Olympia, Wash. – Washington state on Monday asked the federal government to authorize a three-month test program to scan the driver’s licenses of people crossing the border with British Columbia.
Gov. Chris Gregoire hopes a successful test of the technology will persuade the government not to require passports for all border crossings starting in the summer of 2009.
The governor and British Columbia Premier Gordon Campbell are trying to streamline the process for border crossings ahead of the 2010 Winter Olympics in Vancouver and Whistler, British Columbia.
Gregoire offered the proposal to the U.S. Department of Homeland Security for a 90-day test of hand-held wireless scanners to be used by U.S. border agents at the Blaine and Port Angeles crossings.
The devices can scan the bar code on the back of U.S. and Canadian licenses to check for fakes and to see whether the driver’s name is on security watch lists in either country.
The scanners cost $10,000 each and already are used at some military installations.
After June 1, 2009, Americans returning to the U.S. after short visits to Canada and Mexico will be required to show passports or other high-tech ID cards. Currently, a driver’s license usually suffices.
“That’s cumbersome, and a passport currently costs $90,” said Gigi Zenk, spokeswoman for the Washington Department of Licensing. “Only about 23 percent of Americans own a passport, and only 10 percent of those actually leave the country.”
Gregoire is looking for an alternative that would provide security while not requiring passports or long delays at the crossings.
Washington and British Columbia “have a long history of friendship, and our citizens are accustomed to great flexibility when traveling across our shared border,” she said.
