January 29, 2021

Economic impacts of border travel restrictions in Arizona

Non-essential travel at ports of entry between Mexico and Canada has been restricted since March 2020.

Cross-border travel restrictions between the U.S., Mexico and Canada are set to expire on Feb. 21, 2021, nearly a year after they took effect to limit the spread of the coronavirus. Suspensions on non-essential travel resulted in 43% fewer border crossings at Arizona’s international ports of entry, according to the U.S. Census Bureau. Arizona 360 discussed how the drop in travel affected the economies of border communities with international trade adviser Luis Ramirez.

“Anywhere between 50% to as much as 70% of the sales tax revenue in those communities is directly attributable to the Mexican visitors,” Ramirez said.

Arizona 360
Arizona 360 airs Fridays at 8:30 p.m. on PBS 6 and Saturdays at 8 p.m. on PBS 6 PLUS. See more from Arizona 360.
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