WASHINGTON -- Travel Industry Association Chairman John Marks,
testifying before the House Government Reform Committee, again
warned that the government's war on terrorism could become a war on
tourists if new passport and visa controls have the effect of
turning away visitors.
Marks called for a delay in the implementation of a directive
that visa applicants in foreign countries, starting Aug. 1, must be
interviewed in person by U.S. consulate or embassy officials.
The TIA also is concerned that the U.S. is requiring the 27
countries in the Visa Waiver Program (VWP) to start issuing
machine-readable passports by Oct. 1.
Originally, VWP countries had until 2007, but a recently passed
law accelerated the date. The program enables travelers from
qualifying countries to
enter the U.S. without a visa.
The TIA said some of the countries won't have machine-readable
passports in circulation in time to meet the deadline.
Marks said the TIA generally supports the government's efforts
to secure U.S. borders, but the TIA believes the new visa and
passport rules have been issued without providing the necessary
monetary and personnel support to implement them.
The Bush administration disagrees and sent its own witnesses to
the hearing to downplay the potential negative impact of the new
requirements.
"We are working to effectively and smoothly implement the
[machine-readable] requirement," said Janice Jacobs, deputy
assistant secretary for visa services at the State Department. "We
are vigorously publicizing the requirement in the VWP countries,
and our embassies are fully prepared."
Not convinced, Marks said, "If a 100% visa-interview policy was
implemented for the U.S. embassy in Seoul, South Korea, with no
additional resources, the embassy would have to issue a maximum of
200,000 visas of all types per year," he said. "The TIA estimates
this would result in a loss of approximately 114,000 travelers" and
$205 million in expenditures.
Marks also was critical of the State Department for issuing the
in-person interview rule without consulting with the travel and
other interested industries.
"We've been left somewhat in the cold. If there had been a
private-sector panel involved from the get-go, we may have been
able to mitigate some of these issues," he said.
Still unclear is whether tight passport and visa procedures
would prevent another terrorist attack. Jacobs said the State
Department sometimes works with the FBI and law enforcement
overseas to establish whether an individual has a criminal
record.
However, "Most of the responsibility is placed on the applicant
to establish his or her eligibility for the visa. There are forms
the applicant fills out that specifically ask about various grounds
of ineligibility that include criminal activity," he said.