releases: https://mcsally.house.gov/media-center/press-releases/us-rep-mcsally-votes-strengthen-visa-waiver-program-protections
Data license: MIT · Data source: dwillis/congress-press
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| https://mcsally.house.gov/media-center/press-releases/us-rep-mcsally-votes-strengthen-visa-waiver-program-protections | U.S. Rep. McSally Votes to Strengthen Visa Waiver Program Protections | 2015-12-10 | 2015 | 2015-12 | Republican | House | AZ | Martha McSally | M001197 | mcsally.house.gov | legacy | Efforts Help Promote UA Developed Technology WASHINGTON, D.C. U.S. Representative Martha McSally this week voted to enhance protections for the Visa Waiver Program (VWP). The Visa Waiver Program Improvement and Terrorist Travel Prevention Act, which addresses numerous vulnerabilities identified by Rep. McSally and her colleagues on the bipartisan Foreign Fighter Task Force, passed by bipartisan vote 407-19. The bipartisan task force I served on found many troubling findings related to gaps in the Visa Waiver Program that pose serious threats to our country, said Rep. McSally. This bill takes important steps to address these vulnerabilities including increasing checks on individuals whove recently traveled to Iraq and Syria, requiring the use of more secure e-passports, and holding countries accountable for failing to screen against terrorism databases. Todays bill also includes a provision promoting the use of technologies like those developed at the University of Arizona (UA) to aid officials in detecting deceptive behaviors of applicants. Rep. McSally has highlighted the importance of UAs deception detection technologies, AVATAR and Neuro-ScreenTM, at a Homeland Security Committee hearing and more recently by hosting a demonstration. Deception can be difficult to detect when youre interviewing an individual face to face. It is even more difficult to detect that deception in online forms, Rep. McSally said on the House floor. We must leverage technology, such as Neuro-Screen, to enhance screening programs. To watch Rep. McSally speaking on the House floor, click HERE. I appreciate Congresswoman McSallys leadership on the House Homeland Security Committee and the provision in the Visa Waiver Program Improvement and Terrorist Travel Prevention Act, which directs the Department of Homeland Security to study opportunities for incorporating fraud detection technology in the screening process for travel authorization, said University of Arizona President Ann Weaver Hart. The UA also appreciates her leadership in hosting a demonstration by a UA affiliated Arizona company whose technology directly supports the goals of the provision. The Visa Waiver Program allows citizens from participating countries to travel to America for 90 days after filling out an online questionnaire, instead of having to go to a U.S. consulate to obtain a visa. Currently 38 countries participate in the Visa Waiver Program. Around 5,000 Europeans are estimated to have traveled to Syria and Iraq to fight with terrorist groups like ISISand many are from VWP countries. | 1 | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z |