Back in 2005, during a news briefing on new passport requirements, Bush administration officials were adamant about their ability to handle an expected increase in new applications.
“We’ve hired a bunch of new people,” said State Department Assistant Secretary Maura Harty. “We’re up for this.”
By now, it’s apparent the administration has failed miserably in efforts to plan for the crush of U.S. passport applications. Wait times have soared from weeks to months. People are missing summer vacations. Tempers are flaring.
It’s a fiasco.
The logjam has its roots in a Sept. 11 commission recommendation that the U.S. strengthen its travel document requirements to prevent terrorists from entering the country. Congress passed a measure directing the departments of State and Homeland Security to come up with a passport plan, which they did. Unfortunately, they weren’t up to the task.
The new rules were wide-ranging and planned in phases. They included new passport requirements for high-traffic border areas, including Canada and Mexico. Eventually, passports will be required for all land and sea border crossings.
Unfortunately, the government infrastructure wasn’t beefed up enough to handle the influx of applications.
Faced with a backlog, the administration recently issued a reprieve on rules requiring passports for citizens flying back from Mexico, Canada, the Caribbean and Bermuda. If travelers provide a passport application receipt and a government-issued ID, they can re-enter the country.
But the temporary suspension doesn’t help those who need passports for travel to places like Europe or Asia. Those applications are stuck in the deluge. The volume is so great that members of Congress, who have traditionally been able to extract expedited passports from the State Department, have found it increasingly difficult to help constituents.
By and large, Americans have been tolerant, if not outright supportive, of efforts to make our country safer. However, it’s clear that authorities did a poor job of preparing for passport rule changes.
Next week, Harty, the State Department official, is to appear before the Senate Foreign Relations Committee. We hope she presents a cogent plan that includes additional manpower and a better process for expediting passport applications.
The current state of affairs is a disservice to Americans who have dutifully tried to follow every new security regulation. They shouldn’t have to sacrifice travel plans because of bureaucratic bungling.
