Bush Signs Bill to Track Immigrants, Visitors
WASHINGTON — President Bush signed a bill Tuesday meant to screen out terrorists by using high-tech passports and 400 more border enforcers to check the millions of people who enter the United States each year.
The new law also will mean closer monitoring of foreign students here.
The law will require that passports issued after 2003 contain fingerprints or facial recognition technology and be tamper-proof. It will bar the use of certain visas by people from countries listed as terrorism sponsors.
The State Department’s list includes Iraq, North Korea, Iran, Sudan, Cuba, Libya and Syria.
The law strengthens requirements that planes and passenger ships traveling from other countries provide lists of passengers and crew members before arriving, and it reiterates the need for a database of suspected terrorists. It will also record and track noncitizens at educational institutions and the issuance of student visas.
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