A TSA worker shortage has begun affecting operations at some U.S. airports as the spring break season ramps up.
On Sunday, Houston was ground zero for the problem, with security screening lines peaking at 216 minutes at Hobby Airport and 51 minutes at Bush Intercontinental, according to figures provided by the Department of Homeland Security (DHS).
Hobby once again had very long lines on Monday, according to its website, with a peak wait time of 180 minutes for standard clearance. PreCheck lines, however, were less than 10 minutes.
Houston Airports, which runs Hobby and Bush Intercontinental, is encouraging Hobby flyers to arrive four hours before their flight.
Other airports that had peak wait times of over 45 minutes on Sunday were New Orleans, where waits were as long as 77 minutes, Atlanta and Charlotte.
The delays are happening while the DHS shutdown moves into a fourth week. The White House and Republicans in Congress remain at loggerheads with Democrats over Democrat demands for new restrictions on Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents. TSA agents received partial payment in late February but won't get paid again until the shutdown ends.
The American Federation of Government Employees, which represents 44,000 TSA agents nationwide, didn't immediately respond to a request for comment Monday. On Sunday, the organization's secretary treasurer, Johnny Jones, said staffing shortages aren't a coordinated labor effort.
"Officers are having to make decisions on paying their bills," Jones told the New York Times.
Travel industry lobbying groups have warned of the impact the shutdown would have on spring break travel. On Sunday, Airlines for America CEO Chris Sununu reissued his call for a political solution in Washington.
"The shutdown is having very real consequences, and hardworking federal aviation workers, the airline industry and our passengers are being used as a political football once again. This is simply unacceptable and un-American," Sununu said. "We are in spring break travel season and expecting record numbers of people to take to the skies. Airlines have done their part to prepare; now Congress and the administration must act with urgency to reach a deal that reopens DHS and ends this shutdown."
The DHS isn't sounding conciliatory.
"Democrats are shamelessly playing politics with national security, punishing hardworking TSA workers and their families," deputy assistant secretary for public affairs Lauren Bis said in a prepared remark. "Enough is enough: stop holding national security and everyday Americans hostage. Democrats must fund DHS now."