US has a passport problem

flyingron said:
Acutally, the president appoints but needs confirmation from the Senate. While the FAA is enabled to generate their own regulation, Congress can, and at times has (Basic MED is an example) directed the federal agencies to do some specific thing. Of course, sometimes the FAA in stark violation of the Constitution disobeys Congress on things (like Airman record dissemination or reporting on why the flight restrictions are necessary).
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What you fail to realize is congress indeed gives the FAA a mandate.....then refuses to allocate funding for that mandate.

This is why there are no pictures on pilot certificates. Congress mandated it, but refuses to fund it.
 
It took 6 months for me to get approved to schedule an interview for Global Entry, which came in December. First available interview was in March at DFW (which was convenient since I go there often, but is still 4hrs away). Interview got Covid-canceled. They keep sending me monthly emails that I can complete the interview portion when I arrive back into the US from a number of international locations. How nice. I haven't even checked in months to see if they're scheduling interviews again.

Was TSA precheck that let expire in January since GE should have taken that coverage. What a bunch of crap.
 
Doc Holliday said:
What you fail to realize is congress indeed gives the FAA a mandate.....then refuses to allocate funding for that mandate.

This is why there are no pictures on pilot certificates. Congress mandated it, but refuses to fund it.
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???.

Actually they allocated the FAA $17,105,000,000.

Are you suggesting they only have to do things with specific line item funding?
 
jbarrass said:
???.

Actually they allocated the FAA $17,105,000,000.

Are you suggesting they only have to do things with specific line item funding?
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FAA is a huge organization that covers a lot of items. Those submitted budgets are indeed line item. If the congress won't allocate the funds for certificates with pictures, the choice is to cut budgets in other areas. But then, when cutting budgets in other areas is a double edge sword, because the next fiscal year budget is based off of the present budget. So if the FAA submits for the new budget, but shows cuts in the present budget chances are congress will not allocate.

Again, in simplicity, congress passes the laws, and controls the budget process. If congress won't allocate funds for a law they passed, then it becomes difficult for any agency to proceed.
 
It's not just passports, it's every state and federal office job.
I called the Albany FSDO two months ago looking for an answer to a question and got the recorded "Leave a message, someone will get back to you."
It's been 2 months, no response.
I called again on Friday. Someone actually picked up the phone. I asked my question. The person said "hold on a minute". They put the phone on the desk. CLUNK! I can hear the guy arguing with someone about the cost of new tires for his car. Five minutes later, I hear him pick up the phone, there was a click and then I get the message: "Leave a message, someone will get back to you."

My son bought a car just as the pandemic started. They still haven't processed his registration. He has been driving all these months with a temp dealer plate.
There is no one working at the DMV. But they are getting paid.

Passport? I'm probably not going to live long enough to get my passport back.
 
Was surprised to see this thread come back to life.

So skimming today’s stuff here... we are basically seeing bureaucracies STILL haven’t adapted yet?

Come on folks. The rest of us got this done three months ago now...

Time to get your crap together... doesn’t appear to be any shortage of plexiglass anywhere else. LOL.

I guess “desktop plexiglass sneeze guard” isn’t on the GSA approved purchasing lists or something? Haha.

I did get a kick out of the poor bank teller talking into a microphone thru a mask making her completely unintelligible in the air tube drive thru the other day. Even she was annoyed. Ha. I’m sure it was to save her from all her co-workers she’s locked inside with for 8 hours a day every day more than us “outsiders” 50’ away by vaccuum tube. Company rules. They’re all gonna give it to each other via the old school microphone on a stick they all have to be literally pressing the mask against to even be heard outside let alone understood.

Didn’t look like anyone was smart enough to disassemble it and remove the foam wind screen from the case or anything intelligent like that, if you’re trying to disinfect the silly thing. An old Shure dynamic mic with the screw on end cap full of foam rubber.

The little vaccuum tube thingy had some papery substance wrapped around the body that claimed to be a disinfecting wrap that had already seen better days and nothing on the plastic ends or the door you’d actually touch. LOL. Dumb. Sure it made somebody feel better.

Was one of those transactions that required a teller. Would rather have just used the ATM and wiped the silly thing off. Ha. Ohhhh well.

Still. As adapted as they could get and operating for months like that. Have wipes and sanitizer in the car so... didn’t care. Was just funny to see how useless it all was. Not to mention handling all the papers and money. Ha.

They did get rid of the deposit and withdrawal slips... and would just ask (unintelligibly) what you wanted then just shoot your drivers license inside instead for finding the account. I’m betting that goes poorly for “John Smith”. Ha.

Annnnd I got home and they still missed half of the transactions... LOL. Oh well. Made it work. Close enough for strangely implemented drive thru banking. Got the important one done.

I do love all the shared pens everywhere. Those are a crack up. Always have my own everywhere just for logbooks and crap anyway so never a problem for this old guy who likes t-shirts with pockets. Ha.
 
Everskyward said:
I wasn't necessarily expecting to be interviewed, even though I visited a good number of countries all over the world. However I was extremely surprised to get the approval the day after I applied.
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And I got the physical card in the mail the next week. So some things are working.
 
Now I need to start looking more closely at expiration dates:

I got my most recent DL about a month before my State started issuing RealID licenses. Rather than go back, wait in line for several hours, pay *again* and then get another DL, I figured I'd ride it out by using my passport instead. The fun part is that my passport expires before my DL. So, if I renew my passport first (my understanding is that I have to mail it in?) I'll end up with a gap where I don't have RealID OR a passport. Looks like I do have some leeway though, maybe sometime in the next 2 years the government offices will catch up to the rest of the country.

Can you still go through the post office and avoid mailing in the passport? I don't remember how I got my passport the last time, whether I renewed an expired or not-yet-expired passport.

To @Shepherd 's note above: My daughter bought a car just as our lockdown expired. To get her registration paperwork complete, she had to drive to a DMV location, stay in her car until she worked her way to the door, and then stay in her car while someone did whatever it was that needed doing. The line for this was close to 4 hrs long, since everyone that bought any kind of motor vehicle during the lockdown had to get their documentation, too. And it wasn't like you could just pop out of line and ask someone to hold your spot while you found a bathroom.
 
Turns out, as long as people are still getting paid.... THey don't come up with a lot of solutions.

Try not paying those same folks, see if they don't figure something out.
@Matthew The DMV location now allows you to drop it off in an envelope, and they email you in a couple days with any issues or a bill. Why this hasn't been an option for 20 years, is pretty obvious. I sure hope it says.
 
denverpilot said:
I do love all the shared pens everywhere. Those are a crack up. Always have my own everywhere just for logbooks and crap anyway so never a problem for this old guy who likes t-shirts with pockets. Ha.
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Our favorite local Thai place has a cup with "sanitized"/unused pens, and another cup for the spent rounds after you sign the check. Woe is the fool who accidentally throws the used pen back into the unused cup. "NO SOUP FOR YOU!"
 
NoHeat said:
It's hard to understand. Workers at the passport office don't have a bad workplace situation, do they? I don't think any of them face the public, the way a worker at driver's license office does. Is it just themselves in the office? So yeah, why can't they just do what other offices do: less than full staffing in the office, with some barriers and some hygiene protocols, and those with back-office jobs working at home if they can.
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That’s asking quite a lot of a government employee.
 
Now I need to know...Question on passport renewal:

You need to mail in your current, valid passport. It will be returned. Any idea on the turnaround time for this? I know that getting the new passport will take a while, but any information on how long to expect to be "passport-less"?
 
I’ve had them back in under 2 weeks before. However it’s currently popular to use COVID as an excuse to not work, so who knows.
 
Matthew said:
Now I need to know...Question on passport renewal:

You need to mail in your current, valid passport. It will be returned. Any idea on the turnaround time for this? I know that getting the new passport will take a while, but any information on how long to expect to be "passport-less"?
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Neither Doug nor Jump answered my question so I took the leap and sent mine in today.
(it's on them if mine does not come back in 2020).
The USPS employee said "4-8 weeks" which seems laughably short compared to what I read online.
There is this, from the state dept website:

PP.png
 
I sent in my application for renewal on 4/24. Today I received an email notice that it has shipped and should arrive by 8/10.

So a bit over 3 months. Much probably depends upon which center is processing one’s application.
 
Half Fast said:
I sent in my application for renewal on 4/24. Today I received an email notice that it has shipped and should arrive by 8/10.

So a bit over 3 months. Much probably depends upon which center is processing one’s application.
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Did you have to send in your current passport? If you did, how long did it take to get that one back?

I checked a little while ago. Mine expires at the end of Aug 2021.

My non-RealID DL expires 2023, so when I send in that passport I won’t have any valid Gov ID unless I renew my DL early.
 
Matthew said:
Did you have to send in your current passport? If you did, how long did it take to get that one back?

I checked a little while ago. Mine expires at the end of Aug 2021.

My non-RealID DL expires 2023, so when I send in that passport I won’t have any valid Gov ID unless I renew my DL early.
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Yes, it’s required to send in the old passport. It will come back, rendered unusable, with the new one.
 
Half Fast said:
Yes, it’s required to send in the old passport. It will come back, rendered unusable, with the new one.
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So you’re going to be without even the expiring one for the duration...

Looks like I may need that RealID DL after all
 
Matthew said:
That extension is only for TSA and commercial flight, isn’t it? RealID or a passport is still required for certain other things, though.
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Maybe, but I don't know what those would be. What were you thinking you need RealID for besides airline travel?
 
Got down to Miami or Franklin county and get the real ID compliant one. With the drive it’ll be less hassle than the local place. That is, when they open.
 
ja_user said:
Got down to Miami or Franklin county and get the real ID compliant one. With the drive it’ll be less hassle than the local place. That is, when they open.
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I have some time, like 6 months to figure it out. But yeah, even a 10 hr round trip to Hays will be faster than dealing with the local DL place. Of course I could fly to Hays...
 
I went through this about a month ago. Passport expired in March, but being a procrastinator... I waited until after the madness hit.
I mailed off my expired passport with a check on a Friday and noticed the check was conveniently cashed on Tuesday. Made me mad! if there is someone there to cash my check, what's the problem with processing my paperwork?
I read on another forum someone emailed their congressman, so I figured what the heck. Talked to a nice aid who sent forms to open a congressional inquiry. A week to ten days later my new passport arrived, go figure.
 
Matthew said:
I have some time, like 6 months to figure it out. But yeah, even a 10 hr round trip to Hays will be faster than dealing with the local DL place. Of course I could fly to Hays...
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My local place sucks too. I went there when I moved in state. Do these people actually drive? Hope they're only getting state ID. ;)

After I complained to a friend, he told me I should have driven up to Marin or somewhere out of the City. I didn't know you could do that. I was getting both plates and a DL. In Colorado, you need to get plates from the county you are living. Not so, apparently, in California.
 
Everskyward said:
My local place sucks too. I went there when I moved in state. Do these people actually drive? Hope they're only getting state ID. ;)

After I complained to a friend, he told me I should have driven up to Marin or somewhere out of the City. I didn't know you could do that. I was getting both plates and a DL. In Colorado, you need to get plates from the county you are living. Not so, apparently, in California.
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In KS, the DL is state issued so you can get it anywhere. The tags are state issued but you have to pay county taxes and get a county sticker so you have to do that at the county office the first time. After that you can renew online.

Some old timers, like me, remember our license plates started with two letters that corresponded to your county and a third letter that corresponded to your last name. Eventually they went to the same three letter & three number combination that everyone else has. But they now have a sticker with your county initials and it’s a different color every year so the cops know if you renewed.
 
One thing about passports I have learned is, the expiration date is fictional.
If yours expires on Oct 1, and your 2 week travel begins on Sept 1, you are good to go, right?
Nuh-uh!

Many countries require your PP to not expire for 3 months past the visa end date.
So if you travel Sept 1 for a 2 week trip, and they issue a 3 mo visa, your PP must not expire before Sept 1 +3mo + 3mo = Mar 1.
From the Dept of State website.
 
What does it matter? There are a limited number of countries where Americans can go for now.
 
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Matthew said:
Some old timers, like me, remember our license plates started with two letters that corresponded to your county and a third letter that corresponded to your last name. Eventually they went to the same three letter & three number combination that everyone else has. But they now have a sticker with your county initials and it’s a different color every year so the cops know if you renewed.
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How old? I remember back in 1963 Washington started the new (then) sequence of car license plates (still used with modifications today). Whitman County (where Pullman is located) started with plates with PAA as the letters. Pan American registered a bunch of cars in our county to get those. When PAA ran out, PAB and so on. PBN by late 1969 (IIRC). Like Kansas we get a new sticker each year when we renew. Combined with the sticker showing the month you know about when the renewal is due.
 
Ghery said:
How old? I remember back in 1963 Washington started the new (then) sequence of car license plates (still used with modifications today). Whitman County (where Pullman is located) started with plates with PAA as the letters. Pan American registered a bunch of cars in our county to get those. When PAA ran out, PAB and so on. PBN by late 1969 (IIRC). Like Kansas we get a new sticker each year when we renew. Combined with the sticker showing the month you know about when the renewal is due.
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I think it was '88 when we made the switch in KS.

From what I've found, the last name code started in the '70s, but the county codes have been used for a long time.

http://www.worldlicenseplates.com/usa/US_KSXX.html#PH

Used to have 2 small letters (county), then one large letter (last name), then digits.

Since there are only 12 months, there were only 12 letters. So if your last name started with A/B/C and you were in, say, Johnson County, your license plate would be JOA-XXXX. And each of the 12 letters was also the month you had to renew. A's renew in Jan, and X (?) (X/Y/Z) renew in Dec.

We still renew on that letter schedule.

Old-style tags are the first two.

KM - Kingman County, R = last name code
JO - Johnson County, J = last name code

Newer tags have the county sticker in the upper left (LV - Leavenworth) and then the renewal sticker in the upper right.

US_KSXX_GI4.jpg
 
Matthew said:
In KS, the DL is state issued so you can get it anywhere. The tags are state issued but you have to pay county taxes and get a county sticker so you have to do that at the county office the first time. After that you can renew online.

Some old timers, like me, remember our license plates started with two letters that corresponded to your county and a third letter that corresponded to your last name. Eventually they went to the same three letter & three number combination that everyone else has. But they now have a sticker with your county initials and it’s a different color every year so the cops know if you renewed.
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You got me curious, so I looked. In Colorado I paid the county for vehicle registration. In California I pay the state. The yearly sticker I get doesn't indicate what county you live in in either state.
 
Everskyward said:
You got me curious, so I looked. In Colorado I paid the county for vehicle registration. In California I pay the state. The yearly sticker I get doesn't indicate what county you live in in either state.
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The registration shows the county here. The letters on the plate are also issued to only one county. But that’s mostly just because the pile of plates got shipped to them.

They both love to blame each other when they manage to get all of your vehicles listed as stolen in the automation hooked to the Colo Bureau of Investigations database, which then ties to the data terminals in all the cop cars.

Ask me how I know! LOL.

Computers and databases are just one endless ****-up everywhere.

But we both enjoyed our felony stops by two different jurisdictions with plenty of backup present before they approached and the resulting “laughs”.

End result — the county morons don’t know how to handle errors the State system kicks back every morning for them to deal with, so they just delete them and figure you’ll come in when you get pulled over and your registration is valid, the VIN, sticker numbers, and all of it match, and the cop wastes his time on you while you both scratch your heads.

No built in motivation to get it right. Nobody will be docked any pay, worried about getting laid off if the customer gets bad service, or definitely never getting fired for it. “Oh well. I don’t know how to do my job. Let’s just delete these errors. They’re so annoying.”

Of course the clerk who admitted all of this then tried to issue one year out of date stickers to me two minutes later and didn’t notice.

“Yeah um... could I get stickers with the right year on them? Those are last year’s aren’t they?”

“Oh. I’ll have to get a supervisor to get some more out of the safe and activate them...”

Incredible how bad they are at such simple tasks. I’m sure the work is mind numbing but come on... the year stickers aren’t even the same color.
 
Margy did her GE on arrival at LAX in March. It went fairly smoothly (other than the agent being "Mr. Personality" and barked at everybody else in the vicinity). She got her card in a week.
Some offices are doing regular appointments again. They had been largely unavailable even before COVID/
 
Received my Aug-submitted request today; 8 weeks. Pretty happy with the speed.
 
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