Federal employees at the Aspen/Pitkin County Airport will continue working through the federal government shutdown, but if the closure drags out, travelers could see delays.
Transportation Security Administration staff and air traffic controllers work under the U.S. Department of Homeland Security and the Federal Aviation Administration, respectively.
They’re considered excepted employees who work through appropriations lapses and receive payment after it ends, according to DHS’s guide for appropriation lapses.
Pitkin County owns and operates the airport, and County Manager Jon Peacock said he does not have any reason to believe that travelers will notice changes immediately, but a prolonged shutdown could lead to delays caused by understaffing.
“What we saw in 2018 was that there were more individuals calling in sick or maybe taking time off of work that caused some short-staffed situations, particularly at TSA, which drove longer lines,” he said.
The airport’s budget is managed as an enterprise fund with the county, and local taxes do not go to the airport. Instead, fees, lease revenue, grants and other airport-generated monies go to the fund.
Even in the event of a protracted federal government shutdown, the county does not have a way to offer any payroll support to federal employees from the enterprise fund, Peacock said.
“I think in the past, the county's looked at having emergency funds available … for federal employees who are furloughed or laid off,” he said. “It's not unusual, particularly in our valley, for folks to be going paycheck to paycheck, and so this can be a hardship.”
Bill Tomcich, a consultant for Fly Aspen Snowmass and the managing partner of Airplanners, Inc., said travelers could notice interruptions if federal employees stop coming to work.
Air traffic controllers have been under extreme pressure this year, following the Jan. 29 fatal midair collision over the Potomac River near Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport. Telecommunications issues also plagued Newark Liberty International Airport this spring.
“I can tell you that a very, very high priority is getting the ATC situation fixed in the United States,” he said. “This is a priority that is shared by both sides of the aisle in Congress and by all the commercial carriers that rely on our ATC system.”
The exact number of federal employees working at the Aspen/Pitkin County Airport is not clear.
Tomcich said TSA and air traffic controllers historically have had influence during government shutdowns. Their roles are crucial to air travel safety, and any attrition in the workforce affects that safety.
“Eventually, the government shutdown came [to an end] after several weeks,” he said. “And I think a lot of it had to do with TSA and air traffic controllers.”
TSA did not immediately respond to an email request for comment. Calls to the FAA’s Air Traffic Organization did not go through.
An automatic reply from a Colorado TSA spokesperson said, “As of Wednesday, October 1st I am out of the office due to the current federal funding hiatus. I will not be able to return emails or telephone calls until I return to duty upon conclusion of the funding hiatus.”
Tomcich said that, apart from the month of May, this is the best case scenario for the timing of a federal shutdown. Air traffic is among the lowest it will be all year until Thanksgiving.
In February 2024, a scanning equipment failure resulted in hours-long lines at the airport. Tomcich said he hasn’t heard of any incidents of that failure since and that he believes staffing levels are sufficient.
