Last week, Congressman Mike Conaway (TX-11) sent a bipartisan letter to Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice urging her to work to resolve the current backlog of passport requests to ensure safe international travel for U.S. citizens. The letter, which was signed by 17 members of the Texas delegation, comes on the heels of new rules requiring a passport to travel by air in the Western Hemisphere, which has significantly increased the demand for passport issuance.
“Our offices have received many frantic phone calls from constituents over the past few weeks that are experiencing delays in receiving their passports,” said Conaway. “They are being forced to stand in long lines at passport offices, make repeated phone calls, and in some cases, do not receive their passports in time to meet their travel deadlines.”
When the Congressional offices have called the National Passport Information Center to inquire on the status of applications, or to expedite a passport request, they are being told to only call three days before the applicant needs the passport. Constituents waiting in line outside of the main passport offices in Houston are being turned away after they are told that they will need to schedule an appointment, some of which have submitted their passport request up to three months in advance.
Conaway went on to say, "The current situation is unacceptable. As we await a response from the state department on this issue, I will continue to work with my constituents to the best of my ability to aid them with their passport applications.”
Anyone who is in need of a passport is encouraged to apply well in advance by calling 1-877-487-2778 or by clicking here to apply online. Continue to call the passport office to receive updates and if you have not received your passport within three weeks of your travel departure date, please call Congressman Conaway’s district office at (866) 882-3811.
