Congress wasted no time Saturday clearing out of town, leaving behind a lot of unfinished business, such as approving many of the government's budgets for the fiscal year that started Saturday.
But Congress did at least a couple of things of import to northern Minnesota.
One is the extension of the deadline to implement the Western Hemisphere Travel Initiative (WHTI) - the convoluted State Department plan which essentially would require US citizens to purchase and use passports to cross the Canadian border. It was supposed to have started this Jan. 1, but now has been put off to June 2009, as part of a provision in the Department of Homeland Security appropriations conference report.
The measure to delay was pushed by Sen. Norm Coleman (R-MN), who held two hearings on the proposal as chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Subcommittee on Western Hemisphere. The provision not only affects US/Canadian border travel, but also those going to and from Mexico and the Caribbean to have a passport or other accepted document that establishes the bearer's identity and nationality to enter or re-enter the United States.
It could be a nightmare for our area, as passports cost about $100, and would be required of those who travel across the border each day for work, and even for traveling youth hockey players going back and forth for games.
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"The extension of this deadline is a win for Minnesotans living near the northern border due to the enormous impact WHTI will have," said Coleman. "While I share the goal of national security that was the basis for the WHTI proposal, it became evident through my hearings that the timeline for implementation was too ambitious. And despite today's victory, we still face many challenges in ensuring appropriate implementation of WHTI. It is essential that we continue working to expand the number and accessibility of documents acceptable for travel and make sure all new documents and technologies are tested for effectiveness."
Another provision of the bill, pushed by Sen. Mark Dayton (DFL-MN) will provide for 1,500 additional border agents of which at least 10 percent of the increased staffing be designated for the northern border - meaning about $38 million and 150 new agents, a 15 percent increase.
"Those additional federal agents should significantly increase the protection of Minnesotans living near the Canadian border and help stop illegal trafficking of people, narcotics and other criminal elements into our entire state," Dayton said.
It's an important step, as Minnesota received no federal money for northern border security this year. The US-Canadian border stretches across 18 states but has only 954 agents, with only 250 guarding the border at any one time. In contrast, there are 10,000 agents at our southern border.
Homeland Security includes all our borders, and we're pleased that Congress remembered that.
THE BEMIDJI PIONEER
