USDOT’s Duffy says ‘no funds’ to pay air traffic controllers amid shutdown

Duffy said that it would be dishonest to say that more risk is not introduced into the system with the shutdown.

Photo: Department of Transportation

Sean Duffy, the Secretary of Transportation, has said that the Department of Transportation (DOT) does not have funds to pay air traffic controllers (ATCs), and that the laws do not allow for coming up with money to ensure that controllers get paid during a shutdown.

In a press conference on November 4, 2025, Duffy, who spoke about issues at Southeastern Pennsylvania Transportation Authority (SEPTA), also answered questions about the shutdown’s impact on air travel.

According to Duffy, he wishes there were “funds that I could pull” to pay controllers, who received their last – partial – paycheck on October 14, and a zero check on October 28. “This is the very nature of a shutdown; we do not have money,” he added.

The United States government has been shut down since October 1.

“We have tried to pull every dollar we can for different programs where we are legally allowed to pull and fund.”

To note, in late October, the DOT informed stakeholders that it had obtained additional funds to continue subsidizing essential air service (EAS) and alternative EAS (AEAS) flights until November 18. Previously, the Department had warned airlines and airports that it would run out of money to pay for EAS and/or AEAS on October 12 and then on November 2.

Duffy noted that “the law does not allow me” to just go get money to pay controllers in the US if Congress has not funded the government. “That is not the way our constitution works, and our government works,” he continued.

“The easy answer is: have a vote. […] Give us the votes in the Senate and fund the government; there is plenty of time to negotiate.”

Duffy, who was a Republican Representative for Wisconsin between 2010 and 2019, said he talked to a number of Democratic Senators, stating they were unable to tell him when they were planning to reopen the government. That was despite the fact that Republicans control both legislative chambers, and the Democrats’ main demand was to extend subsidies related to the Affordable Care Act (ACA), also known as Obamacare.

The shutdown has been affecting air travel, including delays, with Duffy saying on November 3 that “84% of delays were due to staff shortages” in the National Airspace System (NAS) on November 2.

At the time of publishing, the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) has a staffing trigger in place at Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport (PHX), with a ground stop published at Washington Ronald Reagan National Airport (DCA) “due to security.”

All flight operations are being held at Reagan National while passengers on a United Airlines flight are being offloaded and bussed to the terminal. We will provide more information as it becomes available.
— Reagan Airport (@Reagan_Airport) November 4, 2025

Earlier during the conference, Duffy warned that the longer the shutdown continues, the hard-working controllers, who have bills to pay, will be forced to decide whether to show up to work or “do they have to find a different job to get money to put food on their table, to put gas in their car.”

“What also concerns me, people always ask me, ‘Is the system safe?' and I would tell you yes, the system is safe, and if it was [sic] not, we would shut it down.”

Duffy stated that if the NAS does not have enough controllers “to effectively and safely manage our skies,” the FAA delays flights and tells airlines to cancel flights. “It would be dishonest to say that more risk is not injected into the system,” he concluded.