, NPR reporting from Mar. 25 to Mar. 27.
Airport Impact
- Nationwide TSA callouts climbed above 11%, with several major airports reporting rates above 30% and in some cases above 40%.
- TSA has warned that wait times have exceeded four and a half hours at some airports during the spring-break surge.
- The agency has warned smaller airports could face operational shutdowns if staffing strains get worse.
Reuters and TSA testimony describe the current disruption as the most visible operational consequence of the DHS lapse.
Political Standoff
- Democrats want tighter rules on ICE and CBP operations before they agree to restore full DHS funding.
- Republicans want immigration enforcement fully funded and have resisted separating that fight from TSA and other homeland security functions.
- Trump has ordered DHS to pay TSA officers for now, but that move does not by itself end the shutdown or settle the budget fight.
This page reflects reporting available through Mar. 28, 2026 from TSA, Reuters, AP, and NPR.