The bill that would secure changes to the Visa Waiver Program (VWP) and make it more hard for citizens of other countries to enter the United States was passed overwhelmingly by the House on Tuesday.
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It was passed by 407 to 19, and is a major piece of security legislation that came up in the chamber after the November 13 Paris terror attacks, reports NBC News.
Others have said that the country can not shut its doors to travelers a large amount of money is from foreign travelers coming to the U.S.to visit, vacation or business travel that would become less if too many restrictions were put into place.
“House Democrats and House Republicans have no greater priority than keeping Americans safe”, Steny Hoyer of Maryland, the second-ranking House Democrat, said while urging support for the measure.
The bill would bar those from Iraq, Syria, Iran and the Sudan, or those who have visited those countries in the last five years, from traveling to the United States without a visa.
Obama called on Congress to tighten the visa waiver program in a national security speech to the nation on Sunday night.
“As a Congress, we have no more important responsibility than to protect the American people from all enemies foreign and domestic”.
The measure would require countries participating in the visa waiver program to check travelers against Interpol databases to determine whether they are wanted by law-enforcement agencies based on ties to terrorism or criminal activity. For this reason, they have taken steps to strengthen the program to prevent terrorists and potentially unsafe individuals from entering the United States through the program. VWP countries would be required to issue their citizens fraud-resistant electronic passports containing biometric information, confirm such documents are legitimate when they are scanned upon travel, and notify INTERPOL within 24 hours of their citizens’ passport being reported missing.
The scheme allows citizens of 38 countries to travel to the U.S. for stays of 90-days or less without first obtaining a visa.
Lawmakers of both parties spoke in favor of the legislation, which is also backed by the White House. The Secretary of Homeland Security would be able to designate additional countries of concern should threats arise and suspend a country from VWP if information-sharing requirements are not sufficiently met.
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The Senate bill hasn’t been scheduled for a floor vote. The program started in 1986 and gave a boost for tourism besides tightening the country’s relationship with the closest allies.
