What you need to know:
- Orlando International opened a new $25.1 million checkpoint support program this week, adding about 50 workers to help passengers move through security faster
- GOAA voted to approve the contract March 18 — at the height of a national TSA staffing crisis that left some airports with lines exceeding four and a half hours
- TSA workers nationwide began receiving back pay Monday after President Trump signed an executive order last week; the DHS shutdown technically remains unresolved
- The new checkpoint workers — called divesting agents — are paid through MCO's own budget and are not affected by the federal funding standoff
- A five-year, $25.1 million contract with Orlando-based Southeast Airport Services Inc. took effect on or about April 1
As TSA officers at airports across the country logged the longest security lines in the agency’s 24-year history, Orlando International Airport’s governing board voted to add workers to its checkpoints — and that plan went live this week.
The Greater Orlando Aviation Authority (GOAA) board unanimously approved the contract on March 18, at the peak of a partial government shutdown that pushed call-out rates above 40% at some airports and prompted lines exceeding four and a half hours at others. The new staff began work on or about April 1 — the same week TSA workers across the country received their first paychecks in 47 days.
What the contract does
GOAA awarded a five-year, $25.1 million contract to Southeast Airport Services Inc. to staff MCO’s security checkpoints with passenger assistance workers. About 50 “divesting agents,” plus supervisors and support staff, will coach travelers on what to remove from pockets and carry-on bags before X-ray screening, supply inspection trays, and guide passengers efficiently through the line.
The goal, said Angela Starke, GOAA’s senior vice president of public affairs, is to let Transportation Security Administration agents “to function primarily on screening and security.”
The additional workers will allow MCO to open “one to two additional checkpoint lanes at both the West and East locations, increasing throughput,” Starke said. GOAA’s benchmark is to screen 80% of passengers within 30 minutes.
Crucially, these workers are paid through GOAA’s own operating budget — not federal funds. Their employment is not affected by the federal funding standoff.
The national backdrop
Funding for the Department of Homeland Security lapsed Feb. 14, leaving TSA officers working without pay. Nationally, call-out rates hit 40% to 50% at some airports and nearly 500 agents quit. Congressional testimony described the situation as the worst wait times in the agency’s history.
TSA workers began receiving back pay Monday, March 30, after President Trump signed a presidential memorandum March 27 directing the agency to pay its workers using funds from legislation passed last year. The DHS shutdown remains technically unresolved — the Senate passed a partial funding measure excluding immigration enforcement, but the House has not voted.
MCO fared better than many airports during the standoff. “Many local TSA agents have continued to work despite the DHS funding lapse, and MCO has not seen a dramatic decrease in staffing,” Starke said. “These federal partners should be commended for their dedication.” Starke did not provide specific figures on MCO’s callout rate. TSA did not respond to a request for comment.
A limited version of this program has been running since June
MCO has had a smaller version of the program in place since June 2025, when Southeast Airport Services launched a pilot focused on bin recirculation — collecting and restocking the plastic trays passengers use at X-ray machines. The new contract expands that work to include divesting coaching, which the airport says is the step that most directly affects how fast travelers move through a checkpoint.
About the winning contractor
Southeast Airport Services is an Orlando-based certified Minority Business Enterprise. The company committed to a 12.3% Local Developing Business participation goal under the contract, exceeding the 11% threshold GOAA required, and received the top score among seven proposals evaluated in the competitive procurement.
Southeast Airport Services’ management fee is $3.5 million over five years; the full $25.1 million contract value includes a separate staffing reimbursement budget.
An eighth bidder, A & A Associates Inc., had its proposal rejected after GOAA’s Procurement Committee found the company did not meet the minimum experience requirement: at least three years of security checkpoint support work at a medium or large commercial airport within the past decade. A & A filed an appeal three weeks after the filing deadline; GOAA Chief Executive Lance Lyttle denied it. A & A Associates did not respond to a request for comment.