WHEREAS the Government of the United States of America has passed legislation that all persons entering the United States of America will require passports to enter the country andor to leave the country; AND WHEREAS within the Province of British Columbia there exist only four Canadian passport offices, three in the Greater Vancouver area in Vancouver, Surrey and Richmond and one in the City of Victoria; AND WHEREAS it is the duty of government to serve its residents and the present number of passport offices within the Province of British Columbia does not presently serve the needs of the residents of British Columbia and the demand for passports will greatly increase over the next two years: THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED that the Union of British Columbia Municipalities make representation to the federal Minister of Immigration requesting that the Government of Canada review its policy in regards to the location of passport offices within the Province of British Columbia, with the consideration of opening offices in the Interior of British Columbia at a location like Kelowna andor Kamloops, and in the Northern portion of British Columbia in a location such as Prince George, in the Governments effort to best service the residents of this province and country.
PASSPORT CANADA Passport Canada is a Special Operating Agency funded entirely by user fees. It must therefore manage its funds prudently and offer is services at a reasonable cost. Passport Canada must also take account of the current policy of the Canadian government to increase cooperation between departments, in an effort to reduce service delivery costs, avoid duplication and improve client service quality. In accordance with a Memorandum of Understanding signed between Passport Canada and Canada Post, and through an Agency Agreement with Service Canada, the Receiving Agents Program was created in an effort to provide more convenient access to passport services for Canadians from all regions. Presently, passport services are available at Canada Post Outlets in Kelowna and Prince George and at Service Canada Centres in Courtenay, Kamloops and Terrace. Trained Receiving Agents employees review passport applications to ensure the documentation is in order and forward the application to Passport Canada for examination. There is a 15 non-refundable convenience fee payable to Canada Post for this service. I would like to assure you that Passport Canada continuously evaluates the need to open full service offices as well as additional Receiving Agents offices. To this end, a copy of your letter has been sent to the appropriate Passport Canada officials for consideration.