Long airport lines are the tip of the iceberg of DHS shutdown, officials tell Congress

World Cup security, cyber safety, disaster relief and Coast Guard operations are at risk as shutdown drags on, DHS leaders testify in House Homeland Security committee hearing on Wednesday

The partial government shutdown is reaching far beyond long lines at airport security and flight cancellations, top Homeland Security officials told a House committee Wednesday.

The protracted partial shutdown of the Department of Homeland Security means new Transportation and Security Administration workers won’t be trained in time to accommodate the surge of fans traveling throughout the country for the upcoming FIFA World Cup, disaster relief funds are dwindling, and some cybersecurity intelligence isn’t being properly shared, the officials told the House Homeland Security Committee.

“We are anticipating a significant influx in passenger volume as fans travel through airports to see the games,” said Ha Nguyen McNeill, a senior official acting as TSA administrator. “Even if TSA were to hire new officers upon conclusion of the DHS shutdown, those officers would not be able to work on the checkpoint until well after the World Cup has concluded.”

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Officials from the Coast Guard, the DHS Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency, and the Federal Emergency Management Agency testified about the harsh economic consequences befalling their employees going unpaid. Many are missing rent payments, can’t support their families and are accumulating expenses that won’t be reimbursed.