Those traveling to the U.S. by land and sea won't have to present a passport until June 1, 2009, according to a ruling issued by the U.S. Department of Homeland Security and the State Department.

The ruling follows the congressional passage of a December bill ordering a delay until at least June 2009 of the passport requirement for land and sea travelers.

"The good news is that the Bush administration will not fight the new law that moves the passport requirement to next year," said Sen. Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.), one of the principal authors of the law enacted in December. "The bad news is that there is little reason to believe DHS will be ready even then."

Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff said the government was "on course to implement and enforce" the passport rule for land and sea travelers.

But Leahy disagreed, saying, "There is no indication that they will be ready with the appropriate technology infrastructure at our borders to handle new documents. There is no reason to believe border upgrades will be ready. There is no signal they will reconsider using problematic Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) technology that poses security and privacy concerns. There is no assurance that they will have enough time to hire and train the border agents who will be needed to implement the passport requirement. And there is no reason to believe that adequate consultations with Canada are underway, even now."

The DHS said it was giving notice of the rule more than a year in advance of its implementation to "give the public ample notice and time to obtain the documents they will need to enter or re-enter the U.S. on or after June 1, 2009."

Many cross-border travelers already have WHTI-compliant documents such as a passport or a Trusted Traveler Card (NEXUS, SENTRI and FAST), or a Washington State enhanced driver's license (EDL). The Department of State already is accepting applications for the new Passport Cards and additional states and Canadian provinces will be issuing EDLs in the next several months -- all of which are options specifically designed for land and sea border use.

Beginning June 1, 2009, the DHS will institute special provisions that allow school or other organized groups of children ages 18 and under who are U.S. or Canadian citizens to enter the U.S. with proof of citizenship alone.

Over the next 14 months, the departments will be conducting public information campaigns to inform U.S. and Canadian citizens about the new document requirements. These campaigns will include special outreach to residents of border communities who may be most impacted by the new document requirements. The DHS and Department of State are working with the Canadian government to ensure widespread and consistent communications on both sides of our land borders.

This announcement comes two months after the DHS ended acceptance of oral declarations alone of identity and citizenship at the land borders on Jan. 31. Since that time, U.S. and Canadian citizens ages 19 and older have been asked to present proof of identity and citizenship. Children ages 18 and under are currently asked only to present proof of citizenship, such as a birth certificate.

The changes that took place in January marked the beginning of a transition period intended to prepare the public for WHTI implementation on June 1, 2009. This common sense approach is designed to lessen the impact on individuals and allow time for travelers to become accustomed to the change and obtain the appropriate documents.

Upon implementation of the WHTI, travelers will be required to present a single WHTI-compliant document denoting both citizenship and identity when seeking entry into the U.S. through a land or sea border. Standardized, secure and reliable documentation will enable Customs and Border Protection officers to quickly and accurately identify travelers at land and sea ports of entry. The WHTI secure document requirement is already in place for all air travelers.

Both the EDL and the Passport Card will contain security features to prevent counterfeiting and will include vicinity RFID to help speed the entry process at the land borders.

The WHTI land and sea final rule and a notice on the Washington State EDL will be sent to the Federal Register for publication. Specific information on documentation requirements may be found at www.cbp.gov/xp/cgov/travel/vacation/ready_set_go/. For general information on the WHTI or other travel-related programs, visit www.dhs.gov or www.travel.state.gov.