About 1,110 officers with the Transportation Security Administration have quit in the past two months as the Department of Homeland Security remains without congressionally appropriated funding.
As of April 20, the DHS reported that 830 TSA officers had quit due to the lapse in funding, according to Politico. In the last eight days, another 300 handed in their notices.
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The latest figure is roughly the same number of TSA employees who departed the agency during the historic 43-day government shutdown last fall.
With the current shutdown, airport security is especially taking a toll and could have a serious impact on air travel as the nation hosts the FIFA World Cup and the semiquincentennial this summer.
Last month, President Donald Trump signed an executive order to pay TSA employees until a funding deal comes to fruition. However, the money could run dry if the shutdown lasts much longer.
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DHS, which oversees TSA, has been stuck in a partial government shutdown since mid-February. Republicans blame Democrats for the shutdown, but the GOP is currently experiencing infighting as the party can’t come to an agreement on funding the department.
As part of a two-part plan to reopen the DHS, the Senate passed a bill to fund the non-immigration agencies first before allocating funds toward Immigration and Customs Enforcement and Customs and Border Protection through reconciliation. The plan is backed by Trump, but not all Republicans are sold on the idea.
In the House, Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA) said the Senate bill contains “some problematic language” regarding the two-part funding approach and opted instead to proceed with hammering out a modified version of the bill. As a result, there will be a delay in reopening most of DHS.
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Congressional Republicans are working against Trump’s June 1 deadline to fund all of the DHS, including ICE and CBP.
Republicans reiterated their calls for DHS funding after Saturday evening’s attempted assassination of Trump at the White House Correspondents’ dinner at the Washington Hilton. Following the shooting, Democrats are still refusing to drop their demands for immigration reform.
