H.R.6707 - Western Hemisphere Travel Initiative Improvement Act of 2018115th Congress (2017-2018)

Summary: H.R.6707 — 115th Congress (2017-2018)All Information (Except Text)

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Introduced in House (09/05/2018)

Western Hemisphere Travel Initiative Improvement Act of 2018

This bill establishes certain standards for U.S. passport applications.

The Department of State shall adjudicate U.S. passport applications in an individualized, evidence-based manner based on an assessment of individual circumstances and evidence. An applicant's race, ethnicity, or ancestry may not be considered in such adjudicatory process.

The bill requires that:

• an applicant establish U.S. citizenship or nationality by a preponderance of the evidence, and
• a determination that an applicant has not met such evidentiary burden state in writing the reasons for the determination and be provided to the applicant in a timely manner.

A birth certificate signed by a person authorized under state law to sign such a document, or a previously-issued U.S. passport, shall constitute prima facie evidence of U.S. citizenship or nationality and, absent individualized evidence that a birth did not take place in the United States, shall satisfy the preponderance of the evidence standard.