TSA Workers Were Told to Give Back Tyler Perry’s $250K Gift — Why They Aren’t

Tyler Perry’s money was no good when he attempted to support TSA workers at Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport during a government shutdown by handing out cash.

Just Trying to Help Out

The filmmaker initially tried to distribute cash to workers on March 27, The Atlanta Journal Constitution reported.

However, it was denied due to federal rules prohibiting direct gifts to TSA employees, USA Today reported.

So Perry provided an alternative in the form of $1,000 gift cards. In total, about $250,000 in gift cards were distributed to roughly 250 TSA officers, boosting morale during the shutdown, 10TV reported.

According to 11Alive the gesture lifted spirits across the airport, as he sought to relieve some of the financial pressure workers faced during the government shutdown. Perry’s team reportedly coordinated with management, human resources, and legal departments before returning to the airport to hand out gift cards to TSA employees. However, the airport’s federal security director reportedly flagged concerns about the distribution, the outlet reported. TSA worker were allegedly asked to return the gift cards.

Now Atlanta Black Star reports that “The Breakfast Club” host Loren Larosa claimed she spoke with a rep for Perry who denied the agents had to return the gift cards or that they had been told to do so. She was told Perry and his team worked closely with the “TSA Supervisor” at the airport.

Larosa then shared a comment including an alleged statement from Perry’s lawyer or team member.

It reads, “As you probably saw, our client Tyler Perry donated $250,000 worth of gift cards to TSA worker in Atlanta on Friday. Our team worked really closely with a TSA supervisor there to make sure this was handled properly and by the book. There is now a report going around now that these gift cards were returned and that is inaccurate – nothing has been returned to Tyler nor has anyone notified us that they will be returned.”

Some recipients had already spent portions of the cards on groceries and bills by the time the reversal order came down from higher leadership, according to People magazine.

The partial shutdown left more than 64,000 TSA workers unpaid for weeks, with many struggling to cover basic expenses, USA Today reported.

The shutdown has pushed many families to the edge after missing multiple pay periods in a row.

Workers faced severe hardship, including quitting, calling out, or resorting to extreme measures like sleeping in cars or selling plasma, People Magazine reported.

More than 480 officers quit and callout rates reached up to 40–50 percent during the crisis.

TSA employees collectively missed nearly $1 billion in wages during the shutdown, USA Today reported.

The funding standoff continued after a Senate measure failed in the House, prolonging uncertainty.

President Donald Trump moved to address the crisis last week by authorizing emergency funding to pay TSA workers sooner, restoring paychecks by March 30, according to USA Today. By that day many employees began receiving payments for the missed paydays, with DHS spokesperson Lauren Bis saying in a statement, “Most TSA employees received a retroactive paycheck today that included at least two full paychecks covering pay periods 4 and 5 today.”

The news of Perry’s involvement comes after Paramount Global has acquired Perry’s 25 percent minority stake in the BET+ streaming service in a reported buyout. Beginning in June 2026, the standalone BET+ platform will be phased out, with its content folded into Paramount+. Despite the sale, Perry’s production deal with BET remains in place through 2028.