Protecting American Commerce and Travel Act of 2006
Latest action · Jun 12, 2006 Referred to the Subcommittee on Economic Security, Infrastructure Protection, and Cybersecurity.
Progress
Where this bill reached, and when. A stage with no date was not reached; one that failed a vote and later carried shows the date it carried.
- IntroducedJun 6, 2006
- Passed HouseNot reached
- Passed SenateNot reached
- To the PresidentNot reached
- Became lawNot reached
Summary
Protecting American Commerce and Travel Act of 2006 - Amends the Intelligence Reform and Terrorism Prevention Act of 2004 to extend the deadline for implementation of the plan to require biometric passports or other secure passports for all travel into the United States by U.S. citizens and by categories of individuals for whom documentation requirements were previously waived.
Directs the Secretary of Homeland Security to: (1) establish a process to permit a U.S. citizen who does not possess a passport or other document to re-enter the United States at an international land border of the United States (provides that a U.S. citizen under 16 years shall not be required to present a passport or other document when returning from Canada at any port of entry along the U.S.-Canada international land border); (2) issue to U.S. citizen applicants a North American travel card which shall be a base for expedited traveler programs and be considered sufficient to denote identity and citizenship for travel into the United States by U.S. citizens; and (3) provide for travel card-reading equipment at U.S.-Canada and U.S.-Mexico land border ports of entry.
Directs the Secretary to: (1) merge the Free and Secure Trade program (FAST, a joint United States-Canada program offering pre-authorized importers, carriers, and drivers expedited clearance processes for eligible goods) and the NEXUS program (a joint United States-Canada program designed to simplify border crossings for pre-approved, low risk travelers) dedicated commuter lane system into a single procedure, with common eligibility and security screening requirements, enrollment processes, and sanctions regimes; (2) ensure that the procedures for the NEXUS Highway, NEXUS Marine, and NEXUS Air programs are integrated into such single procedure, and the processes relating to eligibility and security screening are identical to those for the FAST program; (3) integrate databases and information systems to permit any identification card issued to a participant to operate in all locations; (4) design an on-line application process; and (5) develop enrollment plans that do not exceed $20 per card.
Directs the Secretary, in consultation with the government of Canada, to: (1) equip specified border crossings in Michigan, New York, North Dakota, Montana, and Minnesota with NEXUS technology; and (2) create at least six remote and four mobile FAST and NEXUS enrollment centers. States that the program card shall satisfy certain travel document requirements for travel into the United States by U.S. citizens and for individuals whose document requirements have been waived under the Immigration and Nationality Act.
Directs the Secretary to establish a single process for conducting security screening and background checks for any of the following programs: (1) the transportation worker identification credential; (2) the security risk determination and related background checks performed by the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) as part of the Department of Transportation hazardous materials endorsement credentialing program; (3) the FAST and NEXUS programs; (4) the secure electronic network for travelers rapid inspection program (SENTRI); and (5) the registered traveler program of the TSA.
Directs the Secretary to conduct a cost-benefit analysis with respect to the issuance and use of North American travel cards and NEXUS and FAST identification cards as documents sufficient on their own when produced to denote identity and citizenship for travel into the United States.
Cosponsors 21
Members who signed on, in the order they did. Signatures ran from Jun 6, 2006 to Jul 28, 2006; 1 is an original cosponsor, there from the day it was introduced.
| Seat | Cosponsor | Signed on | |
|---|---|---|---|
| R-NY | John M. McHugh | Original | Jun 6, 2006 |
| R-NH | Charles F. Bass | Jun 7, 2006 | |
| R-SC | Henry E. Brown, Jr. | Jun 7, 2006 | |
| D-TX | Sheila Jackson Lee | Jun 7, 2006 | |
| D-MN | Collin C. Peterson | Jun 8, 2006 | |
| D-NY | Carolyn B. Maloney | Jun 9, 2006 | |
| R-NH | Jeb Bradley | Jun 9, 2006 | |
| D-TX | Lloyd Doggett | Jun 9, 2006 | |
| R-NY | John E. Sweeney | Jun 13, 2006 | |
| D-MI | Dale E. Kildee | Jun 22, 2006 | |
| D-IL | Janice D. Schakowsky | Jun 22, 2006 | |
| D-NY | Joseph Crowley | Jun 22, 2006 | |
| D-NY | Michael R. McNulty | Jun 22, 2006 | |
| I-VT | Bernard Sanders | Jun 27, 2006 | |
| R-PA | Phil English | Jul 10, 2006 | |
| D-PA | Robert A. Brady | Jul 10, 2006 | |
| R-MI | Thaddeus G. McCotter | Jul 10, 2006 | |
| D-WA | Rick Larsen | Jul 12, 2006 | |
| R-MI | John J.H. "Joe" Schwarz | Jul 17, 2006 | |
| D-HI | Neil Abercrombie | Jul 20, 2006 | |
| D-WA | Adam Smith | Jul 28, 2006 |
Committees 3
Where it was sent and what each committee and subcommittee did with it, in order.
| Chamber | Committee | What it did |
|---|---|---|
| House | Homeland Security Committee | Referred Jun 6, 2006 |
| Transportation and Maritime Security Subcommittee | Referred Jun 12, 2006 | |
| House | Foreign Affairs Committee | Referred Jun 6, 2006 |
| House | Judiciary Committee | Referred Jun 6, 2006 |
Actions 3
Everything that happened, newest first.
- Jun 12, 2006Referred to the Subcommittee on Economic Security, Infrastructure Protection, and Cybersecurity.
- Jun 6, 2006Introduced in House
- Jun 6, 2006Referred to the Committee on Homeland Security, and in addition to the Committees on International Relations, and the Judiciary, for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned.
Related bills 1
Companion bills and other measures the record links to this one.
| Bill | Title | Relationship | Latest action |
|---|---|---|---|
| HR 5286 | Secure Traveler Improvement Act of 2006 | Related bill | May 9, 2006 |
Titles 2
Every title it has carried, official and short, at each stage.
- Official Title as Introduced
- To implement the Western Hemisphere Travel Initiative and other registered traveler programs of the Department of Homeland Security.
- Short Titles as Introduced
- Protecting American Commerce and Travel Act of 2006
Subjects
Assigned by the Library of Congress. Policy area: Emergency Management.
- Administrative fees
- Administrative procedure
- Admission of nonimmigrants
- Armed Forces and National Security
- Boundaries
- Canada
- Civil Rights and Liberties, Minority Issues
- Congress
- Congressional investigations
- Congressional reporting requirements
- Cost effectiveness
- Crime and Law Enforcement
- Criminal justice information
- Data banks
- Department of Homeland Security
- Driver licenses
- Economic impact statements
- Economics and Public Finance
- Emergency Management
- Government Operations and Politics
- Government publicity
- Identification devices
- Identification of criminals
- Immigration
- International Affairs
- International cooperation
- Labor and Employment
- Latin America
- Law
- Mexico
- Michigan
- Minnesota
- Montana
- New York State
- North Dakota
- Passports
- Right of privacy
- Risk
- Science, Technology, Communications
- Security clearances
- Security measures
- Telephone
- Terrorism
- Transportation and Public Works
- Transportation workers
- Travel
Text 1
Each version as it was printed, newest first.
- Jun 6, 2006Introduced in House
Everything here is as published by Congress: the summary is the Congressional Research Service's, the action wording is the clerks', and the subjects are the Library of Congress's. How far it got is read from the actions themselves, taking the most recent one of each kind, so a bill that failed a vote and later passed is shown as having passed. Records come from this bill on Congress.gov and govinfo.gov; cost estimates are the Congressional Budget Office's, and the hearings are the printed hearings GovInfo publishes, which can appear months after the hearing.