TSA PreCheck and Global Entry Suspended…

Update: DHS reversed course and un-suspended TSA PreCheck

This is wild and makes no sense at all. Due to the partial government shutdown, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) which oversees the Transportation Safety Administration (TSA) announced they have suspended TSA PreCheck and Global Entry effective at 6am on February 22nd. So if you are a member of these programs, get ready to spend more time at the airport going through security and customs.

Security Lanes at CHS International Airport

Department of Homeland Security’s Rationale

During government shutdowns, employees may not be paid which means more will call out sick. DHS is claiming to do this so that the general flying public can There’s no doubt this is true. This happened late last year with the last shutdown.

Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem said in a statement that “shutdowns have serious real world consequences, and TSA and CBP are prioritizing the general traveling population at our airports and ports of entry and suspending courtesy and special privilege escorts.”

Why This Makes No Sense

DHS is blaming the partial shutdown on their decision to suspend these two programs. Some have estimated that roughly 40 million people are enrolled in these Trusted Traveler Programs and around 30% of travelers use these programs each day.

While wait times vary at each airport, there is no denying PreCheck lanes are are much faster than the general lanes. Let’s conservatively estimate that Precheck takes half the time. Why would you want to slow down screening when you have fewer resources?

Global Entry speeds up immigration time way more than PreCheck speeds up security as it is done by a computer vs. a person physically checking your passport etc.

All this is going to do is slow down everything at airports, especially now when there won’t be any staffing issues. If this partial shutdown continues and we do see more agents calling out sick because they aren’t getting paid, wouldn’t you want to get passengers through as quickly as possible?

Wrapping Up

In the dumbest move we’ve seen in a while, Kristi Noem at DHS has suspended TSA PreCheck and Global Entry. This will only slow things down at airports for the 40 million travelers with these trusted traveler program memberships. Please feel free to tell me why this is a good decision in the comments.