U.S.-Mexico Border Non-Essential Travel Restrictions Extended to June 21, 2021
By: Ricardo E. Calderon, Eagle Pass Business Journal, Inc., Copyright 2021
The United States Department of Homeland Security announced on Thursday, May 20, 2021, that the United States, Mexico, and Canada had agreed to extend the border non-essential travel restrictions until June 21, 2021, disappointing City of Eagle Pass, Texas officials who were hoping they be lifted May 21, 2021 due to significant loss of revenues from its international bridge system, retail sales taxes, and hotel occupancy room taxes.
The City of Eagle Pass Mayor Rolando Salinas noted the city loses between $350,000 to $450,000 per month of revenues to its general fund every month that the U.S.-Mexico border non-essential travel restrictions are in place. The border non-essential travel restrictions have been in place for 14 months since March 20, 2020 when President Donald J. Trump implemented the controversial travel restrictions between the United States, Mexico, and Canada.
The City of Eagle Pass has been hit hard financially during the past 14 months with an estimated $4,900,000 to $6,300,000 losses in revenues since the non-essential border restrictions have been implemented. The Eagle Pass City Council has had to adjust the City’s fiscal year budget during the past two fiscal years to make up for the loss of revenues to the city’s general revenues fund, including temporarily laying off employees and cutting certain programs and services.
Retail businesses in Eagle Pass have also had to close due to the loss of retail customers and revenues from Mexico while other businesses are barely hanging on. Some Eagle Pass businesses depend heavily on Mexican retail customers for up to 70%-80% of their annual gross revenues, but the non-essential border travel restrictions have forced to shut down or lay off employees in order to survive.
In a research study of the economic impact of the border non-essential travel restrictions during the first eight months of their implementation, that is in November 2020, Dr. Jose Ivan Rodriguez-Sanchez of the Baker Institute Center for the U.S. and Mexico at Rice University in Houston, Texas found that an estimated $4.9 Billion in economic impact were lost by Texas-Mexico border cities and counties as a result of these controversial travel restrictions.
Mexico is the largest international trading partner of the State of Texas. The border non-essential travel restrictions have also affected the gross revenues of international trade between Texas and Mexico.
Mayor Salinas stated that the City of Eagle Pass will continue to speak with its Congressional representatives to impress upon the Biden Administration the need to lift or rescind these controversial border non-essential travel restrictions due to the huge economic impact upon its fiscal budget and significant financial losses to its retail businesses.
