The House Committee on Small Business received testimony from several individuals regarding visa backlogs and their affect on the US economy, particularly, their affects on small business.  Among those who testified were Janice L. Jacobs, Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for Visa Services; William A Reinsch, President of the National Foreign Trade Council, Inc.; and Robert Garrity, Jr., Deputy Assistant Director of the Federal Bureau of Investigations.

Janice L. Jacobs, Deputy Assistant Secretary for Visa Services at the Department of State (DOS) testified that the backlogs could be attributed to the efforts of federal agencies to increase homeland security.  She stated “security is and will continue to be the top priority in the processing of visas for international visitors.”  She then proceeded to outline the measures taken by the Department of State in order to protect national security, such as the Consular Lookout Automated Support System (CLASS) and Machine Readable Visas, among other measures.

Jacobs also mentioned how the DOS is working with other agencies and private sector groups to reform the visa clearance process so that it focuses on those individuals who pose the greatest risk to national security.  She asserted that the DOS is “aware of the need to balance national security interests with other strategic interests such as promoting US business interests, tourism, exchanges and the overall health of our economy” and is “committed to working towards a continued free flow of people, information and ideas.”

In his testimony, President of the National Foreign Trade Council, Inc., William A Reinsch, said that the new, post-September 11 visa application review process needs revision, because it “ignores commercial considerations, strains our foreign relations by telling business visitors they are unwelcome, and does little to achieve the increased security objectives for which it was intended.”  Reinsch also testified that before these new procedures were implemented, businesses were able to determine when they would receive decisions regarding the status of applications.  However, after the implementation of the new procedures, “both the certainty of timing and the transparency of the process have disappeared”, which has led to a lack of confidence in the new system and has hurt US businesses.  He used the example of the damage that has been caused to the hotel industry as a result of the new visa review process.  Conventions and conferences that have invited foreign guests have been forced to move their meetings to Canada or other countries in order to ensure that the foreign guests can attend.  Reinsch also mentioned the damages done to the scientific projects, which are costly, because of visa delays.

Acting Assistant Director of the FBI Robert J. Garrity, Jr. began his testimony on the assessment of the review process bay saying that “the FBI is sensitive to the impact that delays in visa processing may have on business, education, tourism, this country’s foreign relations, and worldwide perceptions of the United States.”  He stressed that because national security is a priority, and there are times when the “FBI’s review of a visa request must require as much time as needed.”  Garrity admitted that when the National Name Check Program (NNCP) was first implemented, the FBI could not predict visa-processing times.  However, through modification and development of the system, there is more coordination with the State Department and the FBI can now account for processing times.