DHS shutdown not affecting arrivals in Mariana Islands
The partial U.S. Government shutdown that is affecting the U.S. Department of Homeland Security went into effect on Jan. 14, CHamoru Standard Time. Departments that are potentially affected include the Transport Security Administration, the Secret Service, the U.S. Coast Guard and U.S. Customs and Border Protection, all of which have a presence in Guam and in some cases are active in other islands.
Nationwide, media are reporting on the status of DHS workers. About 90% of the more than 260,000 employees will continue working through the DHS shutdown and many of them will do so without pay, according to the Federal News Network. Some employees will be paid, but that funding is expected to run out in March.
Mark A. Pablo, port director for U.S. Customs and Border Protection did not address the issue of salaries for personnel at the A.B. Won Pat International Airport, Guam.
A.B. Won Pat International Airport. Photo from Journal files
However, he told the Journal that it’s business as usual at the island’s airport when processing arrivals.
He said neither returning residents nor Guam’s all-important tourist visitors are experiencing any delays in the arrival process.
Pablo also said that the personnel at CBP — which include several longtime employees — have a vested interest as members of the island community in seeing processing of arrivals go as smoothly as possible. Those employees include individuals born and raised in Guam.
Pablo said airports in the Northern Mariana Islands are also clearing arrivals without any unusual delays due to the partial shutdown.
CBP monitors passenger wait times at airports where it has a presence, to include at Guam’s airport. Wait times currently average six minutes for a U.S. citizen and 20 minutes for a non-U.S. citizen in a one-hour period. However, wait times can be as low as one minute for U.S. citizens and as low as eight minutes for non-U.S. citizens. Wait times can also increase during peak arrival times. Wait times on the CBP site the Journal checked on Feb. 18 were from Feb. 9 to Feb. 15, the most recent posted.
Several improvements in recent years have increased efficiency of processing outgoing and incoming passengers in Guam.
TSA has added lanes and agents for departing passengers. Following an international trend, as of August last year travelers no longer must remove shoes as they transit to the secure side of the airport.
Guam bound travelers can make use of a Guam Customs & Quarantine electronic declaration and fill that in at their convenience up to 72 hours before arrival. mbj
The February visits kicked off early in the month with a visit by Jeannie Sommer, a program director with the Army’s Program Executive Office Missiles and Space, who met with Rear Adm. Joshua Lasky, commander of Joint Task Force-Micronesia and Rear Adm. Brett Mietus, commander of Joint Region Marianas, to discuss “strategic locations” and “strengthening joint capabilities.”
