SAN FRANCISCO – In partnership with volunteers from various Filipino American community organizations in Tacoma, Washington, an 11-member team from the Philippine Consulate in San Francisco led by Deputy Consul General Raquel R. Solano conducted a consular outreach mission in Tacoma, Washington on March 16-19, 2024 at the Freedom Room of the Holiday Inn Express in Tacoma Mall, Washington.
The team provided a total of 1,289 services, including overseas voting registration, passport, and dual citizenship, during the 4-day outreach. 513 individuals applied for passports, 540 applied for reacquisition or retention of Philippine citizenship, and 44 obtained legal and notarial services. A total of 192 individuals registered for overseas voting. Applicants who were provided services included Filipinos/Filipino Americans not only from Washington but also from Alaska, Idaho, and Oregon.
During the outreach, the consulate also held a briefing on workers’ rights in partnership with the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) in the Washington-Alaska district. DOL-Wage and Hour Division (DOL-WHD) community outreach and planning specialist Stephen Yim and his colleague, Ian Apostol, took turns in talking to the consular applicants about the U.S. Fair Labor Standards Act as well as the programs and services of DOL-Wage and Hour Division (WHD).
Atty. Flomy Diza of the Integrated Bar of the Philippines-Northern California (IBP-NorCal) chapter also spoke about the free legal consultations on family and property laws, immigration, bankruptcy, among others, being conducted by IBP-NorCal monthly at the Philippine Consulate in San Francisco, and offered to provide the same service during the outreach to the applicants. He also indicated that those with legal concerns in the U.S. or in the Philippines, may contact IBP-NorCal for legal advice through the consulate.
The outreach in Tacoma was the first consular outreach mission of the PH Consulate in San Francisco for the year 2024.
(PCGSF Release)
