Committee considers Taiwan Policy Act and State Department Reauthorization Act, which now head to the floor for consideration by the full Senate
WASHINGTON—The Senate Foreign Relations Committee today voted to approve the Taiwan Policy Act of 2022 and the Department of State Authorization Act of 2022, legislation to offer support for Taiwan and provide authorities for State Department operations, respectively. Following the Committee’s business meeting to consider the legislation, U.S. Senator Mitt Romney (R-UT) released a statement regarding his measure to create a report on the geographical diversity of the United States’ passport agencies. In a letter to Secretary Blinken, Romney previously urged the State Department to improve their passport services by opening a passport agency in Salt Lake City.
“I’m pleased that the Committee voted to approve my measure to review and report on geographical diversity of passport agencies. Utah is rapidly expanding as a center for global commerce and tourism, is home to thousands of Latter-day Saints who annually embark on worldwide religious missions, and, like much of the Western Mountain region, has a rapidly growing population. These factors have created a high demand for passport services in our state, but unfortunately, Utahns and those living in the region must travel long distances to reach the nearest passport office. I am proud to continue working to see that our state gets a passport agency so we can be better assist those seeking to obtain passports.”