DHS shutdown: TSA, Coast Guard, FEMA, others affected by standoff

A partial government shutdown became a certainty after Senate Democrats rejected attempts to fund the program Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Introduced by Republicans Thursday afternoon.

But it won’t look like the record 43-day shutdown that paralyzed Congress last year, nor will it look like a shorter shutdown Partial closure for four days That hit Capitol Hill earlier this month. That’s because Congress has already funded nearly 97% of the government through the end of fiscal year 2026 on September 30.

When the clock strikes 12:01 a.m. on Saturday, February 14, only DHS will be affected by a cut in its federal funding. Although it is on a much smaller scale than other recent financial fights, it will still have an impact on a wide range of issues given DHS’s broad jurisdiction.

Schumer and Democrats choose partial shutdown as negotiations reach an impasse

A Transportation Security Administration (TSA) officer stands near a security checkpoint. (Michael Ciaglo/Getty Images)

Transportation Security Administration (TSA)

The disruptions to the Transportation Security Administration, whose agents are responsible for security checks at nearly 440 airports across the country, are perhaps the most impactful part of the partial shutdown of Americans’ daily lives.

Acting Administrator Ha Nguyen McNeil told lawmakers at a hearing Wednesday that about 95% of TSA employees — about 61,000 people — are considered essential and would have to work without pay in the event of a shutdown.

Many TSA agents are still recovering from the effects of the recent 43-day closure, McNeil said. “We heard reports of officers sleeping in their cars at airports to save money on gas, selling their blood and plasma, and taking second jobs to make ends meet,” she said.

TSA paychecks scheduled to be issued on March 3 could see agents receiving reduced pay depending on the length of the closure. Agents will not be at risk of losing full pay until March 17.

However, if that happens, Americans could see delays or even cancellations at the nation’s busiest airports, as TSA agents are forced to stop working and get second jobs to make ends meet.

The closing clock is ticking as Schumer and Democrats delve into DHS funding requests

coastguard

The U.S. Coast Guard is the only branch of the armed forces under the Department of Homeland Security rather than the Department of War, and as such will likely see fewer operations during the shutdown.

This includes a temporary pause in the training of pilots, air crews and boat crews until funding resumes.

Adm. Thomas Allan, deputy commandant of the Coast Guard, warned lawmakers that they would have to “suspend all missions, except those related to national security or the protection of life and property.”

The cut in its funding will also lead to the suspension of pay for 56,000 active, reserve and civilian employees, which Allan warned would negatively impact morale and recruitment efforts.

Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., speaks at a news conference following the passage of government funding bills, at the U.S. Capitol in Washington, D.C., on January 30, 2026. (Nathan Posner/Anadolu via Getty Images)

Secret Service

The U.S. Secret Service (USSS), which is critical to protecting the president and key members of the administration, also falls under the jurisdiction of the Department of Homeland Security.

While its core functions will remain largely unaffected by the closure, around 94% of the approximately 8,000 people the service employs will have to work without pay until the crisis is resolved.

USSS Deputy Director Matthew Quinn also warned that the shutdown could also hurt progress made to improve the service following the July 2024 assassination attempt on the president. Donald Trump.

“The attempted assassination of President Trump brought to light our agency’s hard realities and critical areas of improvement — air, space, security, communications, information technology infrastructure, recruitment and retention training, and overall technology improvements,” Quinn said. “Today we are on the cusp of implementing generational change in our organization. Lockdown stalls our reforms and undermines the momentum that we, including all of you, have worked so hard to build together.”

Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE)

Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s operations will continue largely unhindered during the shutdown, despite Democrats’ anger that the agency was to blame. The main driver of the current confrontation.

Nearly 20,000 of ICE’s 21,000 employees are considered “essential” and therefore must work without pay, according to Department of Homeland Security shutdown guidance issued in September 2025.

But despite being the center of Democrats’ protest over funding, ICE has already received a $75 billion infusion over four years from Trump’s Big, Beautiful Act (OBBBA). This means that many of its core functions maintain a certain level of funding even during the lockdown period.

Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA)

CISA is responsible for defending critical U.S. sectors such as transportation, health care, and energy from foreign and domestic threats.

The agency will be forced to scale back operations to active threat mitigation status and activities “necessary to safeguard and protect life and property,” according to acting CISA Director Madhu Gotumukala.

This means that a shutdown would significantly reduce CISA’s ability to proactively monitor potential threats from foreign adversaries.

“We will be on the defensive, we will be reactive rather than proactive, and strategic in terms of how we are able to combat these adversaries,” Gottomukkala said.

Operations such as “cyber response, security assessments, stakeholder engagement, training, exercises, and special event planning” will all be affected, he said.

A US Secret Service police officer stands outside the White House the day after President Donald Trump announced US military strikes on nuclear sites in Iran on June 22, 2025, in Washington, D.C. (Kevin Carter/Getty Images)

Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA)

The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), one of the largest beneficiaries Congressional funding under DHS will also likely see a reduction in operations if the shutdown lasts long enough.

The bright spot for the agency is that previous appropriations approved by Congress left the Disaster Relief Fund, the main fund used to respond to natural disasters across the United States, with nearly $7 billion.

One official warned that DRF could become a serious problem if the DHS shutdown lasts more than a month, or if an unexpected “catastrophic disaster” occurs.

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FEMA is also currently working on a backlog of responses to previous natural disasters, progress that Office of Response and Recovery Associate Director Greg Phillips said may stall during the shutdown.

“In the 45 days I was here… we spent $3 billion in 45 days on 5,000 projects,” Phillips said. “We’re going as fast as we can. We’re committed to reducing the backlog. I can’t go any faster than we already are. If this passes, it will stop.”