The State Department optimistically announced September 7 that Americans can now receive passports “in a timely and secure fashion.” The wait is allegedly back to to 6-8 weeks for a standard application and 3 weeks for expedited service. In order to deal with the massive backlog of applications, the department hired hundreds of new adjudicators, temporarily transferred employees to passport centers, and opened a new facility. By September 30, it expects to have issued 17 million new passports since last October, up from 12 million the previous year.
As for me? I’m going to wait until after the New Year to renew mine, just in case I want to leave the country over winter break…. I guess I’m just not as optimistic as the State Department.