New Name; Passport Update
Beginning in January, the Disney-MGM Studios in Florida will soon be renamed Disney's Hollywood Studios. Walt Disney Parks and Resorts says the new name better represents the contemporary entertainment experiences that the Walt Disney World Theme Park offers to groups, which can serve as a unique backdrop for opening and closing galas, receptions, and networking events. Meanwhile, the guest room towers, ballrooms, and meeting rooms of the Disneyland Hotel in Southern California have been renamed to better reflect the hotel's legacy. The three towers have been renamed Dreams, Magic, and Wonder, and the convention center breakout rooms are now known as Fantasy, Frontier, Tomorrow, and Adventure. The Disneyland Hotels offers 990 guest rooms and 136,000 square feet of meeting and exhibit space.

U.S. Passport Services Back to Standard Processing Time
The U.S. Department of State has restored passport service to the standard six-to eight-week processing time for routine passport applications, and no more than three weeks for expedited service.

To date, the department has issued more than 16 million passports in fiscal year 2007, which ended Sept. 30, compared to 12.1 million issued in fiscal year 2006. Throughout the summer, department staff in Washington and at the nation's 18 passport agencies worked to eliminate the delays in processing that had developed earlier in the year.

The department plans to expand passport facilities and continue to hire more passport specialists in order to increase production capacity and meet rising passport demand expected in coming years, as passport requirements are extended to land and sea borders.

By this coming January, the department will have hired hundreds of new­­ employees, and production capacity at the National Passport Center in New Hampshire, the largest passport facility, will have doubled.

Longer-term expansion plans include new passport facilities strategically located to enhance customer service around the country. 

Traveling to Canada, Mexico, and Bermuda by Land and Sea

On Jan. 31, 2008, U.S. and Canadian citizens will need to present either a Western Hemisphere Travel Initiative (WHTI)-compliant document or a government-issued photo ID, such as a driver's license, plus proof of citizenship, such as a birth certificate. The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) also proposes to begin alternative procedures for U.S. and Canadian children at that time.

At a later date to be determined by the Secretary of Homeland Security in consultation with the Secretary of State (DOS), the departments will implement the full requirements of the land and sea phase of WHTI.

The implementation date will be determined based on a number of factors, including the progress of actions undertaken by the Department of Homeland Security to implement the WHTI requirements and the availability of WHTI- compliant documents on both sides of the border.

DHS and DOS expect the date of full WHTI implementation to be in the summer of 2008. The precise implementation date will be formally announced with at least 60 days notice.

For more information, visit www.travel.state.gov/.