The U.S. State Department has ordered certain nonprofit public libraries nationwide to stop processing passport applications, a change officials said took effect Friday for libraries it determined were no longer authorized under the Passport Acceptance Facility program. The agency, which regulates U.S. passports, began sending cease and desist orders to not-for-profit libraries in late fall, according to the Associated Press report published Friday and centered on local libraries that say the service has worked for years.
In Norwich, Connecticut, the Otis Library stopped offering passport services in November after receiving the letter, after providing the service for 18 years. Cathleen Special, executive director of the library, said her community still calls daily asking for passport help, describing the library as a familiar option for residents.
A State Department spokesperson said the order was issued because federal law and regulations “clearly prohibit non-governmental organizations” from collecting and retaining fees for a passport application, adding that government-run libraries are not affected. The spokesperson did not answer questions about why the issue emerged now or how many libraries are affected. In a statement, the spokesperson said, “passport services has over 7,500 acceptance facilities nationwide and the number of libraries found ineligible makes up less than one percent of our total network.”
Outside the Norwich example, the American Library Association estimates the scale of potential impact would be larger if many libraries across the country offer the service. The association estimated about 1,400 mostly non-profit public libraries nationwide could potentially be affected—roughly 15% of all public libraries, depending on how many provide passport acceptance.
Lawmakers from multiple states said the change could be disruptive as demand for passports rises. Democratic and Republican members of Congress from Connecticut, Pennsylvania, New York, New Jersey and Maryland sent a letter to Secretary of State Marco Rubio asking him to extend the existing program until Congress finds a permanent solution. In their letter, the members argued that when demand is surging, libraries are among the most accessible passport acceptance facilities for working families and rural residents, and they cited new pressure stemming from Real ID requirements.
The lawmakers said the program change could force people to travel long distances, take unpaid time off from work, or forgo obtaining passports during a period of high demand. They also warned that if Republicans in Congress impose strict new voting rules, citizens could need their passport or birth certificate to register, and that people concerned about immigration enforcement increasingly carry passports to confirm their citizenship.
In arguing that libraries organized as nonprofit entities are particularly affected, the letter pointed to state-level differences in how public libraries are structured. According to the American Library Association, Pennsylvania has a higher share of public libraries that are non-profit organizations, while other states report varying portions of libraries operating as nonprofit entities rather than as municipal government departments.
Connecticut and Pennsylvania members highlighted specific local consequences. Pennsylvania Reps. Madeleine Dean, a Democrat, and John Joyce, a Republican, proposed bipartisan legislation that would allow 501(c)(3) non-profit public libraries to continue serving as passport acceptance facilities by amending the Passport Act of 1920, according to the AP report. A similar companion bill is pending in the Senate.
Dean, the AP reported, said she first learned of the policy change after a library in her district told her that it had provided passport services for 20 years. Joyce’s rural south-central Pennsylvania district includes the Marysville-Rye Library, which he said serves as one of only two passport facilities for Perry County; under the new order, the county courthouse would be the only remaining option, the letter said.
The State Department, the report said, noted that 99% of the U.S. population lives within 20 miles of a designated passport processing location such as a post office, county clerk’s office or a government-run library authorized to accept in-person applications. The agency said, “Should the removal of an ineligible facility affect passport services, we will work to identify new eligible program partners in the impacted area.”
But librarians and local advocates argued the shift can create burdens beyond distance. Special said the Norwich post office often referred people to her library for passport processing when someone needed help outside regular hours or had children to watch while a parent completed paperwork. She also said library staff assisted applicants with language barriers. “And now the burden falls on them to do all of it and that’s tough on them,” Special said of the post office. “I don’t know how they’re keeping up, to be honest, because it was such a popular service with us.”