Department of Homeland Security reverses shutdown-induced pause on TSA PreCheck

The Department of Homeland Security has retracted its statement on pausing TSA PreCheck as the partial government shutdown enters another week.

DHS alarmed many frequent flyers and Democratic lawmakers with its earlier claim that TSA PreCheck would come to a halt. With TSA agents forced to work without pay, the department said security lines, which provide registered fliers a faster route through the airport, would take a hit.

However, NPR reports that it was news recently withdrawn as DHS has issued an update. Instead, they noted that TSA PreCheck would remain operational but could undergo adjustments as the shutdown continues.

“If staffing limitations arise, TSA will assess this on a case-by-case basis and adjust operations accordingly,” the agency said.

With the official start of the shutdown on February 14, all agencies under DHS took a hit as their budgets for the year were not approved. However, one agency in particular is the main point of contention among lawmakers: U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement.

Given the way DHS is handling and rolling out ICE raids and agents in U.S. cities, Democratic lawmakers have declined to allocate more money to the agency while also pushing for certain demands. This includes increased accountability of ICE agents, as well as their public identification, especially in the wake of the deaths of two U.S. citizens at ICE demonstrations.

As lawmakers on both sides of the aisle continued to debate, air travelers may begin to see the issue impact their airport experience. An expanded option of TSA PreCheck and Global Entry also faced restrictions during the federal pause. However, DHS did not announce whether Global Entry, which helps travelers travel to and from international trips, would also continue to face closures.

Before clarifying the fate of TSA PreCheck, DHS noted that “emergency actions” would take place as the vital agency remains open despite the funding problem. These measures initially included ‘terminating’ these security lines to ensure that checkpoints remained functional for the majority of travelers.

Backlash over the issue, which would have significantly hampered programs that would have significantly reduced waits at security checkpoints, appeared to have prompted DHS to make an about-face.

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