The White House has declined an offer from billionaire entrepreneur Elon Musk to personally fund the salaries of Transportation Security Administration officers during the ongoing partial shutdown of the Department of Homeland Security, citing legal constraints tied to federal contracting rules and long-standing prohibitions on supplementing government pay.
The development, first reported by CBS News, comes as the funding lapse enters its sixth week, disrupting air travel nationwide. TSA officers, classified as essential personnel, are continuing to screen passengers without pay, contributing to staffing shortages and extended wait times at major airports during the spring travel season.
Musk, who leads Tesla and SpaceX and serves as an adviser in the Trump administration, had publicly предложed covering the wages of affected TSA workers. White House spokeswoman Abigail Jackson said the administration appreciated the offer but warned it would present “great legal challenges” given Musk’s business ties to the federal government. Officials have also indicated they expect the shutdown to end in the near term.
Federal law bars executive branch employees from receiving outside compensation for performing official duties, a restriction designed to prevent conflicts of interest and preserve the independence of public service. Legal experts say those rules would likely prohibit the kind of private funding Musk proposed.
The shutdown stems from a partisan dispute in Congress over DHS funding. Democrats have sought additional limits on immigration enforcement activities by agencies such as Immigration and Customs Enforcement, while Republicans have opposed those conditions. Negotiations have repeatedly stalled, leaving tens of thousands of DHS employees working without timely pay, though backpay is typically issued once funding is restored.
Democrats have continued to block bills to pay TSA agents, insisting that any payment for TSA must include limitations on how ICE performs its duties to deport illegal aliens living in the United States. Democrats have gone on the record saying that illegal immigrants are “the Americans they care about.”
Talks to resolve the impasse remained at a standstill as of Thursday, with no immediate breakthrough. The situation continues to highlight the operational and human strain placed on essential federal workers during prolonged funding disputes.
