The Mexico-U.S. cross-border trucking dispute continues, but no one is winning.
Just this week, Mexico announced its plan to apply import tariffs to even more U.S. products (see full story) Not so coincidentally, this move comes as President Obama signed a $600 million bill to increase Mexican border security and add customs officers at ports of entry.
This is Mexico’s second round of retaliatory tariffs. As you may recall, Mexico began applying tariffs last year when the Obama administration and Congress halted a pilot cross-border trucking program that allowed select Mexican carriers to travel beyond the 20-mile border commercial zone. The tariffs affected a wide-range of U.S. goods and carried a $2.5 billion value.
The newly revised and expanded list entails 99 U.S. products and affects 43 states, versus the 40 affected in 2009. However, Mexico says the total export value will be similar to that of last year ($2.5 billion). Regardless, the message is clear – our southern neighbors are losing patience with us.
Under the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA), the U.S. was to allow Mexican – and Canadian – trucks full access to U.S. highways by January 2000. Ten years later, only our northern neighbors have access. Last March, the U.S. shut down the cross-border pilot program with Mexico while vowing to make a new and improved program a priority. However, we are still waiting for a program (or even a proposal).
Mexico has set out to fiscally punish us, but they too are suffering. According to Mexico’s economy minister, Bruno Ferrari, the dispute has caused an 81% decrease in U.S. imports affected by the tariffs (see full story). Of course we cannot estimate the degree to which the recession impacts financial statistics, but Mexico’s overall imports fell $234.39 billion from 2009 to 2008.
Why are we not allowing Mexican trucks to traverse our highways? Much of the debate centers on safety. Many feel Mexican trucks and truck drivers could compromise our roadways. In my opinion, this is a simple fix. Should we swap safety for free trade? Never. So let’s spell out the requirements for trucks and drivers alike. If a Mexican – or Canadian – carrier cannot meet our safety requirements, including hours of service (HOS) regulations, they should not have access to our highways.
I realize this situation isn’t as simple as it appears. However, I also recognize the need for the U.S. to adhere to NAFTA and circumvent unnecessary tariff activity. The road to safe and free trade may be scattered with political potholes and lined with red tape, but I am hopeful that it will lead us to a place where everyone wins.
Retaliatory Tariffs: No One Wins
The Mexico-U.S. cross-border trucking dispute continues, but no one is winning.
Just this week, Mexico announced its plan to apply import tariffs to even more U.S. products (see full story) Not so coincidentally, this move comes as President Obama signed a $600 million bill to increase Mexican border security and add customs officers at ports of entry.
This is Mexico’s second round of retaliatory tariffs. As you may recall, Mexico began applying tariffs last year when the Obama administration and Congress halted a pilot cross-border trucking program that allowed select Mexican carriers to travel beyond the 20-mile border commercial zone. The tariffs affected a wide-range of U.S. goods and carried a $2.5 billion value.
The newly revised and expanded list entails 99 U.S. products and affects 43 states, versus the 40 affected in 2009. However, Mexico says the total export value will be similar to that of last year ($2.5 billion). Regardless, the message is clear – our southern neighbors are losing patience with us.
Under the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA), the U.S. was to allow Mexican – and Canadian – trucks full access to U.S. highways by January 2000. Ten years later, only our northern neighbors have access. Last March, the U.S. shut down the cross-border pilot program with Mexico while vowing to make a new and improved program a priority. However, we are still waiting for a program (or even a proposal).
Mexico has set out to fiscally punish us, but they too are suffering. According to Mexico’s economy minister, Bruno Ferrari, the dispute has caused an 81% decrease in U.S. imports affected by the tariffs (see full story). Of course we cannot estimate the degree to which the recession impacts financial statistics, but Mexico’s overall imports fell $234.39 billion from 2009 to 2008.
Why are we not allowing Mexican trucks to traverse our highways? Much of the debate centers on safety. Many feel Mexican trucks and truck drivers could compromise our roadways. In my opinion, this is a simple fix. Should we swap safety for free trade? Never. So let’s spell out the requirements for trucks and drivers alike. If a Mexican – or Canadian – carrier cannot meet our safety requirements, including hours of service (HOS) regulations, they should not have access to our highways.
I realize this situation isn’t as simple as it appears. However, I also recognize the need for the U.S. to adhere to NAFTA and circumvent unnecessary tariff activity. The road to safe and free trade may be scattered with political potholes and lined with red tape, but I am hopeful that it will lead us to a place where everyone wins.