Alice Knapp, who is CEO of the Ferguson Library in Stamford, first learned the library’s passport application services would soon end, through a suspicious email in November from the U.S. Department of State.
“We verified that email by calling the local passport office here in Stamford, because it looked like it was spam,” Knapp said. “The person who signed the email did not provide a last name.”
Knapp quickly learned the email proved to be legitimate.
The library, along with l other public libraries across the state and country, will stop offering passport application services starting Feb. 13 due to a new requirement by the federal government which requires passport applications to be processed by authorized government agencies. The new rule impacts public libraries independent from local municipal control.
Several libraries contacted by Connecticut Public expressed concern, saying the change would negatively impact residents and their library's finances.
The Ferguson Library has offered passport application services since 1999, Knapp said. The service, according to Knapp, is convenient for residents, many of whom are unable to make it to the post office to fill out and submit a passport application after they get off from work for the day.
Knapp said the library system saw a 20% drop in passport applications since federal law enforcement began conducting immigration crackdowns in the area. Knapp said some of the people who go to the library to apply for a passport are applying for their children, born in the United States and are thus, citizens.
Now many who already curtail their travel due to concerns over profiling and apprehension, are faced with a difficult choice, according to Knapp.
“Those people who are undocumented but want to document their children, their choices just got a lot slimmer,” Knapp said.
Knapp said the Ferguson Library is a quasi-government facility and is a public library, but it's not operated by the city.
“Last year, we processed over 8,000 or just under 8,000 applications for passports, and the rationale behind it is that the Ferguson Library, like many public libraries, is a 501c3 nonprofit organization, as opposed to a governmental agency.”
The U.S. State Department did not respond to Connecticut Public’s request for comment.
Stamford isn’t the only municipality with a nonprofit library system now planning to stop accepting passport applications. Farmington, Ridgefield and Norwich have nonprofit libraries and all have confirmed they too will stop accepting passport applications on Feb. 13.
The Hartford Public Library, which is also a 501c3 designated nonprofit, according to its latest publicly available tax return, confirmed it is still accepting passport applications but stated its status as a processing center is currently under review.
Knapp said a new federal bill, HR Bill 6997, sponsored by federally elected officials in Pennsylvania if passed, could put a stop to this.
“It would specifically allow nonprofit public libraries to process passports,” Knapp said.
While Knapp and others pin their hopes on the bill, the Ferguson Library and others will now have to contend with a loss of revenue.
Revenue from passport applications made up a big chunk of the Ferguson Library's budget, that’s according to statement from the library which read in part:
“Revenue from the library’s passport operations brought in $368,000 in 2025. These dollars ensure the library remains open every day of the week and directly support the library’s book collection and services such as free computers, technology assistance and programs for children and adults. Income from passport operations has also allowed the library to upgrade its facilities over the years.”
Knapp said the library will look at funding alternatives to protect its services.
Brenda McKinley, director of the Ridgefield Library, said the library accepted around 570 applications last year. McKinley said while the town funds around 70% of the library’s budget, the loss of revenue will have an impact.
“Any intake income that we get is reinvested directly into public service, collections, programs, all of our services,” McKinley said. That intake, the funding, is going back to the public.”
