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DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA - U.S. Senator Susan Collins (R-ME) has announced the delay of the implementation of the Western Hemisphere Travel Initiative (WHTI), or “passport rule.”

The so-called “passport rule” was signed into law in 2004 and would require all people crossing the borders from Canada and Mexico to carry passports or documents deemed sufficient by the Department of Homeland Security to denote identity and citizenship by January 1, 2007. Senator Collins has long argued that new travel rules should take into account the unique needs of states such as Maine, where frequent travel across the border is crucial. She was successful in her efforts to encourage DHS Secretary Chertoff to identify less expensive forms of identification, alternative to a passport. Senator Collins has also been successful in her efforts to delay full implementation of this measure while DHS works to identify alternative forms of ID that takes the needs of frequent travelers living in border communities into account.

Government watchdog groups point to Collins’ phrases: “less expensive forms of identification,” and “alternative forms of ID” as code words for Mark of the Beast style biometrics such as digital face scans, retina scans or thumb scans or implantable microchips as possible alternatives to paper passports.