April 7, 2026 / 5:40 PM EDT — CBS News
Chimney Rock, North Carolina — Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin said Tuesday that Department of Homeland Security employees who have been working without pay during the six-week government shutdown should receive missed paychecks by the end of the week.
Mullin, traveling on his first official visit as DHS secretary, said the department is using executive action and existing funding flexibility to deliver payments covering recent pay periods. “We expect most of those checks to be in their banks by Friday,” he told CBS News. “Some of the financial institutions may have to wait till Monday, but the majority of everybody will be paid by then.”
He warned the step is not a long-term fix, saying future payroll — outside of law enforcement officials — will depend on Congress. Mullin described the move as using a presidential provision that allows limited reallocation of funds in emergencies, calling it “a little bit of flexibility … with the dollars that were set up to allow us to do stuff just like this.”
Mullin criticized Democrats for the funding lapse, saying, “They’re willing to defund and shut down 22 agencies that are tasked to keep the homeland safe,” and praised DHS employees who continued working without pay. He called their dedication “a tremendous amount of dedication from employees that I get to be over right now.”
(Photo: Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin talks with Mayor Peter O’Leary during a trip to survey Hurricane Helene damage, April 7, 2026, Chimney Rock, N.C. — Rebecca Santana / AP)