Border ID Rules Postponed

Border ID rules postponed

Timothy Newcomb
Assistant editor

WHATCOM -- The often-debated rules requiring passports at all United States ports of entry have been postponed.

Last week, the United States Congress delayed from Jan. 1, 2008, to June 1, 2009 the mandate that all individuals entering the U.S. (including U.S. citizens) have valid passports or other pre-approved government-issued identification.

President Bush needs to sign the bill, and a possibility remains that the delay could extend even longer.

Travelers entering the U.S. via air will still be required to have a passport starting on Jan. 7, 2007.

Local U.S. Representative Rick Larsen said that the delay will help the government ensure that identification cards and passports actually help secure the U.S. without hindering cross-border travel.

"These travel restrictions could drastically hurt Washington state commerce and significantly impede the economic benefits our state hopes to gain from the 2010 Olympic Games," Larsen said. "This extension is necessary to allow the federal government to get this right. As we work to implement strong border security, we also need to implement new restrictions in a way that considers trade and commerce."

Elected officials on both sides of the border from
Washington to Maine have called the rules too strict on travel and a detriment to commerce without the benefit of added security.

"The Department of Homeland Security and the State Department are not ready to implement new border security requirements along our northern border," Larsen said.

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