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Acte and Iata oppose US biometric proposal
Tuesday, May 20, 2008 The Association of Corporate Travel Executives has joined forces with Iata to oppose a US government proposal calling for biometric data to be collected at airports.
Both organisations say the Department of Homeland Security’s plan will pose “substantial financial hardship” on the aviation industry. If it is approved, airlines would have to collate biometric data such as fingerprints when travellers leave the US. Reported cost estimates have ranged from $300 million to $4 billion. Speaking at the Acte global education summit in Washington yesterday, Acte president Richard Crum said: “The wide disparity in the cost factors clearly indicates there is a lot of slack in this proposal. It is evident that the all costs are expected to be picked by the carriers, and ultimately the travelling public.” Crum says it is unfair for the government to expect airlines to shoulder the financial burden, especially when facing spiralling fuel costs, maintenance costs, and other rising expenses. He added: “It is equally unreasonable to drop a $300 million travel cost increase in the form of security surcharges or additional ticket taxes onto business travellers." Douglas Lavin, Iata’s regional vice-president for North America, said his organisation is “strongly opposed” to the idea. “Firstly, we believe immigration is inherently a government responsibility. Secondly, this collection process will result in significant hassle for our passengers in terms of airport congestion, delays and missed connections. And lastly, our airlines and our passengers are not in a position to absorb the multi-billion dollar price tag for this program.”
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