SE Kansas City News

(Kansas City, MO) – On June 1, in a letter to U.S. Department of State (DOS) Assistant Secretary for Consular Affairs Rita Bitter, Representative Emanuel Cleaver, II (MO-05) and Sharice Davids (KS-03) urged the DOS to provide answers for the dramatic delays in processing passport applications. In recent months, both offices have received a growing number of messages from constituents experiencing delays in requesting a passport.

“Over the past few months, our offices on both sides of the state line have been inundated with requests from constituents experiencing delays in new or renewed passport applications. Today, we write to request an explanation of the root cause of these delays and an updated timeline for when folks in our districts should expect processing rates to return to pre-pandemic levels,” Cleaver and Davids wrote.

“We understand that high demand has put enormous pressure on the agency’s ability to process applications more efficiently. But with demand remaining high, actions must be taken to improve wait times and solve processing issues,” Cleaver and Davids continued.

Current passport application requests have increased by 40 percent when compared to last year, and it can take up to four months for the requests to be processed. The DOS previously launched an online passport renewal pilot program to expedite the process, but on March 8, 2023, it shut down after experiencing systematic roadblocks. Also, Cleaver and Davids supported the National Defense Authorization Act of 2023, which required a study of areas throughout the United States with a high demand for passports, but where in-person offices are many miles away. In the letter, they asked for an update on this review.

The official letter from Cleaver and Davids is available here.

Emanuel Cleaver, II is the U.S. Representative for Missouri's Fifth Congressional District, which includes Kansas City, Independence, Lee's Summit, Raytown, Grandview, Sugar Creek, Greenwood, Blue Springs, North Kansas City, Gladstone, and Claycomo. He is a member of the exclusive House Financial Services Committee and Ranking Member of the House Subcommittee on Housing and Insurance. 

Original source can be found here