DHS Shutdown Sparks 3-Hour TSA Lines Amid Spring Break Rush to Florida

Travelers faced security checkpoint waits of up to three hours at Houston and New Orleans airports Sunday as a partial government shutdown of the Department of Homeland Security left TSA short-staffed during the peak of spring break travel season.

William P. Hobby Airport in Houston posted a series of escalating warnings on X, ultimately urging travelers to arrive four to five hours before their flights. Standard checkpoint wait times there reached three hours by early Sunday evening, according to the Houston Airports website. Louis Armstrong New Orleans International Airport separately warned that a shortage of TSA agents was producing waits of up to two hours and cautioned that similar delays could persist through the coming week. George Bush Intercontinental Airport in Houston, also part of the Houston Airports system, reported wait times as brief as a few minutes at the same hour.

For Treasure Coast residents flying out of Orlando International or Palm Beach International — both major departure hubs for Martin, St. Lucie and Indian River County travelers — it is unclear whether similar staffing shortfalls have materialized. TSA agents nationwide are working without pay under the shutdown, which began Feb. 14, compounding absenteeism risks at any airport as the spring break rush accelerates.

TSA's funding lapse is part of a broader DHS shutdown that has also suspended the Global Entry program. Democratic lawmakers have conditioned DHS appropriations on new restrictions to federal immigration operations, citing the fatal shootings of Alex Pretti and Renee Good in Minneapolis. Chris Sununu, president and CEO of the airline trade group Airlines for America, called on Congress and the Trump administration to act immediately. "America's transportation security workforce is too important to be used as political leverage," Sununu said in a statement.

Whether the delays reported in Houston and New Orleans were isolated or part of a broader national pattern remained unclear. No congressional vote or deal timeline had been announced as of Sunday afternoon.

This article was generated with AI assistance using publicly available information. It was reviewed and approved by a human editor before publication. TC Sentinel uses AI writing tools in accordance with FTC guidelines.