Using public resources for political activity can run afoul of federal law and state statutes across the country.
(Stephanie Scarbrough | AP) Transportation Security Administration employees leave a security checkpoint during a shift change at Baltimore/Washington International Thurgood Marshall Airport, Thursday, Oct. 2, 2025, in Baltimore.
The Salt Lake City International Airport has decided it will not play a video of Homeland Security Secretary Kristi L. Noem blaming congressional Democrats for the shutdown of the federal government and travel delays.
Officials have made the same decision at airports serving Buffalo, Charlotte, Cleveland, Los Angeles, Phoenix, Seattle and Portland, Oregon, according to The Washington Post, citing policies that bar political messaging or state or federal laws that prohibit the use of public resources for political activity.
In Utah, state law prohibits the use of city-owned equipment for “political activity,” said Nancy Volmer, the airport’s director of communication and marketing.
The televisions in the airport are owned and operated by Salt Lake City, she said.
“I actually am the one who posts those on the monitors, and was concerned about the content,” Volmer said. “We discussed it with our attorneys and executive director [Bill Wyatt], and they got back to us and said we’re not able to post messages if they are used for political messaging.”
Bill Wyatt is executive director of the Salt Lake City Department of Airports. The airport is managed by the department, which is overseen by the city’s mayor, the City Council and a nine-member advisory board of citizen volunteers, according to the airport’s website.
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