MONTPELIER, Vt.—Six senators from northern New England and New York asked the U.S. Department of Homeland Security on Monday to delay implementation of stiff new identification requirements for people entering the United States by land from Canada.
In a letter to Secretary Michael Chertoff, 19 senators said commerce will be stifled and lives disrupted if federal officials go ahead Thursday with plans to end the practice of allowing people to enter after showing a document -- such as a driver's license -- and declaring their nationality.
But federal officials say the "honor system" must end now.
"There is enormous downside and very little upside to the new hoops they want to put everyone through on the Canadian border," said U.S. Sen. Patrick Leahy, D-Vt. "These paper padlocks won't make us safer."
Implementing the new rules now would violate the spirit of a law passed last month that delays until June 2009 a requirement that people carry passports or similar documents when entering the United States by land or sea, they said.
The senators -- 10 of whom are Republicans -- want Chertoff to delay the new ID requirements until the Western Hemisphere Travel Initiative is fully implemented. The extra time is needed to ensure the requirements are implemented smoothly and do not disrupt commerce and lives along the border, they said.
"If these new requirements go into effect at the end of this month, travel to and from Alaska and other border states will be severely crippled," said U.S. Sen. Ted Stevens, an Alaska Republican who co-sponsored the law delaying the passport requirement until 2009. "I strongly urge Secretary Chertoff to reconsider his decision to move forward with this ill-conceived plan."
Homeland Security spokeswoman Laura Keehner said Monday people have known for months the new system was being implemented.
"We remain steadfast in our commitment to rejecting the honor system when deciding who to let into the United States. That's why we are moving forward with new procedures starting this Thursday, January 31," Keehner said. "This department cannot ignore the lessons that we learned from Sept. 11, 2001, nor can we faithfully strengthen border security yet leave this vulnerability in status quo."
A spokesman for U.S. Customs and Border Protection, the agency tasked with the new policy, said he wasn't expecting any problems Thursday. No one will be denied entry into the United States if they don't have the required paperwork, he said.
"The officers are well aware of the documentary requirements," said Customs and Border Protection spokesman Ted Woo. "This is only an educational period. Wait times are going to be very closely monitored."
Travelers who don't have the required identification will be given a flyer explaining the new rules. It's unclear how long the grace period will last.
In Vermont, people along the Canadian border fear the new requirements could hinder commerce between the two countries and disrupt a way of life in which people cross with few formalities.
In Maine, the Merchants Association said it supported efforts to delay the pending border requirements.
"These new measures will dramatically slow down the flow of commerce across the border at a time when we need it the most," the association said in a statement Monday. "With over $1 million of surface transportation trade occurring between the U.S. and Canada every minute, let's use the time that Congress has provided to find the right solution."
The letter was signed by Sens. Leahy,; Stevens, R-Alaska; Charles Schumer, D-N.Y.; Sherrod Brown, D-Ohio; Norm Coleman R-Minn.; Susan Collins, R-Maine; Larry Craig, R-Idaho; Mike Crapo, R-Idaho; Pete Domenici, R-N.M.; Byron Dorgan, D-N.D.; Amy Klobuchar, D-Minn.; Carl Levin, D-Mich.; Lisa Murkowski, R-Alaska; Patty Murray, D-Wash.; Bernard Sanders, I-Vt.; Olympia Snowe, R-Maine; John Sununu, R-N.H.; George Voinovich, R-Ohio; and Chris Dodd, D-Conn.
