President Donald Trump and Congress reached a deal to reopen the federal government Friday, but not before Gov. John Bel Edwards extended unemployment benefits to TSA agents and Coast Guardsmen and flights were disrupted at the Monroe Regional Airport.

Edwards directed the Louisiana Workforce Commission to immediately extend eligibility for Unemployment Insurance benefits to more than 1,500 federal employees required to work without pay, though it appears now they will resume getting paid.

Unemployment benefits had already been extended to Louisiana's more than 4,000 federal workers who have been furloughed.

Louisiana joined Colorado, California, Vermont and the District of Columbia in paying benefits to all furloughed government workers.

“(Friday) marks the second pay period that approximately 6,000 federal workers in Louisiana have gone without a paycheck, and many of these dedicated employees have continued to report to work,” Edwards said. "Remember, it was the Coast Guard that rescued 33,500 people after Hurricane Katrina, and the Port of New Orleans recently announced that it moved more containers in 2018 than at any time in its history.

"Those facts, coupled with the millions of visitors preparing to descend upon Louisiana for Mardi Gras season, make these workers crucial to our state’s safety and welfare. Providing them with unemployment benefits is just the right thing to do.”

Public Service Commissioner Foster Campbell, D-Elm Grove, said he and other commissioners asked utilities to defer disconnecting service for federal employees unable to pay their utility bills.

“Federal workers have done nothing to deserve this hardship, and just this one step can help them get through it,” Campbell said.

In Monroe, airport manager Ron Phillips said the early morning Delta to Atlanta and United to Houston flights were delayed while the American flight to Dallas was canceled.

He said TSA agents from Alexandria and Shreveport have to finished the morning shift. TSA agents were working without pay during the federal shutdown.

"TSA's morning agents called in sick, but the agency was able to bring in others to get the operation back up and running," Phillips said.

TSA absences were running about 7 percent or higher during the most recent days of the 35-day shutdown, which is more than double the absentee rate before, according to the agency's website.

Phillips said as many as 200 passengers have been affected in Monroe so far.

The TSA media telephone line provided the following recorded message: "Thank you for calling the TSA media relations office. Due to the lapse in federal funding, we are currently unable to answer your phone call."

Greg Hilburn covers state politics for the USA TODAY Network of Louisiana. Follow him on Twitter @GregHilburn1