Sen. Lujan Introduces the WATCH Personnel Act to Raise TSA Pay and Provide $10,000 Bonuses
The WATCH Personnel Act of 2026 was introduced in the Senate and is currently being reviewed by the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation. It is in the early stages of the legislative process and is considered active. There are no upcoming votes scheduled at this time.
While there is pressure to pay workers during a shutdown, standalone bills that raise permanent salaries often face opposition over costs and budget priorities.
Scores run from -100 (strongly harmful) to +100 (strongly beneficial) for each group, combining impact, certainty, scope, and duration ratings of 1-5. How impact scoring works
TSA officers would see a permanent pay floor of $40,000 per year, annual inflation adjustments, and a one-time $10,000 bonus. The bill also shields TSA workers from losing paychecks during government shutdowns. While this is a major benefit for TSA employees specifically, they make up a small fraction of the total federal workforce (roughly 50,000-60,000 out of over 2 million civilian federal workers).
“set the minimum annual salary for a Transportation Security Officer to $40,000 for fiscal year 2026”
Read twice and referred to the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation.
Sent to a congressional committee for expert review. The committee decides whether this bill moves forward.
Introduced in Senate
The bill was officially filed and given a number. It now enters the legislative queue.
No votes recorded for this bill yet.
Document Type
Congressional Bill
Official Title
WATCH Personnel Act of 2026
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