FORT CAMPBELL, Ky. -- The Department of the Army has come out with new vetting requirements for individuals requesting access to military installations. Effective Aug. 15, visitors to Fort Campbell will no longer be granted access to the installation based on the scanning of their driver's license and will be required to adhere to new procedures.
"This has the possibility to affect a lot of people trying to gain access to Fort Campbell," said Access Control Chief Richard Vater. "Those that come on post to visit, or for special events like concerts and Week of the Eagles, or go to the museum -- there is going to be a more stringent access policy for those folks.
"Individuals wanting to gain access to the installation, that do not have an approved government-issued ID card, will be required to have a criminal history check beginning Aug. 15," said Vater. "The Army has issued specific guidance in reference to offenses that are unauthorized access to the installation now."
According to Army Regulation 190-13, "a check of records through the National Crime Information Center (NCIC) Interstate Identification Index (III) is the Army minimum baseline background check for entrance onto Army installations for non-CAC holders to include entrance of visitors. The FBI permits the use of NCIC III for vetting visitors to ensure the security of military installations."
All personnel not in possession of a Department of Defense-issued photo identification card will be required to process through the Gate 4 or Gate 7 Visitors Center before entering the installation. There, they will be required to provide vehicle registration, proof of insurance and their driver's license, which will be vetted through the National Crime Information Center law enforcement data base to determine eligibility to enter the installation.
An NCIC III check searches the following databases: Wanted Person File, Foreign Fugitive File, Violent Gang and Terrorist Organization File, U.S. Secret Service File, Convicted Persons on Supervised Release File, Threat Against Peace Officer Alert File, Protection Order File, Missing Person File, State Criminal Investigation Division Only Wanted Person File, Concealed Handgun License File, Drivers License Record File, Convicted Sexual Offender Registry File, Deported Felon File and the Unidentified Persons File.
Visitors requesting access on the installation should be prepared to provide, at a minimum, the following: full name, date of birth and Social Security number.
Once vetted, visitors will be granted a one-day pass, good for 24 hours, which will be valid from time of issuance until midnight of the same day.
Current procedures for individuals who participate in the RAPIDGate program or have been issued locally-produced credentials will remain the same. These individuals are already being vetted and are in compliance with the new Army standard.
Passengers of DoD ID card holders are not required to obtain a pass, but will be required to provide a valid photo ID at the access control point, said Billy Dill, access control.
"Our job is security every single day," Vater said. "The new procedure is going to make Fort Campbell residents and people who live, work and play on the installation, feel a bit safer that there are certain people who are now not authorized access to the installation."
Visitors affected by the new procedure are encouraged to add additional travel time to their commutes, as wait times at the Gate 4 and 7 visitors centers will increase slightly.
"The new requirement will have some impact -- the visitor control center lines will be a little bit longer," said Dill. "And although we have increased hours and staff at the center, the best thing to do is add time to your commute because you will be waiting. The only impact it will have at the gate is if someone has to be turned around because they did not have the proper documentation."
Gate 4 and 7 Visitor Centers are open from 5 a.m. until 9 p.m., seven days a week. After duty hours, passes will be issued at the Gate 4 and 7 access control points. The vetting procedures will be the same. For more information, call (270) 798-3154.
"We are enforcing big Army policy, a policy issued in response to the Navy Yard shooting and the Fort Hood shooting." said Vater. "The intent of this is to ensure our installations are safer and to keep people that probably should not be on the installation, off."
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