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The Department of Homeland Security restarted the Global Entry program on Wednesday, a little over two weeks after it halted the service<\/a> for travelers because of the partial government shutdown<\/a>.<\/p>\n Global Entry allows pre-approved, low-risk travelers to use expedited kiosks \u2014 for a fee \u2014 when entering the United States from abroad, saving them time at airports and other ports of entry.<\/p>\n Homeland Security officials initially said the program would be suspended as long as the partial shutdown remained in effect when announcing the move on Feb. 22.<\/p>\n The department reassigned U.S. Customs and Border Protection workers staffing the Global Entry program to process all other arriving travelers. <\/p>\n Travelers at a handful of U.S. airports faced long security lines<\/a> this past weekend, raising concerns about how the government shutdown will impact the busy spring travel season.<\/p>\n The shutdown began Feb. 14 after Democrats and the White House were unable to reach a deal on legislation to fund Homeland Security. Democrats want changes to immigration operations that are central to President Donald Trump\u2019s deportation campaign.<\/p>\n The problems during the latest shutdown are renewing attention to ways to prevent airport security operations from being slowed during political impasses, including allowing more airports to outsource security screening<\/a> while maintaining TSA oversight. <\/p>\n<\/div>\n