Serving the Public as a Passport Acceptance Agent at BPL

Dodd Allee, Passport Acceptance Agent at the Central Library, assists a patron. 

For more than 40 years I have tried to find ways to satisfy my heart’s desire to help people.

As a young child and youth I discovered that, for me, the greatest satisfaction was achieved by helping others. My life has been a constant quest to find ways of assisting others and providing the best customer service experience possible. I want people to know that they are important, have value and worth, and are seen. 

When I applied to be a Passport Acceptance Agent and Notary Public for the Citizen Services desk at the Central Branch of the Birmingham Public Library, I had no idea how wonderfully satisfying the work would be! 

All day long I spend my time assisting people from all walks of life. Whether it be helping patrons discover the freedom of world travel by accepting passport applications, or notarizing marriage certificates and other affidavits the library allows, my desire is satisfied and realized every day by constantly meeting needs and helping others! 

And my coworkers are some of the best people I know! We work together as a team to provide a service that is beyond comparison. When I don’t know the answer one of them usually does. And they are always ready to help! 

Most people express surprise when they find out we accept passport applications at the Birmingham Public Library. In fact, if you plan on traveling overseas this summer, you better start your application process quickly here at BPL. The service we provide includes reviewing the application for accuracy and completeness, taking photographs, advising on whether to expedite the application or not based on travel dates, and more.

When possible, and if we are capable, we even assist applicants whose first language is not English. I have lost count of how many times I have said in my broken Spanish, “Lo siento. Mi español es muy pequeño y muy malo. Pero haré todo lo posible por ayudarte.” 

But I am getting better at it!

The biggest confusion we run into is always the payments. There are essentially two fees we must accept and process. The first is the library fees which can be paid with practically any form of payment you can carry. There is the $35 fee per application for the processing, a $15 fee if we need to take a new photo, and if someone is in a terrible rush they can add an additional fee of $30.45 for express mail to the processing center. 

You can bring in your own photos but they must have been taken within the last 6 months and they need to meet certain very strict criteria. The good news is if the photo you bring in doesn’t meet the standards we can take one for you. And, if you had them taken elsewhere but they cannot be used, you can take your receipt from us and get your money back.

The second fee must be in the form of a check (personal or cashiers) or money order made payable to the U.S. Department of State. The form of payment is not negotiable because it is placed in the packet we send off for processing. The amount of the check will vary based on the service or product you want from them, but the good news is you can pay for multiple people, including entire families, in one check as long as it is clear for whom and what is being paid.

If you ask me why, I can’t give you a clear answer, but I have always wanted to be a notary public. Maybe it has something to do with the feeling of being authorized by the state to say, “I verify that this person is exactly who they say they are and they know what they are doing!”

Whatever the case, it is still helping people when you boil it down to it. Best of all we provide our notary service free of charge! 

We are limited in what we are allowed to notarize because of liability issues. But most of the time it is marriage certificates that need to go the Probate Office for filing. I like to think of it as helping to create families! 

Occasionally we acknowledge affidavits and certify oaths for other notary publics. Because of the location of our desk we get many visitors asking for directions and general questions. We do our best to be polite and courteous while we provide the information requested. And if we don’t know we will find someone who does! 

If you need a passport, something notarized, or are coming to the library seeking information about something else, please stop by the Citizen Services desk. We will do our best to assist you. You will be treated with dignity and respect and will receive the best we have to offer – our BEST, not our ‘better than’….

We live by the City of Birmingham motto of "Putting People First" everyday here at BPL. 

By Dodd Allee, Passport Agent|Central Library Citizen Services Department