Pilot Project In B.C., New Ont. ID Offers Hope For Relaxed U.S. Passport Rules

U.S. Representative Louise Slaughter (D-N.Y.), a powerful legislator from New York State, wrote a letter Thursday calling for Washington to stand down on its passport requirement until a test pilot project can determine if new driver's licences would pass muster for border security. A similar letter signed by congressmen Bart Stupak (D-Mi.) and John M. McHugh (R-N.Y.), co-chairmen of the Congressional Northern Border Caucus, also called for the U.S. government to listen to and address concerns before moving ahead with new border rules. While many thought the passport requirements were written in stone and beyond debate, there's a growing feeling that there's still time to make changes, said John van Dongen, British Columbia's minister of state for intergovernmental relations. "We have a lot of optimism actually that it isn't a done deal," von Dongen said. http://www.canada.com/topics/news/national/story.html?id=fe613add-1ae2-43dd-bc15-851d219f6538&k=20652

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