TSA workers can keep $1,000 gift cards from Tyler Perry

ATLANTA — TSA workers at Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport will be allowed to keep gift cards given to them by filmmaker and studio owner Tyler Perry after an initial decision raised questions about whether they could accept them.

[DOWNLOAD: Free WSB-TV News app for alerts as news breaks]

A spokesperson for Perry confirmed to Channel 2 Action News that the TSA’s legal team has now signed off, allowing all employees to keep the gift cards.

The update comes after uncertainty over whether federal employees were permitted to accept the gifts under ethical rules.

Perry initially tried to give cash to TSA workers who had been working without pay during the partial government shutdown, but federal rules prohibit TSA employees from accepting certain gifts, including cash.

He later returned with $1,000 gift cards, which were distributed to workers at the airport.

The gift cards were given as TSA officers continued reporting to work without pay during the shutdown, impacting the Department of Homeland Security.

Federal ethics rules restrict government employees, including TSA officers, from accepting certain gifts tied to their official positions.

In a statement on Monday, TSA officials confirmed workers received back pay for at least two paychecks they had missed since the partial government shutdown started.

The last time TSA workers were paid was the week of Feb. 14. Many officers had called out sick, while nearly 500 have quit altogether.

The low number of available TSA agents led to hours-long security lines at airports across the country, especially at Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport.

Channel 2 Action News spoke with passengers who said they waited as long as nine hours to get through security.

The lines appeared to have eased over the last few days at the Atlanta airport. Hartsfield-Jackson officials have also restored the wait times website, which was down for the past two weeks.