WASHINGTON — U.S. Senator Debbie Stabenow (D-MI) today announced she will introduce legislation to waive mandatory travel fees for U.S. citizens who wish to evacuate the recent Middle East conflict and urged the Administration to move more quickly to get Americans out of harm’s way.

“Over the last several days, I have been in touch with hundreds of Michigan constituents who have family members and friends trapped by the conflict in the Middle East,” Stabenow said. “We must not abandon American citizens in a war zone. Our government should be focusing on the fastest, safest way to get Americans home, not how much to bill them once they get there.”

The U.S. State Department estimates there are approximately 25,000 American citizens currently in Lebanon, and 15,000 have registered with the State Department’s Lebanon Task Force to receive evacuation information. The State Department has announced it has chartered cruise ships to evacuate Americans from Lebanon to Cyprus. From Cyprus, commercial and chartered airlines will fly U.S. citizens home.

Current law requires U.S. citizens and others who qualify for evacuation by the U.S. government to sign a promissory note pledging to reimburse the government for the cost of their evacuation travel. They will later be billed by the State Department for the cost of any air, land, or sea transportation. If government assistance becomes necessary to assist U.S. citizens wishing to leave Israel, the reimbursement requirements would also apply to those citizens and their dependents.

Stabenow’s legislation would give the U.S. Secretary of State the authority to waive the reimbursement requirement if the fee would create an undue financial hardship for a family or individual and those citizens would be unable to recoup the cost of or reuse a previously purchased airline ticket. “In many cases, we are talking about large families, including small children and senior citizens, who are being presented with promissory notes before they can leave Lebanon,” said Stabenow. “My legislation gives those who can’t afford thousands in unexpected travel costs an option for help.”

“This situation is frightening enough without people being placed in financial hardship to pay their way home,” Stabenow said. “We should be doing everything possible to get Americans home safely and quickly.”