The U.S. Department of Homeland Security has banned New York residents from joining and renewing membership in most trusted-traveler programs in response to the state's "green light" law concerning issuance of driver's licenses.
The ban by year-end could remove hundreds of thousands of New Yorkers from the Global Entry program, which gives access to expedited security, immigration and customs lines, Ken Cuccinelli, a senior official performing the duties of the director of U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services, said in a media call on Thursday. About 50,000 New York residents who have been conditionally approved for the program along with about 30,000 who have applied and were pending the initial vetting will "immediately lose the application," Cuccinelli said.
In addition, about 150,000 to 200,000 New Yorkers have Global Entry memberships set to expire by the end of 2020, and they will be unable to renew, he said.
Besides Global Entry, the ban also affects applications to Nexus, the pre-screening program for entry to Canada; the Sentri program, which covers entry from both Canada and Mexico; and the Fast program for commercial trucks. Current memberships for all programs will remain valid but, as with Global Entry, will not be available for renewal to New York residents, Cuccinelli said.
The ban does not affect the U.S. Transportation Security Administration's PreCheck program, though Cuccinelli indicated that could change.
"PreCheck is not currently on the list, but that doesn't mean it couldn't be in the future," he said.
The DHS rationale for the ban centers around a New York state law that took effect at the end of last year permitting all New Yorkers age 16 or older to apply for non-commercial driver's licenses regardless of citizenship status and without a Social Security number. The law blocks immigration and border officials from accessing the New York Department of Motor Vehicles' database, and Cuccinelli said DHS relies on that data to verify identities in trusted-traveler programs.
"This law that New York has introduced has made our law enforcement officers less safe, made New York less safe and made it difficult for federal officials to determine whether they are dealing with dangerous criminals," Cuccinelli said. "[The ban] is only reasonable from a public safety standpoint."
The ban likely will face a court challenge. Rich Azzopardi, a senior advisor to New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo, in a statement said the ban was "obviously political retaliation by the federal government, and we're going to review our legal options."
The move also drew condemnation from the U.S. Travel Association, which said it was in contact with the DHS to express its displeasure.
"Travel should not be politicized," U.S. Travel Association EVP for public affairs and policy Tori Emerson Barnes said in a statement. "Trusted-traveler programs enhance our national security because they provide greater certainty regarding a person's identity, citizenship and criminal background. Suspending enrollment in Global Entry and other trusted-traveler programs only undermines travel security and efficiency."
Global Business Travel Association CEO and executive director Scott Solombrino, however, issued a statement supporting the DHS' position.
"Any actions that call into question the veracity of the data collected, which undermines the safety of the trusted travel program, must be carefully examined to ensure safe and efficient travel for all those traveling," Solombrino said. "Without the assurances of reliable background checks and passenger data, the trusted traveler programs will no longer be trusted and become compromised."
The industry likely will continue to see a hardline stance from the Trump administration on border and immigration issues regardless of the impact on travel and travelers. Cuccinelli said the ban was the "first assessment" and that DHS would "continue to review departmentwide operations in light of New York's green light law to assess and mitigate the impact."
The ban comes a few days after President Trump's State of the Union address, in which he vowed to punish "sanctuary cities," referring to cities that limit cooperation with federal immigration officials in cases involving people who have not committed serious crimes. "Tonight, President Trump sent a strong message to those leaders who play politics with public safety: If you will not protect your people, we will," DHS Acting Secretary Chad Wolf said in a statement after the address. "DHS will soon announce measures to counter dangerous state and local laws that prohibit coordination with DHS law enforcement officers."
The DHS last week also expanded visa restrictions on six countries it said "failed to meet a series of security criteria." The bans included suspension of entry for immigrants from Eritrea, Kyrgyzstan, Myanmar and Nigeria as well as suspension of entry for diversity immigrants—referring to visas issued for countries with low immigration rates to the U.S.—from Sudan and Tanzania. The ban does not stop tourist visas from those countries.