U.S. to drop passport requirement for kids at border crossings



OTTAWA -- The U.S. government is set to announce that it will excuse children from a contentious law requiring all visitors to show a passport at border crossings starting in 2009.


The Canadian Press has learned that U.S. Department of Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff will make the announcement during a Thursday stop in Detroit.

The move to exempt travelers under age 17 from the Western Hemisphere Travel Initiative would simplify cross-border travel for families, sports teams, youth groups, and school field trips.

It is not expected to apply to airports, where children will still require passports.

Two U.S. State Department sources said other announcements, including a possible exemption for seniors, could follow.

One said the move is a goodwill gesture that will alleviate the concerns of Canadians, as well as Michigan and other U.S. border states, that the new passport requirements could disrupt the economy.

The passport law is already in effect for air travel and will apply at land border crossings by June 2009.

The premiers of Ontario, Manitoba and New Brunswick will travel to Washington this weekend to raise concerns about the impact of the new passport regulations. They'll press their case with governors who are attending the winter meeting of the National Governors Association.

Premiers Dalton McGuinty of Ontario, Gary Doer of Manitoba and Shawn Graham of New Brunswick will have to produce their passports when they arrive in the U.S. capital as the result of the tougher security measures that took effect Jan. 23.

Graham is concerned the passport requirement goes too far.

"The current option does not recognize the number of towns and cities on each side of our border that act as one community with frequent movement across the border in both directions," Graham said.

Many U.S. legislators from border states have already voiced their support for changes.

In a letter sent Wednesday to the departments of Homeland Security and State, 21 members of the Congressional Northern Border Caucus urged that the agencies fully address border communities' economic and technical concerns before adopting the new requirements.

"Commerce and trade between the U.S. and Canada is an economic engine that generates upwards of $400 billion per year for our country and supports over 170,000 Michigan jobs," said caucus co-chair Rep. Bart Stupak, D-Mich. "While we certainly must ensure safe and secure borders, we can achieve that goal without damaging the trade, tourism and commerce that benefit both of our countries."

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