BALTIMORE, MD — The U.S. Postal Service and Johns Hopkins Bayview Medical Center will host a Passport Fair on Friday, April 30, from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. in the Carroll Auditorium, 4940 Eastern Avenue, Baltimore MD 21224. Postal officials will provide passport information to U.S. citizens and accept passport applications.

The State Department is proposing new fees for passport books, cards, and other passport services that could increase the cost by up to $35 per adult. Following the public comment period, which ended March 11, the Department may announce changes within weeks. For more information, visit http://travel.state.gov/passport/get/fees/fees_4734.html.

Currently, passports cost $100 for adults and $85 for children 15 years of age and younger. To help the passport application process run smoothly and efficiently, the Postal Service recommends the following:

• Bring in proper proof of American citizenship. This must be either: a certified birth certificate issued by the city, county or state; a previous U.S. passport; a certificate of citizenship; or a naturalization certificate. (Please note: a hospital-issued birth certificate alone is not acceptable.)
• Bring in proof of identity. This must be either: a previous U.S. passport; a naturalization certificate; a certificate of citizenship; a current valid driver’s license, government ID or military photo ID. (Please note: a photocopy showing the front and back of the ID must be provided on plain white 81/2 x 11” standard paper. Photocopies must contain images on only one side of each page — not the front and the back. If copies cannot be made on the same side of one page, the applicant may present two separate pages; one displaying the front of the ID and the second display the back of the ID).
• The passport application requires two recent identical photographs. Passport photo service will be provided on site for $15.

All applicants must appear in person (including minors).

For more information contact Melody Davis-Finazzo at (410) 347-4493 or Alvin Henson at (410) 550-5152.

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Please Note: For broadcast quality video and audio, photo stills and other media resources, visit the USPS Newsroom at www.usps.com/communications/newsroom/welcome.htm.

A self-supporting government enterprise, the U.S. Postal Service is the only delivery service that reaches every address in the nation, 150 million residences, businesses and Post Office Boxes. The Postal Service receives no direct support from taxpayers. With 36,000 retail locations and the most frequently visited website in the federal government, the Postal Service relies on the sale of postage, products and services to pay for operating expenses. Named the Most Trusted Government Agency five consecutive years and the sixth Most Trusted Business in the nation by the Ponemon Institute, the Postal Service has annual revenue of more than $68 billion and delivers nearly half the world’s mail. If it were a private sector company, the U.S. Postal Service would rank 28th in the 2009 Fortune 500.