The media mogul gave reportedly gave $250,000 in total to TSA employees last week amid the partial government shutdown.

Atlanta TSA agents can keep ‘modern day Robin Hood’ Tyler Perry’s $1,000 gift cards after all

The media mogul gave reportedly gave $250,000 in total to TSA employees last week amid the partial government shutdown.

By Sharareh Drury

on March 31, 2026 4:43 p.m. ET

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After a bit of back-and-forth, TSA agents at Atlanta's Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport can officially hold onto gift cards given to them by Tyler Perry.

As TSA agents entered their sixth week of not being paid amid the partial government shutdown that began February 14, Tyler Perry took it upon himself to offer some monetary aid to agents overseeing massive lines during the busy spring break travel season. The *Madea** *creator and filmmaker reportedly gave $250,000 in total to TSA employees last week, according to Atlanta-based NBC affiliate WXIA.

However, the airport's federal security director soon raised concerns over the monetary gifts, and agents were initially ordered to return the gift cards. The issue has since been resolved, though, with Perry's team receiving documentation from both the Department of Homeland Security and TSA's legal teams that agents may hold onto the cards.

"Since late last week, Tyler worked closely with the TSA to make sure the donation was handled properly," a representative for Perry told **. "At one point there was confusion over a return of about 100 gift cards from employees to TSA supervisors, but Tyler’s team reconfirmed this morning that TSA’s legal counsel approved the donation. All of the approximately 100 returned gift cards is in the process of being given back to the employees."

Atlanta Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport on March 26, 2026.

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WXIA shared that the donations from Perry boosted morale, with one TSA employee calling the actor a "modern day Robin Hood."

Workers have missed over $1 billion in pay because of the shutdown, acting TSA administrator Ha Nguyen McNeill testified at a House hearing on March 25.

"This level of disruption is unprecedented, and unacceptable, and significantly undermines the security of U.S. transportation systems," McNeill said.

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On March 26, President Donald Trump announced he was directing the Department of Homeland Security to cover the salaries of airport transportation security officers who have gone without pay.

“I am going to sign an Order instructing the Secretary of Homeland Security, Markwayne Mullin, to immediately pay our TSA Agents in order to address this Emergency Situation, and to quickly stop the Democrat Chaos at the Airports,” Trump wrote in a social media post.

According to CNN, some of the 61,000 affected TSA employees began receiving back pay Monday.

[*This article has been with a statement from Perry's rep.*]

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