Rangel Praises Decision To Ease Passport Regulations

Press Release

RANGEL PRAISES DECISION TO EASE PASSPORT REGULATIONS

Congressman Charles B. Rangel praised the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) for allowing Americans to temporarily travel to Canada, Latin America and the Carribean without a passport, as long as they have proof of having applied for one.

"I have to commend DHS for listening to the needs of Americans, who often just wanted to see loved ones abroad or take a well-deserved vacation," said Rangel. "They have shown real leadership in trying to correct a mistake, instead of blindly following a course that is clearly having problems."

According to the relaxed rules, adults still awaiting a passport should present government-issued photo identification and an official proof of application from the U.S. Department of State. Children under the age of 16 traveling with their parents or legal guardian will be permitted to travel with the child's proof of application. U.S. citizens with pending passport applications can obtain proof of application at: http://travel.state.gov.

The Department's Western Hemisphere Travel Initiative (WHTI) was intended to strengthen border security and facilitate entry into the United States for citizens and legitimate international visitors as mandated by the Intelligence Reform and Terrorism Prevention Act of 2004. However, as early as last fall, Rangel and other members of the Congressional Black Caucus had urged the agency to revisit their decision. DHS conceded to delay the implementation of the requirements until June 1, 2009 for land crossings at the borders and for cruise passengers traveling within the Western Hemisphere.

The delay did little to prevent record number of applications and long waiting times since the beginning of the year. Rangel said his offices were being inundated with phone calls from constituents who had applied in some cases as early as February. Rangel said the issue was symptomatic of some the problems that DHS and immigration officials experience in processing not just passport requests, but visa petitions and citizenship applications.

"We need to wait until we have the technology and personnel in place to process the demand for all these applications," said the Congressman. "Security is not just about regulations. We have to invest the time and money to help provide federal agencies with practical resources that they need to implement these requirements."

DHS officials said that travelers who have not applied for a passport should not expect to be accommodated. The temporary decision also does not affect entry requirements to other countries. Americans traveling to a country that requires passports must still present those documents.

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