The announcement comes after the Department of Homeland Security announced plans Saturday night to shut down both Global Entry and the Transportation Security Administration’s Pre-Check program, but DHS halted its pre-check closures.

” Amidst restrictions on staffing, “TSA will evaluate on a case-by-case basis and adjust operations accordingly,” the agency said.

Confusion at security checkpoints and customs lanes Partial closure of government agencies It began on February 14 after Democrats and the White House failed to reach an agreement on a bill to fund the Department of Homeland Security. Democrats have been demanding changes. Immigration control operations These are the core of President Donald Trump’s deportation campaign.

Security confusion occurs when: big winter storm It is expected to make landfall on the East Coast between Sunday and Monday. On Monday, nine out of 10 flights departing from John F. Kennedy International Airport, LaGuardia Airport and Boston Logan Airport were canceled.

Global Entry is a U.S. Customs and Border Protection program that allows pre-approved, low-risk travelers to use priority kiosks when entering the United States from abroad. Although there is no specific government data showing how much time Global Entry saves passengers at airports and other ports of entry, travel industry experts estimate that Global Entry reduces passengers’ time through customs from an average of 30 to 90 minutes to 5 to 10 minutes in the Global Entry line.

Those who purchase Global Entry also receive TSA PreCheck. The Department of Homeland Security announced that more than 20 million Americans will undergo TSA prescreening in 2024, and millions of them will have duplicate Global Entry memberships.

Airport lines appeared to be largely unaffected Sunday, with wait times in security lines at most international airports expected to be less than 15 minutes, according to the TSA’s mobile app.

Dallas resident Blair Perkins, 39, heard news about Global Entry’s closure before leaving Cancun to return to Dallas on Sunday morning. After arriving at Dallas-Fort Worth International Airport with friends, she said the usual lines were long, but the journey was fairly quick.

“We went around four or five different corners before we got to the American end of the line,” she said.

With Global Entry, it usually takes less than 5 minutes to clear customs. she said. Since it was Sunday, it took about 30 minutes.

Perkins said the closure was frustrating. “I feel like Washington is using tourists as pawns to try to convince the other side to do what it wants,” she says.

The Department of Homeland Security previously said it was taking “emergency steps to preserve limited funding.” Among the measures listed was “ending Transportation Security Administration (TSA) pre-screening lanes and Customs and Border Protection (CBP) Global Entry services to refocus Transportation Security Administration personnel on the majority of travelers.”

“We are pleased that DHS has decided to continue operating PreCheck and avoid a self-inflicted crisis,” said Jeff Freeman, president and CEO of the U.S. Travel Association.

Before announcing PreCheck’s closure, Secretary Kristi Noem said in a statement Saturday night that “the closure will have serious real-world consequences.” Noem said she would deprive lawmakers of ceremonial chaperones at airports during the partial government shutdown.

Jean Fay, 54, said she had no trouble getting through TSA pre-screening at the Baltimore airport for her 6 a.m. Sunday flight home to Texas. She didn’t learn about the closure until she changed planes in Austin, Texas, on her way to Dallas Love Field.

“When we got to Austin, we started getting alerts,” she said.

Airlines for America, a trade group representing major airlines, said Saturday night that “it is past time for Congress to come to the table and get a deal done.” It also criticized the announcement, saying it was “notified to travelers at such short notice that it gave travelers little time to plan.”

“A4A is deeply concerned that with the suspension of the TSA PreCheck and Global Entry programs and another government shutdown, travelers will once again be used as a political football,” the group said.

Democratic members of the House Homeland Security Committee criticized the Department of Homeland Security’s response to airport security after the initial announcement Saturday night. They accused the government of “carelessly implementing programs to make travel smoother and safer.”

Sen. Andy Kim, D-N.J., said Noem’s actions are part of the administration’s strategy to deflect attention from other issues and shift blame.

“This administration is trying to weaponize the government and intentionally make things difficult for the American people as a political tool,” he told CNN on Sunday. “And the American people understand that, too.”

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Associated Press writers Ali Swenson and Ken Sweet in New York and Margery A. Beck in Omaha, Nebraska, contributed to this report.

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