Democrats reduced the chances that the U.S. government would shut down this weekend when Senate Minority Leader Charles Schumer said in a floor speech on Thursday that he planned to support a Republican funding bill.
If Congress and President Trump pass a spending bill to fund the government, they would avoid having large parts of the U.S. government stop operating at 12:01 am Saturday.
Here’s what’s at risk for travel.
Why Does This Matter for Travel?
Unless Congress allocates funding to hundreds of government agencies and departments, thousands of federal workers would be furloughed.
There would be an exception for federal employees deemed as “essential,” who would still have to work through a government shutdown.
Much of government work related to the travel sector falls into that “essential” category, such as airport security agents, customs officials, and air traffic controllers.
However, if a shutdown continues, the travel sector could face issues. For example, during the partial, 34-day government shutdown between late 2018 and early 2019 — the longest ever — the travel industry faced issues including garbage overflowing at national parks, long security lines at airports, and flight delays.
Here’s how federal shutdowns typically affect specific parts of the travel industry.
Air Traffic Controllers and TSA Agents
It’s likely that travelers won’t notice the impacts of a shutdown immediately because TSA agents and air traffic controllers are considered essential employees and would be required to work.
However, the longer the shutdown goes on, the higher the risk of disruptions due to absenteeism. One issue is that though they’re deemed essential and working, they won’t receive their pay until after the shutdown ends.
A month into a government shutdown at the beginning of 2019, air traffic controllers started calling in sick, leading to a temporary shutdown of LaGuardia Airport, coupled with delays at Newark, Philadelphia and Atlanta, according to CNN.
Absences among TSA agents also rose during that shutdown, since they were working without pay and started facing financial difficulties, as CNBC reported.
Those disruptions ultimately led to the end of that government shutdown.
But this time around, it has been reported that morale is low at the FAA as the agency is dealing with multiple plane crashes, staff cuts and an air traffic controller shortage. The shortage has recently received more attention since a fatal collision near Washington, D.C. took place in January, the deadliest plane crash in recent U.S. history.
Industry trade groups have been lobbying Congress for more funding to hire air traffic controllers and modernize their equipment. These groups also want Congress to exempt the FAA from government shutdowns.
Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy recently announced a hiring surge for air traffic controllers. However, a government shutdown could disrupt training and hiring efforts.
TSA agents are also currently reeling from the Department of Homeland Security ending their collective bargaining agreement. The DHS said the agreement allowed poor performers to stay on the job, hindering the agency’s ability “to safeguard our transportation systems and keep Americans safe,” according to a report from the Associated Press. The union that represents TSA workers called the move an “unprovoked attack.”
National Parks, Monuments and Museums
The National Parks Conservation Association reported that about a third of U.S. national parks closed completely during the last shutdown.
However, several stayed open. Many of those locations faced trouble coping with garbage removal, while a majority of staff — more than 21,000, according to CNN — were furloughed.
Speaking to Skift, the NPCA’s senior vice president of government affairs, Kristen Brengel, said parks operated “with only skeleton crews” during the last shutdown and “watched helplessly as Joshua Trees were cut down, park buildings were vandalized, prehistoric petroglyphs were damaged, trash piled up and human waste overflowed.”
Visitor safety at parks across the country was also “put at risk,” she said.
“We can’t allow history to repeat itself. National parks have the highest conservation protection, and that doesn’t change with a government shutdown.”
“If Congress is unable to do its job and fund our government, the National Park Service must do what’s necessary to protect our most treasured places,” Brengel said.
During the last shutdown, The Smithsonian Institution museums and the National Zoo, which are partially funded by the U.S. government, remained open and staffed for 11 days, using funds from the previous year. But then, employees were furloughed for 27 days.
Passport and Processing Visas
Passport processing generally continues during a government shutdown — pending availability of funds — but there may be some exceptions.
“Consular operations domestically and abroad will remain operational as long as there are sufficient fees to support operations,” the State Department’s contingency plan from March 2022 states.
“However, if a passport agency is located in a government building affected by a lapse in appropriations, the facility may become unsupported.”
U.S. embassies and consulates in other countries would remain open during a shutdown, according to that plan. They would continue to process scheduled passport and visa services.
Passport processing times are already much longer than they were before the pandemic, with routine services now taking 10 to 13 weeks.
Customs and Border Protection Agents
The majority of Customs and Border Protection agents are considered “essential” workers and would have to continue coming to work in light of a shutdown.
Like TSA security officers and air traffic control workers, these employees would forgo their regular paychecks during the shutdown and would continue to work at airports, cruise ports, and border crossings.
As noted above, absenteesism might become a problem during a prolonged shutdown.
Amtrak
Amtrak receives government subsidies but is run as a business through its status as a federally chartered corporation. So, it was spared during the last shutdown in 2019, Business Insider reported. Amtrak is not expected to be immediately affected by a government shutdown.
Why Would the Government Shut Down?
To prevent a shutdown, both the House and Senate need to pass a measure extending funding, which would then go to President Donald Trump for his signature.
The Republican-led House narrowly passed a bill to fund the government for six months on Tuesday. However, that bill needs 60 votes in the Senate, and it’s unclear if the Senate has enough votes to pass the bill.
