'Business as usual' at border, No major delays reported on first day of stricter rule By Leslie Berestein
SAN YSIDRO – Leaving home yesterday morning to drop her mother and young son off at the Tijuana airport,
Elizabeth Estrada of North Park didn't want to take chances. She'd heard that she would need additional
identification to return home from Mexico, so she brought her son's birth certificate to take on his trip and her own
to hand to U.S. customs officers.
It wasn't until she was sitting in border traffic that she realized she'd
gotten the two mixed up. Pulling up to the customs booth, she
handed her child's birth certificate to the officer, who waved her
through with a warning.
“Thank God I had that!” Estrada, 32, said afterward.
Stricter identification rules went into effect yesterday at U.S. ports of
entry, but at the busy San Ysidro crossing it was business as usual,
more or less.
Some travelers complained of delays, but port officials said the rushhour
wait in the vehicle lanes at 6 a.m. was about 55 minutes, the
same as the day before.
The new rules require citizens 19 and older returning by land or sea
to present proof of citizenship. Those who don't have passports or a
“trusted traveler” program card, such as SENTRI, must present government-issued photo identification along with
some proof of citizenship, such as a birth certificate or naturalization certificate. Those younger than 19 must only
present proof of citizenship, such as a birth certificate.
Oral declarations of citizenship are no longer accepted, and Canadian citizens must also show documents.
“Everybody has been complying pretty good today,” U.S. Customs and Border Protection Officer Angelica Piñeda
said shortly after 10 a.m. “If they don't have passports, they have birth certificates.”
In the first two hours of her shift, she had encountered only two U.S. citizens at her booth lacking the requisite
documents, Piñeda said.
Sally Carrillo, deputy assistant port director, said officers reported yesterday morning that about 95 percent of U.S.
citizens complied, and that she had not seen more travelers sent to secondary inspection.
NELVIN C. CEPEDA / Union-Tribune
U.S. Customs and Border Protection Officer Sandra
Ulloa checked the passport of a driver re-entering the
United States. On the program's first day, no major
delays were reported at any of the state's ports along
the border.
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As in Estrada's case, many who didn't comply were sent on their way with a warning and an educational leaflet.
“If you are a U.S. citizen and we have no questions about that, you will be admissible,” said Gurdit Dhillon, director
of field operations for the six ports of entry on the California-Mexico border. “But if we have questions, you will go to
secondary.”
The new rule is intended to pave the way for a requirement that all U.S. citizens re-entering by land or sea present a
passport or other acceptable document, such as a SENTRI card or the “enhanced” driver's licenses some states are
developing. Initially set to have started Dec. 31, the passport rule has been delayed until after June 2009.
At ports of entry on the borders with Canada and Mexico, customs officials said delays were minimal and most
motorists had the documentation they needed.
“Very much business as usual,” U.S. Customs and Border Protection spokeswoman Kelly Klundt said in an e-mail.
She added: “Preliminary reports (are) showing a high level of awareness and compliance.”
But the reported smooth sailing may not last long, some border experts and business leaders warn.
“I think we are going to start seeing the fallout this weekend,” said Kenn Morris, president of the Crossborder Group,
a market research firm that focuses on the U.S.-Mexico border and Mexico. “There are more tourists and people who
aren't crossing for work reasons.”
Regular border crossers are more likely to be familiar with travel rules, said Morris, whose firm conducted a survey
among travelers at the San Ysidro and Otay Mesa ports of entry last month. In comparison with a similar survey
done a year earlier, more travelers questioned had passports this year, he said. But those who live far from the
border might not be so well-informed.
“I think that probably we will see it more in March and April, when tourists are coming from greater distances for
spring break,” Morris said.
Some may be put off from visiting Mexico altogether, he said, a concern of Baja California businesses dependent on
tourist dollars.
Customs officers simply taking time to explain the rules could tack more time onto long border waits, said Angelika
Villagrana, director of public policy for the San Diego Regional Chamber of Commerce.
Some waiting in line yesterday at San Ysidro said they had already taken steps to comply with the coming passport
rule. Sandra Alamillo, 38, said she recently obtained a passport for her 19-year-old daughter, Stephanie, rather than
have her carry her birth certificate.
“It was more expensive, but we feel more comfortable,” said Alamillo, who lives in Tijuana but works in downtown
San Diego, as does her daughter.
U.S. passports cost $97. Beginning today, citizens can apply to the U.S. State Department for a “passport card” that
will cost $45 for first-time adult applicants and $20 for existing passport holders.