Western Hemisphere Traveler Improvement Act of 2007

A bill to amend section 7209 of the Intelligence Reform and Terrorism Prevention Act of 2004 and for other purposes.

5/22/2007--Introduced.
Western Hemisphere Traveler Improvement Act of 2007 - Amends the Intelligence Reform and Terrorism Prevention Act of 2004 to require as part of the certifications required prior to implementation of the western hemisphere travel initiative (Initiative), that: />(1) a pilot program of at least one state has been initiated and evaluated to determine if an enhanced driver's license valid only for citizenship verification for U.S. entry from Canada meets documentation requirements;
(2) a study has determined the number of passports and passport cards that will be required to be issued; and
(3) sufficient passport adjudication personnel have been hired. Authorizes a person under 16 years old who is a U.S. or Canadian citizen to enter the United States with a birth certificate if the person:
(1) is accompanied by the individual's legal guardian; and
(2) is entering the United States from Canada or Mexico. Authorizes a person under 18 years old to enter the United States with a birth certificate if the person is traveling under adult supervision with a public or private school group, religious group, social or cultural organization, or a youth sports team. Directs the Secretary of State and the Secretary of Homeland Security to establish a state driver's license and identity card enrollment program to permit a U.S. citizen with a qualifying driver's license or identity card or a Canadian citizen with a qualifying comparable document to enter the United States from Canada by land or sea without providing other citizenship documentation. Authorizes program expansion to include other countries. Directs the Secretary of Homeland Security to accept a birth certificate as proof of citizenship for any U.S. citizen who is traveling from one part of a state to a noncontiguous part of that state through Canada if:
(1) the citizen cannot travel by land to such part of the state without traveling through Canada; and
(2) the travel in Canada is limited to no more than two hours. Directs the Secretary of State, during the two-year period beginning on the date on which the Secretary of Homeland Security publishes a final rule in the Federal Register to carry out the Initiative, to:
(1) provide one facility in each of at least six designated cites or ports of entry in which a passport or passport card may be procured without an execution fee; and
(2) develop at least six mobile teams along the U.S. northern and southern borders to issue passports or other identity documents without an execution fee. Requires the Secretary of Homeland Security to do a cost-benefit analysis of the Initiative prior to publishing such final rule. States that Congress' intent in enacting section 546 of the Department of Homeland Security Appropriations Act, 2007 was to prevent the Secretary of Homeland Security from implementing the Initiative before the earlier of June 1, 2009, or the date on which the Secretary certifies to Congress that an alternative travel document (passport card) has been developed and widely distributed to eligible U.S. citizens. Amends the State Department Basic Authorities Act of 1956 to extend passport processing authorities for civil service and foreign service annuitants.

... morehide bill summarySee Full Bill Text

Sponsor

• Sen. Norm Coleman [R, MN]
• and 4 Co-Sponsors
  • Sen. Susan Collins [R, ME]
  • Sen. Amy Klobuchar [D, MN]
  • Sen. John Sununu [R, NH]
  • Sen. George Voinovich [R, OH]
  close

Committees

• Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs

Amendments

This bill has no amendments.

Amendments to S.35

Number	Status	Purpose

Bill Status

Make a Bill Status Widget (Close help)

OpenCongress widgets allow you to display information about bills and issue areas on your own website or blog. First, select which bill or issue you want to track, then customize the appearance of the panel, and finally paste a simple chunk of HTML into your site. Now your community will have an easy, up-to-date way to track the status of important bills and issues in Congress.

Introduced		Voted on by Senate		Voted on by House		Considered By President		Bill Becomes Law
May 22, 2007

Show All Actions (2 actions)Hide Actions

All Bill Actions

• May 22, 2007: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs.
• Introduced on May 22, 2007.

---

Related Issue Areas:

• Immigration
• Administrative fees
• Administrative procedure
• Canada
• 19 more
• Children
• Citizenship
• Cost effectiveness
• Department of Homeland Security
• Driver licenses
• Executive departments
• Federal employees
• Finance
• Foreign policy
• Foreign service
• Government employees
• Identification devices
• Latin America
• Law
• Mexico
• Passports
• Transportation
• Travel
• Western Hemisphere

Data from the Congressional Research Service

Show More User Statistics... Hide User Statistics

In the News

October 14, 2007 Oil & Gas News: Completions

WHERE: Woodardville Field, S. 35, T. 15N, R. 9W. DAILY PRODUCTION: 349 mcf gas on 18/64-inch choke; 606 barrels water. PRESSURE: 850 lbs. ...

Was this article useful? Yes or No

Source: Shreveport Times, LA

Did you find this article useful? Your opinion counts - together, we're finding the very best news and blog coverage about Congress available on the web.

See most useful news articles

Blog Coverage

August 21, 2007 Rauchverbot: Schleswig-Holsteinisches Ärzteblatt 08/2006 S.35

Werden jetzt die Raucher stigmatisiert? Auf der einen Seite werden die Öffnungszeiten für Biergärten verlängert - kein Gesundheits- oder sonstiger Politiker denkt über Belästigung der Nachbarschaft nach, Hauptsache, die Wirtschaft ...

Was this article useful? Yes or No

Source: Sackstark

Did you find this article useful? Your opinion counts - together, we're finding the very best news and blog coverage about Congress available on the web.

See most useful blog posts

Information made available by: