Last week, U.S. Rep. Greg Steube, R-Fla., introduced a proposal to “require the State Department to notify U.S. citizens in advance of their passport expiration date and provide renewal information.”
Steube brought out the “Passport Notification Act,” which “requires the Assistant Secretary of State for Consular Affairs to provide U.S. citizens an electronic or paper notification regarding a pending passport expiration date and information on the renewal process at least 180 days in advance.”
“Many Americans have found themselves missing important trips and being unable to travel abroad due to expiring passports,” said Steube. “By requiring a six-month notice ahead of a passport’s expiration, my legislation will ensure a smoother renewal process for Americans amid the extreme passport backlog. This will prevent a prolonged backlog in the future.”
The congressman’s office offered some of the reasons behind the proposal.
“While Americans rely on the efficient and predictable provision of government services to make decisions and plan their lives, a months-long backlog of passport applications is impacting Americans all across the country. This spring, Secretary of State Antony Blinken testified before the House Appropriations Committee about the ‘dramatic’ increase in passport requests, noting that the State Department is getting 500,000 applications a week for a passport,” Steube’s office noted.
The bill was sent to the U.S. House Foreign Affairs Committee. So far, there is no companion bill over in the U.S. Senate and no House co-sponsors.
