Max Cleland: “we have discussed on previous occasions the compelling need for additional Immigration and Naturalization Service (INS)…”

“we have discussed on previous occasions the compelling need for additional Immigration and Naturalization Service (INS) officers assigned to Hartsfield Atlanta International Airport. The present staffing of 78 positions to handle 2.8 million arriving international passengers per year at Hartsfield is consistently generating extremely long lines, and is damaging the reputation of Hartsfield as an international gateway. The desired INS 45-minute processing time limit is being exceeded frequently with lines overflowing the inspection hall into the adjoining concourse. The 95 passengers per inspector during peak periods do not match the annual growth rate of 16 percent. As a result of the 1996 Olympics Games, Hartsfield has more than an adequate number of processing booths. Yet, today, at least 75 percent of those booths go unused on any given day. Hartsfield now has more arriving international passengers from Latin America and Africa, who require longer processing times, than from Europe. Overall, the airport has experienced a 108 percent increase in international flight arrivals from 1994 to 2000.”