The U.S. State Department increased the processing time for new passports to 10 to 13 weeks – causing an impossible problem for travelers in Alabama and across the country.
“We are working hard to get back to our pre-pandemic processing times by the end of calendar year 2023,” a State Department spokesperson said last week.
That delay isn’t acceptable to Sen. Katie Britt and a coalition of GOP senators.
Britt (R-Montgomerh) recently joined Sen. Rick Scott (R-Fla.) and 12 of their colleagues in a letter to Secretary of State Antony Blinken urging him to take immediate action to resolve the massive backlog of passport applications.
“Given the sheer number of Alabamians who have recently requested help with a passport issue, I’m concerned that action has not been taken sooner to address this concern, which clearly affects a great number of Alabamians,” said Britt.
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“As record levels of Americans continue to book flights across the globe, we request this matter be dealt with immediately and transparently to prevent further backlog.”
In the letter, the senators noted reports regarding issues and concerns with delayed wait times, lack of available in-person appointments, and an inability to communicate with passport agencies – which is an “unacceptable failure” from a federal government that should be focused on serving American taxpayers and their needs.
Read the full letter here.
“As summer begins and families across the nation are finalizing their travel plans, we have heard countless reports from constituents in our states about the massive backlogs in processing passport applications,” the letter to Blinken reads.
“The Department of State must address these issues promptly to remedy the situation.”
Grayson Everett is a staff writer for Yellowhammer News. You can follow him on Twitter @Grayson270
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