House passes bill to break passport backlog

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Looking to break a passport bottleneck that has upset Americans' travel plans and jammed congressional phone lines with calls from anxious constituents, the U.S. House of Representatives on Monday passed legislation allowing the State Department to hire experienced help.

The bill was approved by voice vote in the House and is slightly different from a version unanimously approved by the Senate in June. It will return to the Senate for final approval before Congress sends it to President George W. Bush for his signature.

The bill allows the State Department to rehire retired employees to help clear a huge backlog of passport applications caused by new rules requiring passports of U.S. citizens flying to Canada, Mexico, Bermuda and the Caribbean.

The State Department in June temporarily relaxed the rules, but that has only partly eased the problem

"Hopefully, this will get experienced people at their desks this summer to help people get their passports," said Sen. Charles Schumer, a New York Democrat who sponsored the Senate bill.

Most Americans rarely travel abroad and often do not apply for passports until they have plans to do so. Lawmakers have said they have been swamped with calls from constituents desperate for help with getting their passports.

The State Department told Congress last month that 2.95 million passports were pending, with wait times of 10 to 12 weeks for normal processing and up to three weeks for the more expensive expedited service.

Lawmakers said they have heard of constituents not getting their passports until just before their departure times and of people forced to cancel trips. The normal application process is about six weeks for regular service and two weeks for expedited service.