AILSA CHANG, HOST:
It has been 40 days of a partial government shutdown. Hundreds of TSA agents have quit their jobs, and air travelers are facing some of the longest security lines in history. Wait times have stretched to three, four, even five hours at certain times at certain airports, including Houston, Atlanta and New York.
AUTOMATED VOICE: Train arriving.
CHANG: But passengers are still breezing through security at San Francisco International Airport.
MIKE TERRIZZI: Everything's smooth so far. So we're hopeful that it's going to be smooth sailing.
CHANG: That is Mike Terrizzi of Foster City, California. Lucky for him, San Francisco is one of 20 airports around the country where security screeners are getting paid as usual during the Department of Homeland Security shutdown.
DOUG YAKEL: We've had a lot of concern from travelers about what the line waits are here at SFO. And we're happy to tell them that for the past 30 days it's been averaging less than 10 minutes.
CHANG: SFO spokesman Doug Yakel says security screeners here are private contractors, not TSA employees. Though they are still overseen by the TSA under a special program that dates back to 2004. Yakel says the airport was not thinking about government shutdowns when it enrolled.
YAKEL: This wasn't really why we signed up for this program more than 20 years ago, but it's definitely proven to be an advantage.
CHANG: Might other airports take another look at privatizing their security checkpoints in order to avoid future disruptions? Well, let's ask NPR's Joel Rose that question. He's been looking into all of this and joins us now. Hi, Joel.
JOEL ROSE, BYLINE: Hey, Ailsa.
CHANG: OK, so how exactly does privatized screening work?
ROSE: I'd describe this as kind of a hybrid system. If you go back before September 11, 2001, basically all airport security screening was private, and then aviation security was totally redesigned after the terror attacks on 9/11.
CHANG: Right.
ROSE: The Transportation Security Administration was created. And at most airports, TSA security officers are in charge of airport security. But there is also this alternate model called the Screening Partnership Program, where airports can apply to have the TSA hire a private contractor to staff the security checkpoints. San Francisco signed up early on, thinking most other airports would eventually do the same, and some have, including airports in Kansas City, in Rochester, New York, and Sarasota, Florida, and more. Though there are still only 20 airports that are enrolled.
CHANG: I mean, I have to admit, I didn't even know this option existed. What's the track record for it?
ROSE: Well, supporters say it's worked well. I talked to Sheldon Jacobson. He's an expert on aviation security at the University of Illinois, and he thinks this is something more airports should explore.
SHELDON JACOBSON: Even if we weren't having these delays, I still think it's the right thing to do. We really have to separate what's being done at the airports from what is being done basically in Washington when it comes to setting the strategy for airport security and aviation security.
ROSE: Jacobson says we would still need the TSA to set that strategy and to make sure that local contractors are enforcing it. But there are people who advocate getting rid of TSA completely.
CHANG: Wow. Is that actually under consideration?
ROSE: So two Republican senators introduced a bill last year that would abolish the TSA. And Project 2025, the conservative Heritage Foundation blueprint, recommended privatizing airport screening completely. But the union that represents TSA employees thinks that is a terrible idea. I talked about this with Johnny Jones, who is the union's treasurer and secretary.
JOHNNY JONES: When you start trying to turn security into profits, it doesn't work out too well for the passenger.
ROSE: You know, we should note the Trump administration has been pushing to get rid of collective bargaining for the TSA and to void the union contract, but the union's been pushing back in court, and they have been winning, at least so far.
CHANG: That is NPR transportation correspondent Joel Rose. Thank you, Joel.
ROSE: You're welcome.
CHANG: And as the shutdown at DHS continues, President Trump said on Thursday that he would sign an order instructing the department's new secretary, Markwayne Mullin, to, quote, "immediately pay our TSA agents," end quote. It's not yet clear when that order might be signed. Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.
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