New Hope for Cross-Border Trucking
One of the pending provisions of the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) is the current hold on Mexican trucks being able to enter the U.S. to provide cross-border cargo services of goods exported from Mexico. U.S. authorities have raised seeminingly endless barriers to impede cross-border trucking. As recently reported in the CCN Mexico Report©, Mexico now imposes countervailing duties on certain agricultural and other goods supplied by the U.S. Many leading promoters of free trade, various producers and sectors of the Mexican economy, led by the Mexican government, voices in academia and social networks, have lobbied for the lifting of such barriers to allow Mexican trucks to circulate freely in U.S. territory. In San Antonio, Texas, organizations such as the Free Trade Alliance (www.freetradealliance.org) have been particularly vocal in calling for an end to the prohibition. With the coming of a new year, good news has arrived. The governement of President Barack Obama has prepared a plan proposing a solution to this conflict. The proposal was well received by Mexican government officials and appears to coincide proposals that have been formulated by Republican congressional representatives and various business community leaders in the U.S. However, many union and organized labor groups continue to oppose the opening of cross-border trucking. The plan prepared by the U.S. Secretary of Transportation, Ray LaHood, is contained within a document that establishes that Mexican trucks requesting permits to operate in the U.S. may do so provided they comply with applicable safety, insurance and other inspection requirements. The plan does not include a proposal for transportation of hazardous waste and materials. It is likely that, if the plan is implemented, the Mexican government will decide to withdraw the countervailing duties currently imposed on U.S. goods being imported into Mexico. This development is just the initial step toward arrival at a complete solution of the cross-border trucking issue, but at least progress is being made to remove this regrettable stain from the NAFTA.
One of the pending provisions of the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) is the current hold on Mexican trucks being able to enter the U.S. to provide cross-border cargo services of goods exported from Mexico. U.S. authorities have raised seeminingly endless barriers to impede cross-border trucking. As recently reported in the CCN Mexico Report©, Mexico now imposes countervailing duties on certain agricultural and other goods supplied by the U.S. Many leading promoters of free trade, various producers and sectors of the Mexican economy, led by the Mexican government, voices in academia and social networks, have lobbied for the lifting of such barriers to allow Mexican trucks to circulate freely in U.S. territory. In San Antonio, Texas, organizations such as the Free Trade Alliance (www.freetradealliance.org) have been particularly vocal in calling for an end to the prohibition. With the coming of a new year, good news has arrived. The governement of President Barack Obama has prepared a plan proposing a solution to this conflict. The proposal was well received by Mexican government officials and appears to coincide proposals that have been formulated by Republican congressional representatives and various business community leaders in the U.S. However, many union and organized labor groups continue to oppose the opening of cross-border trucking. The plan prepared by the U.S. Secretary of Transportation, Ray LaHood, is contained within a document that establishes that Mexican trucks requesting permits to operate in the U.S. may do so provided they comply with applicable safety, insurance and other inspection requirements. The plan does not include a proposal for transportation of hazardous waste and materials. It is likely that, if the plan is implemented, the Mexican government will decide to withdraw the countervailing duties currently imposed on U.S. goods being imported into Mexico. This development is just the initial step toward arrival at a complete solution of the cross-border trucking issue, but at least progress is being made to remove this regrettable stain from the NAFTA.