BUTTE — Butte’s business community is encouraging the public to step up and join them in helping TSA agents who have been working for weeks without pay.
A food drive has been organized at the Bert Mooney Airport, and the Butte Chamber of Commerce is stepping in to rally community support for gift cards. As long as the partial government shutdown continues, TSA will not receive a paycheck.
"They’re here not getting paid, and how do you pay rent, eat, buy fuel to come in here for not being paid? It’s just ... a hardship," Jami Shiner said.
WATCH: Butte businesses rally to support unpaid TSA agents during the shutdown
Shiner works for a rental car agency at the airport. She said the 13 members who work in full-time and part-time positions perform a vital safety role for travelers and the community.
"With a city this size, an airport is important transportation, and with TSA here, we can have the airport. If TSA isn’t here, who knows what the future would be? So, we need to be out there and helping them," Shiner said.
A March 18 report from Scripps News says some smaller U.S. airports may be forced to shut down as the partial government shutdown drags on, according to Transportation Security Administration Acting Deputy Administrator Adam Stahl.
It is unclear if the Bert Mooney Airport would be impacted.
"We really did feel that it was important that we stepped up and got the business community involved because people want to help," Stephanie Sorini said.
Sorini, the Butte Chamber of Commerce executive director, said TSA agents can accept gift cards from stores or gas stations, but there are stipulations.
"There is a limit on those gift cards. So, each gift card can be no more than $20 dollars, and they cannot accept a cash gift card like VISA gift card or a debit gift card," Sorini said.
"Their bills don’t stop just because they are not getting paid," Sorini said.
"The fact that their paychecks have been affected has been just very hard, and we need to help them," Shiner said.
The public can drop off gift cards at the Butte Chamber of Commerce and donate food at the airport.
According to a report by Scripps News, the Trump administration has declined an offer from billionaire businessman Elon Musk to pay TSA salaries, citing potential conflicts of interest.
Democrats have pushed to fund TSA separately while continuing negotiations over ICE, whose agents are being paid, but Republicans have rejected that approach, offering counterproposals that Democrats have also rejected. Agents will eventually get paid when the partial shutdown ends.
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