TSA confirms numbers of employees working without pay
In a release congratulating Markwayne Mullin on his confirmation as secretary of the Department of Homeland Security, which includes the Transport Security Administration, TSA shared information on its current situation.
“Around 61,000 TSA employees, including every frontline TSA officer, have been working without pay during the DHS shutdown,” it said.
TSA made no mention of the 400 employees who have left TSA. The number has been widely reported by U.S. mainland media.
The A.B. Won Pat International Airport. Photo from Journal files
Major events TSA is preparing for include the FIFA World Cup 2026 and America’s 250th anniversary. Atlanta, Boston, Dallas, Houston, Kansas City, Los Angeles, Miami, New York/New Jersey, Philadelphia, San Francisco Bay Area, and Seattle will all host soccer events. America’s 250th Anniversary of Independence in July is also expected to drive tourism.
The partial U.S. Government shutdown that is affecting the U.S. Department of Homeland Security went into effect on Jan. 14, CHamoru Standard Time. Departments that are potentially affected include the Transport Security Administration, the Secret Service, the U.S. Coast Guard and U.S. Customs and Border Protection, all of which have a presence in Guam and in some cases are active in other islands.
The Journal was the first media to report that at Guam and Saipan airports it has been business as usual. See DHS shutdown not affecting arrivals in Mariana Islands for background on this story. mbj
The Guam Solid Waste Authority discontinued its bulky waste self-haul service at the Harmon, Agat, and Malojloj residential transfer stations effective June 1, officially reverting to an appointment-only curbside collection model.
The USS George Washington left its forward-deployed port of Yakuska in Japan on May 30 for its spring deployment on patrol in the Indo-Pacific, according to media reports.
The Taipei District Prosecutors' Office indicted Paul Chen, former director-general of the Taipei Economic and Cultural Office in Guam, which serves Guam and the Northern Mariana Islands, for allegedly exploiting his official position to execute multiple fraud and asset misappropriation schemes totaling more than $130,000.
A former Guam Visitors Bureau employee filed a $61.5 million federal lawsuit against the tourism agency on June 1, alleging a prolonged pattern of sexual assault, harassment, and severe institutional failures by former leadership.
