The acting administrator of the Transportation Security Administration gave a strong endorsement of President Donald Trump’s budget request for fiscal 2027 before a House Appropriations subcommittee Thursday, saying proposed privatization and modernization efforts would help ensure the agency has the funds it needs amid congressional funding struggles.
“As of today, TSA has been shut down for 109 days, nearly 60 percent of FY26. If this year demonstrates anything, it is that the TSA workforce and our operations cannot depend on predictable congressional funding,” Ha Nguyen McNeill told the House Homeland Security Appropriations Subcommittee.
The White House budget request for Homeland Security agencies included an effort to begin privatizing the airport screening process, which the administration says would reduce costs by about $52 million. The proposal would require smaller airports to enroll in the Screening Partnership Program to allow TSA to pay for private screeners where needed. The administration said in its proposal that the program had already led to cost savings compared with federal operations for airports currently using the program.
