By David Shepardson
WASHINGTON, Feb 22 (Reuters) – The Trump administration reversed course on Sunday on the program that allows millions of airline travelers to get expedited security screening, saying it will remain operational, hours after it said the program would be temporarily suspended amid a shutdown of much of the agency.
The earlier Homeland Security Department announcement that the program was to be halted at 6 a.m. EST raised serious alarm amid travel groups and airlines as the busy spring break travel season starts in the United States. More than 20 million people are actively enrolled in the Transportation Security Administration PreCheck program that helps manage airport travel volumes.
The department said earlier that the halt would be prompted by the most recent government shutdown, although DHS did not suspend PreCheck during a 43-day-shutdown last year. DHS began a partial shutdown earlier this month after Republicans and Democrats failed to reach a deal on immigration enforcement reforms.
At around 10 a.m., TSA said the program “remains operational with no change for the traveling public. As staffing constraints arise, TSA will evaluate on a case by case basis and adjust operations accordingly.”
The TSA’s PreCheck program allows approved passengers to go through a dedicated, faster security lane at U.S. airports and is designed to reduce wait times and streamline screening.
TSA said it was suspending courtesy escorts, such as those for members of Congress.
Airlines for America CEO Chris Sununu had said after the announcement that the group was “deeply concerned that TSA PreCheck and Global Entry programs are being suspended… The announcement was issued with extremely short notice to travelers, giving them little time to plan accordingly, which is especially troubling at this time of record air travel.”
It is unclear if TSA will still suspend Global Entry, which expedites U.S. customs and immigration clearance for pre-approved, low-risk international travelers entering the United States.
On Thursday, the Trump administration ordered the Federal Emergency Management Agency, a part of the DHS, to suspend the deployment of hundreds of aid workers to disaster-affected areas, due to the DHS shutdown.
(Reporting by David Shepardson in Washington; editing by Michelle Nichols and Chizu Nomiyama )
