Airports across Wyoming and the country have started donation drives to support federal workers who aren’t being paid during the ongoing federal government shutdown, the longest in U.S. history.
Shelly Besel, an office manager for the Northeast Wyoming Regional Airport near Gillette, helped get the word out about donations of food and household supplies to support the airport's 12 Transportation Security Agency (TSA) employees and two travelling agents, who’ve been working without pay for 43 days.
The shutdown has been hard on those workers, according to Besel, with at least one agent having to get a second job to support his family.
“It affects air travel,” said Besel. “It affects these people, it affects their lives. It's a stressful situation for them. They're definitely starting to feel the crunch and the financial burden.”
Regional and international airports near Casper, Rock Springs and Laramie are putting out similar calls for help.
Rural areas like Besel’s depend on their airports to function, she explained.
“We're essential to this part of Wyoming, and we're definitely essential to Gillette for economic development and growth,” she said. “ Without our TSA workers, well, the airport would be shut down. You have to have TSA. You cannot have commercial air service without it.”
The nearest alternative airport for Gillette residents is about an hour and a half away at the Sheridan County Airport, or about two hours away at the airport in Natrona County. But for the northeast corner of Wyoming, Besel said their facility is “a choice” that nearby rural communities get to make use of.
“ The hospital depends on us, the school district, the county government, the city government, the coal mines,” she said. “Many different facets of business depend on the airport.”
Besel said she’d heard that even if the shutdown ends later this week, TSA agents will go another nine days without a paycheck, likely missing two more.
She added that the airport’s federal employees aren’t an abstract group in need.
“ We go to church with these people,” she said. “We grocery shop with these people. Our children go to school with their children. They're known in the community. The majority of the TSA workers that work at the Northeast Wyoming Regional Airport have worked there for years.”
Federal workers can’t accept things like a Visa gift card, cash or a check, she said, so the drive is asking for non-perishable foods, perishable foods, household items as well as gift cards for a store or gas or restaurant cards.
Rep. John Bear (R-Gillette) said he was proud of Gillette’s federal employees who’ve kept working during the shutdown.
“ I hope that those people are seeking and receiving help,” said Bear. “I'm awful proud of them continuing to show up at work and keep the country moving, even though they're doing it without any guarantee that they're going to get paid.”
Meanwhile, more than a hundred miles south, the Casper-Natrona County International Airport has about 60 federal workers, some of whom are likely going without pay, said Katie Reed, a communications and air service manager.
“It’s stressful,” said Reed. “You have payments, and you can’t go to the grocery store with an, ‘I’ll pay you back when I get back pay.’ We're planning on keeping the food and supplies available for about a week after the shutdown ends, just because of that limbo.”
The airport’s workers include TSA agents, air traffic controllers, Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) workers and customs agents.
Pres. Donald Trump posted on Truth Social this month that he would recommend a bonus of $10,000 for each air traffic controller who didn’t take time off during the shutdown.
Trump said he was “NOT HAPPY” with people who took time off.
“All Air Traffic Controllers must get back to work, NOW!!!” Trump said on Nov. 10. “Anyone who doesn’t will be substantially ‘docked.’”
The U.S. Senate passed legislation to end the shutdown this week, but it still needs to clear the House to land on Trump’s desk for his signature.
This reporting was made possible by a grant from the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, supporting state government coverage in the state. Wyoming Public Media and Jackson Hole Community Radio are partnering to cover state issues both on air and online.
