COLLIN COUNTY (KRLD) - A Collin County district clerk announces two local passport offices have been closed indefinitely after a year's long federal passport fraud investigation.
But the clerk believes the office may be unfairly targeted.
The offices handled almost 40,000 passport applications in the past year, and is one of the largest passport acceptance facilities in North Texas. The county collected more than $1 million last year in handling fees, which go into the general fund for county services.
District Clerk Lynne Finley says federal authorities have only told her that her office may have received one suspect passport application out of that 40,000, and exonerated her, her staff and the procedures they follow.
"The closures affect at least four of my employees' jobs if this needless suspension continues much longer." she says.
The problem started last December when Finley met with agents from the State Department's Diplomatic Security Service regarding a criminal investigation into passport fraud over documents dating back almost a decade. After an interview with two of Finley’s clerks and checking the office’s procedures, DSS agents exonerated Finley and her staff.
But despite repeated letters and pleas to various State Department agencies, Finley says the local Dallas Passport Agency still refuses to allow her to re-open her passport offices. Finley says her office is being retaliated against by the Dallas Passport Agency because she pointed out flaws in that agency’s own procedures during the DSS investigation.
"I have talked to senators and congressman and nothing has worked. We have sent emails, letters and made phone calls. So far there is no transparency and accountability," Finley says.
Requests to the Dallas Passport Agency for comment have gone unanswered.