Murphy to U.S. state department: Speed up passports ASAP Julia Bergman FacebookTwitterEmail Hundreds of Connecticut residents have reached out to the office of U.S. Sen. Chris Murphy recently, seeking to remedy a problem plaguing millions of Americans: a backlog in processing applications for new passports and renewals. This week Murphy, D-Conn., pressed U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken to expedite the backlog, which has reportedly reached 2 million pending applications. Processing times are up to 18 weeks for routine applications and 12 weeks for expedited requests, throwing many Americans into a frenzy over whether they will be able to keep their long-awaited overseas travel plans. The traditional turnaround time was about six to eight weeks.