BUFFALO - U.S. Rep. Thomas Reynolds has asked the Government Accountability Office to step into a “turf battle” between the State Department and Homeland Security over new passport requirements, determine why travelers have been delayed getting passports and find out how the agencies will handle even more demand in the future.

“If the state Department and DHS are intent on moving forward with the implementation of (the Western Hemisphere Travel Initiative), which I think at this point is both impossible and impractical, then I want them to have to answer the questions of how they are going to do that,” the Republican said Monday in his district along the U.S.-Canadian border.

With traffic from Canada queuing for U.S. Customs at the Peace Bridge toll plaza, Reynolds accused both departments of “borderline” incompetence in their handling of the rule - recommended by the 9/11 Commission - that requires passports for travel to Canada, Mexico, Bermuda and the Caribbean.

The agencies said Friday they would temporarily relax the rule - already in place for air travelers - because of a crush of applicants, but will press ahead with the requirement for passports at all U.S. sea and land border crossings beginning in January.

According to government estimates, about 27 million Americans will need formal documents for land travel over the next five years.

That's more than four times the number who will need them to travel by air or sea.

“With a turf battle between the State Department and the Department of Homeland Security over WHTI, I want to know how they plan on dealing with an influx of passport demands in the future,” Reynolds said.

Homeland Security plans to offer a draft within two weeks spelling out how the rule would be implemented, spokesman Russ Knocke said late last week.

On Monday, spokeswoman Laura Keehner said the department had not seen Reynolds' request to the GAO and could not comment.

The State Department also had no immediate response.

U.S. and Canadian officials worry the travel requirement will discourage tourism and hamper the flow of goods - currently $1.4 billion a day - between the world's largest trading partners.

“Tourism is a huge industry for western New York and it's one of our few growth industries,” said Richard Geiger, president and chief executive of the Buffalo Niagara Convention and Visitors Bureau, which markets a trip to the region as “two great countries for the price of one.”

Arlene White, executive director of the Binational Tourism Alliance, said damage is already being done because of travelers' confusion over whether the requirement is in effect at the land borders.

“Our U.S. colleagues are telling us in the industry that they should be getting three times the number of Canadians,” said White, whose agency has offices on both sides of the border.

Several members of Congress are pushing to change the January deadline.

“They have got an awful mess that they can't handle and they're going to have to put this whole notion off for another year,” Rep. Louise Slaughter, D-N.Y., said last week.

Reynolds wants the GAO to determine how many passport requests have been made, how many have been processed and the average time it has taken.

He also is asking how the State Department has used additional resources to respond to the increased demand and how many passport applications the department anticipates next year.

A Canadian official, meanwhile, said he was disappointed that last week's decision to temporarily relax the requirement for air travelers did not include Canadian citizens.

“We feel this is really an initiative that we should be working on collaboratively to make sure that it works well for both Canadian and U.S. citizens,” Canadian Consul General Steve Brereton said.