Could the DHS Shutdown Ground Burlington’s Airport?
TSA staffing math, a food pantry for federal workers, and what happens if the funding fight drags into April
Patrick Leahy Burlington International Airport is operating normally — for now. Security lines are running 15 to 45 minutes, no flights have been canceled for staffing reasons, and no ICE agents have been deployed to the terminal.
But BTV sits on a list of small-hub airports that federal officials have explicitly warned could be forced to close if the Department of Homeland Security funding lapse continues. And on the ground floor of Vermont’s busiest airport, staff are collecting donated food, gift cards, and household essentials for unpaid TSA officers who have been working without a paycheck for over 40 days.
The national context, briefly
The partial DHS shutdown that began on February 14 has left roughly 50,000 TSA officers working without pay. As of acting TSA Administrator Ha Nguyen McNeill’s testimony before the House Homeland Security Committee on March 25: nearly 500 officers have resigned, national call-out rates have climbed from a pre-shutdown baseline of around 4% to over 11%, and individual airports like Houston Hobby (55%) and Atlanta (41%) have seen staffing collapse to levels that produce wait times exceeding four and a half hours. TSA has nearly hit $1 billion in unpaid payroll for FY2026. McNeill told Congress that officers are sleeping in their cars at airports and selling blood plasma to cover expenses.
“We are being forced to consolidate lanes and may have to close smaller airports if we do not have enough officers,” McNeill said. “It is a fluid, challenging, and unpredictable situation.”
What’s happening at BTV
Burlington has avoided the chaos — so far. In a mid-March interview with WCAX, BTV Director of Innovation & Marketing Jeff Bartley said, “There has not been an operational impact, definitely a morale impact. We are seeing operations are running as usual.”
But “as usual” is being sustained partly by the community. The airport is providing weekly meals to its TSA staff, with to-go boxes so officers can feed their families. “At least once a week, we’re providing them a meal for the entire staff that’s on,” Bartley told ABC22/FOX44. “And we’re doing it with to-go boxes so they can eat there, and if there’s some leftover, they can take it home and feed their family and feed themselves.”
The airport is also collecting donations of non-perishable food, household essentials, and gift cards. As of WCAX’s March 25 report, BTV has “largely avoided major issues with TSA during the 40-day DHS shutdown.”
Bartley has also acknowledged what comes next: “As this lingers, there may be impacts down the road, and we’ll have to communicate with passengers accordingly.”
The staffing math that matters
The risk for BTV — and for small-hub airports nationally — comes down to arithmetic.
Atlanta’s Hartsfield-Jackson can absorb a 10% call-out rate and still keep most lanes open. It has thousands of officers. BTV operates with a far leaner crew — small enough that the airport’s weekly meals serve “the entire staff that’s on.”
At that scale, the loss of even a handful of officers could force the closure of a security lane. If call-out or resignation rates reached the 30-40% levels seen at major hubs, BTV could face a scenario where it no longer has enough certified screeners to meet federal requirements. And the law is unambiguous: no commercial flight may depart without passengers being screened by certified Transportation Security Officers.
The TSA’s National Deployment Office — a mobile team used to plug staffing gaps in emergencies — has been fully depleted. There are no reinforcements to send.
BTV has been specifically named on lists of at-risk small-hub airports in industry and media reports, alongside facilities like Dane County Regional in Wisconsin and Piedmont Triad in North Carolina.
The political stalemate
The shutdown traces back to the fatal shootings of two U.S. citizens — Renée Good and Alex Pretti — by federal immigration agents in Minneapolis in January. Democrats have refused to fund DHS without reforms to ICE. The White House has insisted that any deal include the SAVE America Act, a voter registration and ID bill. TSA, the Coast Guard, FEMA, and CISA are unfunded collateral.
Vermont Senator Peter Welch has pushed to separate TSA funding from the ICE fight. “Let’s debate that, but let’s pay TSA. Let’s get relief funds out for FEMA folks. Let’s pay the Coast Guard,” Welch told Roll Call.
As of Thursday, March 26, no deal has been reached. A procedural vote remains open in the Senate, but momentum from earlier this week has stalled. The Senate is scheduled to leave for a two-week recess at the end of this week, though Majority Leader John Thune has not ruled out delaying the break. Reports indicate the president may be weighing emergency action to pay TSA officers unilaterally.
What Vermonters should know
If you’re flying from BTV: Security lines remain manageable, but the airport recommends arriving early. The bigger risk is at your connecting hub. As Compass reported in November, 14 of BTV’s 18 nonstop destinations feed into airports currently experiencing significant disruption. A smooth experience at BTV does not guarantee a smooth trip.
If you want to help: BTV is accepting donations of non-perishable food, household essentials, and gift cards in small denominations. Details are available at btv.aero.
The economic stakes: BTV contributes $1.07 billion in annual economic activity to Vermont, supports 5,646 jobs statewide, and generates $62 million in state and local tax revenue. A disruption at Vermont’s only airport with mainline commercial service would ripple across the state’s tourism, business, and transportation infrastructure.
What happens next: If the shutdown extends past 50 days — which could happen if Congress recesses without a deal — the financial pressure on BTV’s TSA workforce will intensify. The risk is not that BTV shuts down tomorrow. The risk is that the math catches up.
Sources include TSA testimony (March 25, 2026); WCAX, ABC22/FOX44, Axios, AP, CBS News, Roll Call, NPR, and the BTV economic impact assessment.