Overview
- Perry’s team said Tuesday that TSA legal counsel reconfirmed workers can keep the $1,000 gift cards, and about 100 collected cards were returned to employees.
- Perry first tried to hand out cash but was turned away under federal rules, then on Friday he distributed roughly 250 Visa gift cards after coordinating with airport officials and the TSA union.
- Airport leadership later told some agents to give the cards back, citing ethics concerns, as federal guidance treats Visa-style cards as cash equivalents that employees generally cannot accept.
- A DHS spokesperson reiterated that gifts at screening checkpoints and cash-equivalent donations are barred, though local and agency legal reviews can shape how outside help is handled.
- The flap unfolded as staffing thinned and pay resumed, with President Trump’s Friday order directing DHS to fund TSA payroll and many officers receiving back pay starting Monday.