Proposed U.S.-Canada Border Fee Ruffles Snowbird’s Feathers

A Department of Homeland Security proposed border fee between the U.S. and Canada is ruffling the feathers of the Canadian Snowbird Association –a 70,000 member non-profit, non-partisan organization representing Canadian travelers from across the country. “It’s just one more fee and it sends the wrong message,” said the association’s executive director Michael MacKenzie. “Border communities rely heavily on tourism.”

The association was responding to a U.S. Department of Homeland Security’s 2014 budget requesting a study to determine the feasibility of collecting a fee from pedestrians and passenger vehicles crossing between the United States and Canada by land.

Whether this fee would focus on those entering or exiting the U.S., or both, and how much each crossing might cost has yet to be determined. “While we appreciate the fiscal challenges faced by our friends in the United States we would prefer the U.S. government focus on ways to reduce obstacles at the border that hinder trade and tourism,” MacKenzie said.

The people who will suffer the most, he said, are those who cross the border frequently to shop and attend sporting events. The states most impacted will be such states as New York and Michigan.  “Politicians who represent these areas are as exercised about this as we are,” MacKenzie said.

Trade in goods and services between the two countries totaled $645 billion in 2010—more than $1.7 billion in goods and services each day. Fees for many commercial goods and agricultural inspections are already charged at the U.S. - Canada border. Airline passengers in both countries already pay significant security fees on top of their ticket prices.

http://www.travelpulse.com/proposed-uscanada-border-fee-ruffles-snowbirds-feathers.html