Section 1 Short title
This Act may be cited as the “Passport Processing Efficiency Act”.
Passport Processing Efficiency Act
A BILL
To prioritize the processing of United States passport applications submitted at in-person appointments at passport agencies or through the mail, and for other purposes.
Sec. 2 Priority of processing of passport applications at in-person appointments at passport agencies and through the mail
The Secretary of State shall prioritize the processing of United States passport applications submitted by individuals at in-person appointments at passport agencies or through the mail over applications transmitted by third-party passport couriers.
Sec. 3 Reports
In general— Not later than 180 days after the date of the enactment of this Act, and annually thereafter, the Secretary of State shall submit to the Committee on Foreign Relations of the Senate and the Committee on Foreign Affairs of the House of Representatives a report that includes—
data illustrating the allocations of slots to third-party couriers by each passport agency on a yearly basis, disaggregated by passport agency;
data illustrating the changes made to the number of such allocations of slots to third-party couriers by each passport agency, disaggregated by passport agency, during the reporting period; and
an explanation detailing how the Department of State decided on the allocation of slots to third-party couriers and any adjustments thereto during the reporting period.
Report relating to citations— Not later than 180 days after the date of the enactment of this Act, and annually thereafter, the Secretary of State shall submit to the Committee on Foreign Relations of the Senate and the Committee on Foreign Affairs of the House of Representatives a report that includes—
all citations against third-party passport couriers by each passport agency; and
for each citation listed under paragraph (1), a description of the penalty imposed against the courier involved and a notation indicating the passport agency that issued the citation and the penalty.
Citation defined— In this section, the term citation means any violation of the Department of State’s National Hand-Carry Procedures for Passport Applications and Completed Passports, or any regulations or other measures related to or succeeding these procedures, recorded by a passport agency.
Sec. 4 Website
In general— The Secretary of State shall publish and maintain on the Department of State’s website a section for individuals to submit complaints against third-party couriers and an aggregated summary of such complaints.
Matters To be included— The aggregated summary required by subsection (a) shall include—
the most frequent and the most severe complaints submitted pursuant to such subsection; and
a description of steps the Department of State has taken, is taking, or intends to take to remediate such complaints.
Sec. 5 Third-party passport couriers and third-party couriers defined
In this Act, the terms “third-party passport couriers” and “third-party couriers” mean a private-sector entity that charges a passport applicant a service fee for hand delivering his or her passport application to a domestic United States passport agency and retrieving the completed passport or related documents on behalf of the applicant.