Select federal law enforcement officers will see a “super check” in the bank by Wednesday, while most of their colleagues in government are approaching their fourth week without pay during the government shutdown.
The Department of Homeland Security plans to pay some employees at Customs and Border Protection, Immigration and Customs Enforcement, Secret Service, and the Transportation Security Administration by October 22. A spokesperson for DHS confirmed to Business Insider that paid employees will include over 70,000 border patrol agents, deportation officers, special agents, and air marshals.
“President Trump and I will always stand by law enforcement, and today we are keeping our promise to always support them by making sure they are paid during the Democrats’ shutdown, DHS Secretary Kristi Noem said, adding, “DHS remains deeply grateful to our law enforcement for their continued professionalism, vigilance, and service under challenging circumstances.”
The selected law enforcement employees will receive a “super check,” DHS told Business Insider, meaning they will be compensated for the current pay cycle, in addition to the first few days of the shutdown at the end of their last pay cycle, plus any overtime.
Trump is paying federal law enforcement and the military
The plan to pay law enforcement builds on pre-shutdown contingency plans. DHS estimated that around 19,626 of 21,028 total ICE employees would continue working either with or without pay until the shutdown ends. Similarly, around 63,243 of CBP’s 67,792 workers were expected to be on the job.
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The funds to pay DHS workers are being drawn from the Trump administration’s One Big Beautiful Bill Act, a department spokesperson told Business Insider. The law allocates billions toward “activities in support of the Department of Homeland Security’s mission to safeguard the borders of the United States” to be available between 2025 and 2029. The move to pay employees during the shutdown comes alongside the administration’s deployment of ICE agents to US cities, such as Chicago and Portland.
Bobby Kogan, the senior director of federal budget policy at the left-leaning Center for American Progress, likened the usage of that funding to keep paying workers to the agencies having a credit card that doesn’t expire until 2029, with very broad funding language from the legislation itself.
Military personnel also began receiving paychecks in mid-October. Trump approved the White House and Pentagon to use funds left over for the current fiscal year for payroll, likely from the standard research and development testing and evaluation budget. The administration did not provide more information on what funding is specifically being used or how long that money will last, and Congress has not greenlit troop pay.
“In such a dire circumstance as this, where there is no other appropriation providing for payment of military salaries, and where failure to pay our troops directly undercuts the effectiveness of other appropriations,” the White House wrote in an October 17 memo to lawmakers. “The President may, as Commander in Chief, direct that such appropriations be used to cover military salaries.”
In past shutdowns, legislation has specifically passed either ahead of or during other funding lapses that stipulated troops would be paid. This time around — despite bipartisan entreaties from lawmakers to pass legislation — the administration unilaterally decided that troops would be paid, a move that stoked some ire among lawmakers.
Employees at most agencies are furloughed or working without pay
Since the government ceased normal operations on October 1, Business Insider has spoken with over two dozen federal workers across agencies about how the shutdown is impacting their jobs and financial security. Hundreds of thousands remain furloughed or are working without pay, and many told us they’re anxious about paying bills.
“Gas stations don’t take IOUs,” Johnny Jones, a TSA worker and president of local 1040 for the American Federation of Government Employees, said last week. “I talked to a couple employees, and they said, ‘this is my last fill-up and I won’t have any money,’ because they don’t have credit cards. They’re literally like, this is the last tank of gas I’m going to have until I get paid again.”
Staff at agencies like the Social Security Administration, the Centers for Disease Control, and the National Aeronautics and Space Administration aren’t receiving paychecks. These employees received a prorated check earlier this month for their days worked immediately prior to the shutdown, and the White House has hinted they may not receive back pay for hours worked after October 1.
Most government contractors and employees at federal buildings, such as those who work in food service and janitorial jobs and staff museums and historical sites, are also not being paid. Members of Congress are receiving normal salaries.
Without a Senate budget agreement, the government shutdown will continue without an end in sight, and Americans could continue experiencing disruptions at the post office, national parks, and airports. The longest-ever shutdown in 2018 lasted 35 days.
