Planes lined up Terminal C at Newark Liberty Airport
Syndication: New Jersey Herald
(New York, NY) — The United States continues to battle a passport crisis this summer. Since the pandemic, The U.S. The Department of State has been up to its neck with nearly half-a-million passport applicants per week.
The uptick in applicants is largely due to the pandemic, according to Congressman Henry Cuellar. “Americans didn’t do anything for a couple of years,” said the Congressman referring to the COVID-19 pandemic, “they did not renew their passports at that time, so all of a sudden [post-lockdown] there’s a rush [to renew the passports].”
The increase in applicants is not all to blame, however. Cuellar also noted many employees within the department are “teleworking,” or in other words, working remotely from home. “They need to be at the office,” concluded the Congressman regarding the State Department workers.
If you plan on booking an international trip this summer, but are still waiting on your passport, it’s best to wait until you physically have your passport before doing so to avoid missing out on your summer getaway.
77 WABC’s Michael Lamorte has more:
