A U.S. Coast Guard MH-60 Jayhawk helicopter from USCG Air Station Kodiak conducts a hoist during a search and rescue exercise in Kodiak, Alaska, Feb. 12, 2026. (Cameron Snell/U.S. Coast Guard)
The U.S. Coast Guard said Monday that it continues search and rescue missions and other key functions even as up to 41,000 service members could go unpaid if the congressional budget showdown over Department of Homeland Security funding continues through Friday.
“The Coast Guard is focusing on those operations authorized by law that provide for national security or that protect life and property,” said Lt. Krystal Wolfe, a spokeswoman for the Coast Guard.
Wolfe said the service would continue to respond to oil spills and hazardous chemical releases, conduct law enforcement and security patrols, and “maintain safe and secure waterways.”
Coast Guard operations are covered by “excepted” provisions of the federal budget. Service members must continue to perform their duties, even without pay. Under federal law, they are reimbursed for lost earnings. Unlike other uniformed services, the Coast Guard is not part of the Defense Department and falls under the Department of Homeland Security.
Some Republicans in Washington have called on President Donald Trump to ensure the Coast Guard meets its payroll at the end of the week.
“More than 41,000 active-duty and activated Reserve Coast Guard members face the very real possibility of missing their next scheduled payday on Feb. 27 if the Department of Homeland Security does not receive appropriations,” U.S. Rep. Nicole Malliotakis, R-N.Y., and 12 other Republican members of Congress wrote in a letter sent during the weekend to Trump.
The Coast Guard said Feb. 18 that service members could apply to Coast Guard Mutual Assistance for an interest-free loan equal to one paycheck, up to $6,000.
Congress returned to Washington on Monday, and both the majority Republicans and the minority Democrats said there has been no agreement on the DHS budget. Prior funding expired Feb. 13.
The DHS budget was removed from a package of budget bills up for vote earlier this month. Democrats had called for the split in legislation following the fatal shooting of two protesters in Minneapolis by immigration agents.
Opponents of DHS funding sought to include guarantees in the legislation to stop ICE agents from operating in certain areas, prohibit the wearing of masks, require officers to wear bodycams and mandate better training on use-of-force rules.
House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, D-N.Y., said late last week that Democrats in the House and Senate were “on the same page” to vote against DHS funding without concessions from congressional Republicans and Trump.
Sen. Jacky Rosen, D-Nev., was one of eight Democrats to split from the party during efforts to reopen the government during the record 43-day shutdown late last year. She’s backing the party leaders’ efforts this time by opposing DHS funding.
“It’s up to Republicans in Congress to decide whether they’ll work with us to rein in ICE’s out-of-control behavior or continue their DHS shutdown to block any reforms,” Rosen said Feb. 19 in a statement.
Though ICE is the main target of Democratic opposition to approving DHS funding, the agency continues to operate using part of the $75 million in additional funding it received last year under the “One Big Beautiful Bill” legislation supporting a collection of Trump’s policy goals.
Left less protected or unfunded are the Coast Guard, the Transportation Security Administration, the Federal Emergency Management Agency, the U.S. Merchant Marine and other agencies that fall under the DHS.
Rep. Nick Begich, R-Alaska, who serves on the House Transportation Subcommittee overseeing the Coast Guard, last week told Fox News that the service was “collateral damage” in the fight over immigration agencies. Begich supports the DHS budget bill.
Wolfe said the main impact has been the “reduced capacity in some cases” for training and maintenance.
“We will continue to monitor the situation and, if necessary, adjust our operations to ensure national security and to protect life and property,” Wolfe said.
