Tampa International Airport (TPA) in Florida is set to shift towards privatizing its security operations, aiming to streamline services and curtail delays, a move that has sparked discontent among federal workers and their union representatives.
The decision, made public earlier this week, aligns with a larger initiative by the Trump administration to implement privatization strategies across the nation’s airports.
Back in May, the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) unveiled TSA Gold+, a public-private partnership plan. This program permits private entities to manage airport security, including the recruitment of staff and maintenance of security equipment, and it is the model TPA has chosen to follow.
The unprecedented 43-day government shutdown last year, coupled with earlier prolonged partial shutdowns, led to significant disruptions with TSA staff handling long hours and receiving no pay, causing extensive wait times for travelers.
The Trump administration has argued that privatizing these services would prevent such issues, ensuring that contractual workers receive payment regardless of any congressional funding impasse.
Des Moines International Airport in Iowa is also ‘exploring’ the TSA Gold+ program, and Charleston International Airport in South Carolina is ‘formally pursuing a transition,’ both airports said in public statements.
But privatization is facing pushback from the American Federation of Government Employees (AFGE), a union that represents the 47,000 Transportation Security Officers at 400 airports across the US.
In a news release published on Tuesday, the union claimed that privatization will reduce safety at airports and is more about profit than increasing efficiency.
Tampa International Airport in Florida is set to privatize its security in a bid to reduce wait times. An enormous line for security at Orlando International Air
Airports across the US faced chaos and long wait times during government shutdowns last year and earlier this year. A long line at JFK International Airport in NYC is pictured
A TSA agent is pictured with long lines in the background at Thurgood Marshall Airport in Maryland. Many TSA employees went unpaid for weeks during the shutdowns
‘Make no mistake – this is a major departure and step backwards from the aviation screening security system that Congress created in the wake of the Sept. 11th terrorist attacks in 2001,’ AFGE National President Everett Kelley said.
‘Changes of this magnitude should not be made behind closed doors without the input of Congress, the flying public, the local airport authorities, and TSA employees themselves,’ Kelley added.
The AFGE news release also highlighted the Trump administration’s proposed 2027 federal budget, which aims to eliminate 8,400 federal airport security officer positions, or about 14 percent of TSA’s screening workforce.
The proposal signifies that the administration’s ‘clear objective is to ultimately privatize all aviation security screening functions,’ according to the AFGE president.
In an interview with the Tampa Bay Times, Chris Finlay, the AFGE North and Central Florida chapter president, called TPA’s move towards privatization a ‘slap in the face’ for employees who continued working without pay during government shutdowns.
But the airport’s officials maintained that the decision was made in the best interests of protecting operations and reducing the risk of chaos and disruptions.
‘The change to privatization not only reduces disruption risks caused by lapses in federal appropriations or government shutdowns,’ a statement to the Tampa Bay Times from TPA Communications Manager Beau Zimmer began.
Tampa International Airport (pictured) opted into a public-private program called TSA Gold+, which the Trump administration has touted as a solution to airport chaos during shutdowns
The American Federation of Government Employees, a union that represents 47,000 TSA workers, has decried privatization. Two TSA employees are pictured
AFGE chapter President Chris Finlay called privatization a ‘slap in the face’ to TSA employees who worked unpaid during the shutdowns. A TSA checkpoint is pictured during a partial shutdown earlier this year
‘But [it] also allows greater flexibility in exploring new screening checkpoint infrastructure and technology to enhance the customer experience.’
Although the TSA Gold+ program will give private contractors near-total oversight of security operations, companies will still be mandated to follow established federal standards, Zimmer said.
TPA is expected to complete its transition into privatization as soon as May 2027, although the airport has not yet selected a private contractor.
The TSA released a revised request for proposals last week to select companies for its Gold+ program, planning to hand out a 10-year multiple-award contract.