Transportation Worker Identification Credential
Today, 15 US Coast Guard Captain of the Ports Zones now have a layer of security in place that did not exist months ago, significantly enhancing security at ports across the nation. At these ports US Coast Guard personnel ensure workers in secure areas have received a thorough background check and do not pose a threat. All of the nation’s ports will meet these same standards by April 14, 2009.
More than 700,000 workers at our nation’s ports have enrolled to date and thousands more are processed each week. The TWIC program is progressing steadily and today has more than 150 fixed enrollment centers and over 370 mobile sites nationwide.
TSA is committed to processing all workers who need a TWIC, with a particular emphasis at ports approaching compliance. The program monitors wait times daily and surges resources to ensure workers can apply quickly and easily. We have increased resources, extended enrollment center hours and in some case added additional enrollment centers to achieve our goal of quickly processing workers.
The average wait time at enrollment centers nationwide is approximately 21 minutes. Pre enrollment can be done over the phone by calling 1-866-DHS-TWIC or via our Web site at www.tsa.gov/twic to reduce workers wait times.
Typically after enrollment, workers will be contacted via phone or email to pick up and activate their cards in 10-15 business days. Activation is critical step in the process to ensure a positive ID of workers by choosing a pin number and obtaining and embedding biometrics on the card.
The TWIC call center receives 4,000 calls per day and the wait times are less than 1 minute on average.
Of the more than 700,000 TWIC applicants to date, approximately 3.5 percent have been issued initial disqualification letters.
Of the workers who appeal initial disqualification, we average approximately a 26 day turnaround on providing a ruling, which is well under the 60 day timeframe that we are legally required to respond.