What to know about how the DHS shutdown could affect you
- - What to know about how the DHS shutdown could affect you
Zachary Schermele and Aysha Bagchi, USA TODAY February 14, 2026 at 5:35 PM
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Funding for the Department of Homeland Security has expired, potentially jeopardizing critical government services like airport security and disaster relief.
Appropriations for the 9/11-era Cabinet agency lapsed after Friday, Feb. 13, as negotiations continued between congressional Democrats and the White House over curbing immigration enforcement. No deal was in sight as lawmakers left for a week-long scheduled recess, with many taking planned trips overseas.
protesting against Trump's surge of immigration enforcement actions.Pictured here, Demonstrators gather for a protest calling for the removal of United States Immigration and Customs Enforcement on Jan. 30, 2026 in the Chinatown neighborhood of Washington, D.C. Protests were held across the United States in response to ICE enforcement activity.
" style=padding-bottom:56%>After the fatal shootings of Alex Pretti and Renee Nicole Good by federal immigration agents (ICE), communities across the U.S. are protesting against Trump's surge of immigration enforcement actions.Pictured here, Demonstrators gather for a protest calling for the removal of United States Immigration and Customs Enforcement on Jan. 30, 2026 in the Chinatown neighborhood of Washington, D.C. Protests were held across the United States in response to ICE enforcement activity.
" data-src=https://s.yimg.com/ny/api/res/1.2/75Pye_b2ALqj85cOa484KQ--/YXBwaWQ9aGlnaGxhbmRlcjt3PTEyNDI7aD04Mjg-/https://media.zenfs.com/en/usa_today_slideshows_242/3c76aabe582dbbed67880e4a96de38cf class=caas-img data-headline="'ICE Out' protests spark marches, confrontations across US" data-caption="
After the fatal shootings of Alex Pretti and Renee Nicole Good by federal immigration agents (ICE), communities across the U.S. are protesting against Trump's surge of immigration enforcement actions.Pictured here, Demonstrators gather for a protest calling for the removal of United States Immigration and Customs Enforcement on Jan. 30, 2026 in the Chinatown neighborhood of Washington, D.C. Protests were held across the United States in response to ICE enforcement activity.
">After the fatal shootings of Alex Pretti and Renee Nicole Good by federal immigration agents (ICE), communities across the U.S. are protesting against Trump's surge of immigration enforcement actions.Pictured here, Demonstrators gather for a protest calling for the removal of United States Immigration and Customs Enforcement on Jan. 30, 2026 in the Chinatown neighborhood of Washington, D.C. Protests were held across the United States in response to ICE enforcement activity.
" src=https://s.yimg.com/ny/api/res/1.2/75Pye_b2ALqj85cOa484KQ--/YXBwaWQ9aGlnaGxhbmRlcjt3PTEyNDI7aD04Mjg-/https://media.zenfs.com/en/usa_today_slideshows_242/3c76aabe582dbbed67880e4a96de38cf class=caas-img>
Hundreds of people gather to protest ICE at the corner of Palafox and Garden Streets in downtown Pensacola, Florida, on Jan. 30, 2026.
" data-src=https://s.yimg.com/ny/api/res/1.2/P5LIg74OSjRl2O0uY.pt5w--/YXBwaWQ9aGlnaGxhbmRlcjt3PTEyNDI7aD03ODM-/https://media.zenfs.com/en/usa_today_slideshows_242/ebf2ffa816bf5365bf49209b72623e35 class=caas-img data-headline="'ICE Out' protests spark marches, confrontations across US" data-caption="
Hundreds of people gather to protest ICE at the corner of Palafox and Garden Streets in downtown Pensacola, Florida, on Jan. 30, 2026.
">Hundreds of people gather to protest ICE at the corner of Palafox and Garden Streets in downtown Pensacola, Florida, on Jan. 30, 2026.
" src=https://s.yimg.com/ny/api/res/1.2/P5LIg74OSjRl2O0uY.pt5w--/YXBwaWQ9aGlnaGxhbmRlcjt3PTEyNDI7aD03ODM-/https://media.zenfs.com/en/usa_today_slideshows_242/ebf2ffa816bf5365bf49209b72623e35 class=caas-img>
Penn High School students participate in a walkout protesting U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement on Friday, Jan. 30, 2026, in Mishawaka, Indiana.
" data-src=https://s.yimg.com/ny/api/res/1.2/mSRcXDOrmjgHaHBuHFxhmA--/YXBwaWQ9aGlnaGxhbmRlcjt3PTEyNDI7aD04Mjg-/https://media.zenfs.com/en/usa_today_slideshows_242/6bac98bc862a99de33b3ae440adf2665 class=caas-img data-headline="'ICE Out' protests spark marches, confrontations across US" data-caption="
Penn High School students participate in a walkout protesting U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement on Friday, Jan. 30, 2026, in Mishawaka, Indiana.
">Penn High School students participate in a walkout protesting U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement on Friday, Jan. 30, 2026, in Mishawaka, Indiana.
" src=https://s.yimg.com/ny/api/res/1.2/mSRcXDOrmjgHaHBuHFxhmA--/YXBwaWQ9aGlnaGxhbmRlcjt3PTEyNDI7aD04Mjg-/https://media.zenfs.com/en/usa_today_slideshows_242/6bac98bc862a99de33b3ae440adf2665 class=caas-img>
Protesters gather at City Hall in response to recent actions by the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, commonly referred to as "ICE," and the presence of Flock cameras in the community and Indiana University campus, in Bloomington, Indiana, on Jan. 30, 2026.
" data-src=https://s.yimg.com/ny/api/res/1.2/nGciJt0aoNnYxCsav7bN1Q--/YXBwaWQ9aGlnaGxhbmRlcjt3PTEyNDI7aD03ODI-/https://media.zenfs.com/en/usa_today_slideshows_242/d79e7c2187fb74f810fd8556bfa1003d class=caas-img data-headline="'ICE Out' protests spark marches, confrontations across US" data-caption="
Protesters gather at City Hall in response to recent actions by the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, commonly referred to as "ICE," and the presence of Flock cameras in the community and Indiana University campus, in Bloomington, Indiana, on Jan. 30, 2026.
">Protesters gather at City Hall in response to recent actions by the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, commonly referred to as "ICE," and the presence of Flock cameras in the community and Indiana University campus, in Bloomington, Indiana, on Jan. 30, 2026.
" src=https://s.yimg.com/ny/api/res/1.2/nGciJt0aoNnYxCsav7bN1Q--/YXBwaWQ9aGlnaGxhbmRlcjt3PTEyNDI7aD03ODI-/https://media.zenfs.com/en/usa_today_slideshows_242/d79e7c2187fb74f810fd8556bfa1003d class=caas-img>
A Penn High School student confronts a man in a car line at the school who was shouting, "Let's go ICE!" as students were marching past during a walkout protesting U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement on Friday, Jan. 30, 2026, in Mishawaka, Indiana.
" data-src=https://s.yimg.com/ny/api/res/1.2/LhVATT_45WMjscHvFLhAoQ--/YXBwaWQ9aGlnaGxhbmRlcjt3PTEyNDI7aD04Mjg-/https://media.zenfs.com/en/usa_today_slideshows_242/1e9f13ef7cf95fbf3e3f0a0aa0edabfc class=caas-img data-headline="'ICE Out' protests spark marches, confrontations across US" data-caption="
A Penn High School student confronts a man in a car line at the school who was shouting, "Let's go ICE!" as students were marching past during a walkout protesting U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement on Friday, Jan. 30, 2026, in Mishawaka, Indiana.
">A Penn High School student confronts a man in a car line at the school who was shouting, "Let's go ICE!" as students were marching past during a walkout protesting U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement on Friday, Jan. 30, 2026, in Mishawaka, Indiana.
" src=https://s.yimg.com/ny/api/res/1.2/LhVATT_45WMjscHvFLhAoQ--/YXBwaWQ9aGlnaGxhbmRlcjt3PTEyNDI7aD04Mjg-/https://media.zenfs.com/en/usa_today_slideshows_242/1e9f13ef7cf95fbf3e3f0a0aa0edabfc class=caas-img>
Protesters gather at City Hall in Bloomington, Indiana, on Jan. 30, 2026, in response to recent immigration enforcement actions by the government.
" data-src=https://s.yimg.com/ny/api/res/1.2/gjpIhIMezq49vtjqZNcQPA--/YXBwaWQ9aGlnaGxhbmRlcjt3PTEyNDI7aD04Mjg-/https://media.zenfs.com/en/usa_today_slideshows_242/f77485b54cdbcfbe992e158a0d876674 class=caas-img data-headline="'ICE Out' protests spark marches, confrontations across US" data-caption="
Protesters gather at City Hall in Bloomington, Indiana, on Jan. 30, 2026, in response to recent immigration enforcement actions by the government.
">Protesters gather at City Hall in Bloomington, Indiana, on Jan. 30, 2026, in response to recent immigration enforcement actions by the government.
" src=https://s.yimg.com/ny/api/res/1.2/gjpIhIMezq49vtjqZNcQPA--/YXBwaWQ9aGlnaGxhbmRlcjt3PTEyNDI7aD04Mjg-/https://media.zenfs.com/en/usa_today_slideshows_242/f77485b54cdbcfbe992e158a0d876674 class=caas-img>
1 / 33'ICE Out' protests spark marches, confrontations across US
After the fatal shootings of Alex Pretti and Renee Nicole Good by federal immigration agents (ICE), communities across the U.S. are protesting against Trump's surge of immigration enforcement actions.Pictured here, Demonstrators gather for a protest calling for the removal of United States Immigration and Customs Enforcement on Jan. 30, 2026 in the Chinatown neighborhood of Washington, D.C. Protests were held across the United States in response to ICE enforcement activity.
Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D–New York, pledged earlier this week that Democrats wouldn't back funding for Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) without added guardrails for federal immigration agents.
"The Republican bill on the floor allows ICE to smash in doors without warrants, to wear masks and not be identified, to use children as bait for their parents," Schumer said in a video statement posted on social media Feb. 12. "No oversight? We are keeping our word. No funding for ICE until it is reined in, until the violence ends."
Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R–South Dakota, said on Fox News Feb. 12 that he hopes Democrats strike a funding deal with the White House over the weekend
"This isn't just ICE. This isn't just, you know, Border Patrol. This is FEMA. This is TSA. This is the Coast Guard. This is cyber security. A bunch of things covered by this bill," Thune said.
More: Coast Guard chief warns DHS shutdown will 'cripple morale'
Much of DHS's typical work, including Immigration and Customs Enforcement's operations, will continue even while the agency is shut down. Regardless, the heads of some of the department's most critical divisions warned lawmakers ahead of the latest funding lapse that the consequences of a prolonged shutdown could be dire.
TSA agents check for REAL ID compliance at Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport on May 7.
DHS hasn't publicly released an contingency plan for this shutdown, but it typically requires the vast majority of TSA's more than 64,000-person workforce to stay on the job without pay.
Acting TSA Administrator Ha Nguyen McNeill told lawmakers Feb. 11 that the roughly 61,000 employees at more than 430 commercial airports who will be impacted by another funding lapse can't go through it all over again.
"Some are just recovering from the financial impact of the 43-day shutdown," she said. "We cannot put them through another such experience. It would be unconscionable."
Usually, as shutdowns drag on, callout rates for TSA workers spike, leading to longer wait times in security lines at the airport.
Coast Guard
The U.S. Coast Guard helped free a cruise ship after it became "beset" in ice during an Antarctica voyage.
The Coast Guard, which falls under DHS purview during peacetime, will have to suspend missions that aren't critical for national security and the protection of life and property.
"Shutdowns cripple morale," said Vice Adm. Thomas Allan, the Coast Guard's acting vice commandant, at a Feb. 11 congressional hearing.
Allan told lawmakers the shutdown would cause deferred maintenance and potentially interrupt pay for 56,000 active-duty reserve and civilian personnel.
After Hurricane Helene, Ether Ashe speaks with a FEMA representative outside the Buncombe County Courthouse in Asheville, North Carolina on Oct. 16, 2024.
Most employees of the Federal Emergency Management Agency will also work without pay. Gregg Phillips, who leads FEMA, said on Feb. 11 the shutdown would "severely disrupt" the agency's ability to reimburse states for disaster relief costs.
He expressed concern about the approaching hurricane season.
“A federal government shutdown would have far-reaching and serious consequences for FEMA’s operations and for the nation’s ability to prepare for, respond to and recover from disasters,” he told lawmakers.
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: What to know about how the DHS shutdown could affect you
Source: “AOL Breaking”
