Area residents unclear about new border rules

A requirement that U.S. and Canadian citizens have a passport by January 1, 2008, for entering the U.S. at land border crossings has now been delayed until June 1, 2009. The omnibus funding bill passed by Congress and signed by the president during the last few days of December will delay the passport requirement for one year.

While a passport will not be needed until 2009, effective the end of this month, January 31, 2008, U.S. and Canadian citizens entering the U.S. at land and sea ports of entry must possess a government-issued photograph identification C a driver's license C and proof of citizenship C a birth certificate. A copy of a birth certificate will be sufficient, or a current passport may be used in place of the birth certificate.

The Western Hemisphere Travel Initiative (WHTI) or "passport rule" was signed into law in 2004 requiring all individuals crossing the border from Canada and Mexico to carry documents deemed sufficient to denote identity and citizenship. Maine Senator Susan Collins, along with other members of Congress, was successful in efforts to delay the full implementation of the passport measure while the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) works to identify alternative and less expensive forms of identification.

Ted Woo, liaison officer with U.S. Customs and Border Protection, says that in the past Americans were only required to make a verbal statement as to their citizenship and Canadians were required to show some sort of identification. Woo says there are efforts under way to produce a specialized driver's license-size identification card as an alternative to a passport. The state of Washington will begin the production of the first enhanced driver's license this month. The license will have bar codes and other security features on the back of the card.

For Leslie Bernardini, who was born in Canada but is a U.S. citizen who lives in Calais and works in St. Stephen, crossing the border each day requires several pieces of identification. She has an American driver's license and a Canadian passport. This combination triggers the need, as of January 31, for a 8 1/2" x 11" certificate showing how she obtained residency in the United States. Had Bernardini, who has dual citizenship, known what new requirements would be in place, she would have obtained a U.S. passport. "I just spent $120 to get the Canadian passport, which requires a trip to Fredericton to apply for the passport. I am confused because I am not getting the right answers. Customs people give me different answers."

Bernardini says, "I don't have a problem with showing identification, I just wish everyone would get on the same page."

In the summer, Bernardini parks her car in the Downeast Heritage Museum parking lot and walks across the border rather than hold up vehicle traffic. In the winter, she drives her 16-year-old daughter to school in St. Stephen. Her daughter is in the same situation. She will be required to carry an 8 1/2" x 11" certificate to prove how she obtained U.S. residency. The documents are provided at the time U.S. citizenship is granted. Bernardini worries about her daughter or herself losing the certificates. The cost to replace the documents is $300 to $500 each. Bernardini, like many others, remembers how easy it was to cross the border prior to 9/11.

St. Stephen resident Joyce Sampson, who will have to carry a birth certificate to cross the border, says, "It is another thing to carry." She and her husband have been putting off getting a passport. "I do hope to get a passport. More regulations are always a nuisance."

Norma McGirr of St. Stephen says she doesn't shop in Calais but she does cross the border to purchase gas. She goes early in the morning to avoid lines. She will carry a birth certificate, noting, "It is no big deal to me. Much better than paying $85 for a passport."

Jo-Anne Moffat lives in St. Stephen and works in Calais. She has a passport and sees it as a small inconvenience. During the peak traffic season, she leaves a little early for work.

Paul "Skip" Cole, superintendent of the Roosevelt Campobello International Park Commission, says it is hard at this point to know the effect new requirements will have on visitation to the park. "In the short run, we may see some visitation drop off." Cole notes that the U.S. is one of the few countries requiring little identification. "We have had such free borders for so long, people will have to get used to the burden of proof of identification."

Cole, who resides in the U.S. and commutes to Campobello on almost a daily basis, believes in time the requirement of proof of identification will come to be accepted by people. He notes that in Europe proof of ID has been an accepted requirement. Cole has a passport and will use it as proof of citizenship.