![\"Brooklyn](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/MixCollage-27-Feb-2026-05-02-PM-2670.jpg\")
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The Brooklyn Public Library was forced to end its passport services program on Feb. 27. <\/p>\n
Photos courtesy of Ajay Suresh\/Wikimedia Commons & Global Residence Index\/Unsplash<\/p>\n
The Brooklyn Public Library ended its passport application services on Friday after being ordered to do so by the federal government.\u00a0\n<\/p>\n
Last fall, the U.S. Department of State sent cease-and-desist letters to hundreds of nonprofit libraries across the country, telling them they were no longer eligible to take part in the Passport Acceptance Facility Program. The Brooklyn Public Library \u2014 the only one of New York City\u2019s three library systems to offer passport services \u2014 was among them.<\/p>\n
The State Department determined that federal law does not allow non-government nonprofits to collect passport application fees, according to the Associated Press<\/a>. But nonprofit libraries have been processing passport applications for decades without issue.<\/p>\n \u201cSince 2011, we have processed nearly 300,000 passport applications, providing an accessible service through a trusted neighborhood institution \u2014 the public library,\u201d said a BPL spokesperson.<\/p>\n The library reached out to the State Department to begin the partnership because it \u201cseemed like a natural fit\u201d with its existing services, BPL CEO Linda Johnson told Patch<\/a> in 2011. BPL allowed Brooklynites<\/a> to apply for passports in-person at the Central and Kings Highway branches for a $35 fee. The library also offered photo services for people who needed appropriate passport photos.<\/p>\n The availability of computers and printers at libraries across the borough may also have eased the application process for those who do not have access at home.\u00a0<\/p>\n Processing passport applications also generated significant revenue for BPL \u2014 tax returns show it brought in $716,450 from passport services in 2023 \u2014 but that money \u201cbasically sustained the passport services operation,\u201d a BPL spokesperson said.<\/p>\n \u201cIn other words, the loss in revenue will not impact other library services<\/a>,\u201d they clarified.\u00a0<\/p>\n Impacted libraries in other states relied more heavily<\/a> on passport-related revenue, and are preparing to cut programs and staff.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n Politicians from both parties have attempted to appeal the State Department\u2019s decision, saying the loss of passport services at public libraries will harm constituents and the libraries themselves.\u00a0<\/p>\n In a Feb. 6 letter<\/a>, a cadre of 13 congress members \u2014 including New York\u2019s senators, Chuck Schumer and Kirsten Gillibrand \u2014 urged Secretary of State Marco Rubio to allow libraries to process passport applications at least through the end of 2026.<\/p>\n \u201cFor many communities across the country, libraries are the most accessible \u2014 and sometimes the only \u2014 passport acceptance facilities,\u201d the letter reads. \u201cTheir loss will force residents to travel long distances, take unpaid time off work, or forgo access altogether, particularly as demand for passports surges due to Real ID requirements.\u201d<\/p>\n The pols said the State Department\u2019s \u201cinterpretation\u201d of the law preventing non-government agencies from handling passport applications \u201cwent unenforced for so long,\u201d and said that many of the libraries impacted had been \u201crepeatedly reviewed, certified and reauthorized by the State Department in good standing.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cIn New York, the Brooklyn Public Library has issued over 300,00 passports through its services alone over the last years; failure to extend this deadline will leave massive gaps in passport services,\u201d the letter reads.\u00a0<\/p>\n Brooklynites can still apply for a passport at many USPS post offices and at the Kings County Clerk\u2019s Office, though it is unclear if they can keep up with the demand left by the library. The Clerk\u2019s Office only accepts passport applications<\/a> Monday-Friday from 9-11:30 a.m. and from 2-3 p.m., and not all post offices offer passport photo services. Applicants can find search for local Passport Acceptance Facilities on the state department\u2019s website<\/a>.\u00a0<\/p>\n As the State Department did not move the deadline, pols are searching for a more permanent solution.\n<\/p>\n U.S. Sen. John Fetterman of Pennsylvania, a Democrat, has introduced a bill<\/a> in the Senate to amend the federal Passport Act to formally allow nongovernment public libraries to process passport application fees. Schumer, a Brooklynite, is cosponsoring the legislation.<\/p>\n A matching bill has been introduced in the House by Republican John Joyce<\/a>.\u00a0<\/p>\n Meanwhile, the Trump administration is pushing federal legislation<\/a> that would require U.S. citizens to show their passports or birth certificates to register to vote. But more than 9% of American citizens don\u2019t have proof of citizenship \u2014 like a passport or birth certificate \u2014 readily available, according to a 2024 survey by the Brennan Center for Justice<\/a>.\u00a0<\/p>\n About half of Americans don\u2019t have<\/a> a passport at all, with dramatic socioeconomic differences. Only about 21% of people from households earning $50,000 or less per year had valid passports, according to a 2021 YouGov survey<\/a>, compared to 64% of people from households earning $100,000 or more.\u00a0<\/p>\n A 2023 survey found that about 34% of Black Americans surveyed had active passports, compared to 42% for white Americans and 55% for Hispanic Americans.\u00a0\n<\/p>\n![\"brooklyn](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/52764982785_9874aa9756_o-scaled.jpg\")
Brooklyn Public Library CEO Linda Johnson in 2023. File photo courtesy of William Alatriste\/NYC Council Media Unit<\/p>\n![\"schumer](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/2026-02-12T205741Z_1936355373_RC2KKJA20X9T_RTRMADP_3_USA-CONGRESS-SHUTDOWN.jpg\")
Senate Minority Leader and Brooklynite Chuck Schumer is among the lawmakers pushing to allow public libraries to handle passport services. REUTERS\/Kent Nishimura<\/p>\n![\"trump](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/2026-02-25T055459Z_639470784_RC2RSJAMKX88_RTRMADP_3_USA-TRUMP-CONGRESS.jpg\")
U.S. President Donald Trump is pushing for voting laws that would require birth certificates or passports to register to vote.\u00a0 REUTERS\/NATHAN HOWARD<\/p>\n