To prevent the spread of COVID-19 and protect our workforce and customers, we significantly reduced passport operations in March 2020. We temporarily suspended expedited passport processing and restricted service to cases involving life-or-death emergencies. As global conditions evolve and U.S. states begin to reopen, we are resuming operations in phases. We ask for your patience as we safely work on your application.
As of Wednesday, July 1, a total of 16 passport agencies and centers are in phase one of our three-phase reopening plan. During phase one, we are limiting appointments to customers who must travel internationally in the next 72 hours due to a life-or-death emergency.
The State Department furloughed the people who do passport renewals. I've read that they have an 8 month backlog of renewal applications pending.
https://travel.state.gov/content/travel/en/passports/have-passport/renew.html