Among the new tools President Bush seeks to use for the
country’s comprehensive Homeland Security strategy will be
biometric technologies, which could include identification
through iris or facial recognition, to identify foreign
visitors, Bush said July 16 at a press conference at the
White House.
Under the 76-page “National Strategy for Homeland Security” plan, biometrics would contribute in reforming immigration services by requiring foreign visitors to have travel documents with biometric information. The plan also states that the Department of Homeland Security would support research and development efforts in biometric technology. It would also focus on improving the accuracy, consistency, and efficiency in biometric systems.
According to The Los Angeles Times, Bush’s plan cautioned that security spending by businesses could double from the pre-September cost of $55 billion a year. The newspaper stated that the federal government’s expense for homeland security is also increasing, from the current $29 billion to $38 billion, under the President’s proposed fiscal 2003 budget.
