July 27, 2004

The study by a prominent Texas economist showing that a new entry policy will cost the U.S. economy more than a million jobs and almost $230 million shouldn’t come as a surprise. Earlier this year, a University of Texas-Pan American study showed that visitors from Mexico support 12 percent of all jobs in the Rio Grande Valley and contributed $1.4 billion to the local economy. Extrapolate that figure all the way along the U.S.-Mexico border to San Diego, and it’s easy to see how impeding the flow of visitors could hurt the nation’s economy.

The US-VISIT program would do just that, according to the report Texas economist M. Ray Perryman released last week. The gist of the report, available at www.perrymangroup.com, is summed up nicely in its title: “Stalling the Engine of Growth in a Global Economy: The Impact of Implementation of the US-VISIT Program at U.S.-Mexico Border Crossings on Business Activity in the U.S., Texas and the Border Region.”

US-VISIT (the acronym stands for United States Visitor and Immigrant Status Indicator Technology Program; you have to wonder which one the government came up with first, the program or the name) requires foreign travelers to get fingerprinted and photographed when they enter the United States, delaying the entry process.

While such scrutiny might make sense for travelers from certain countries coming to the United States for a long stay, it doesn’t make sense to require it for Mexican citizens intending a short visit to shop, dine out or see relatives on this side of the border. Not only do the new requirements stretch the resources of already overworked immigration officials, but they will discourage some casual visitors who come to this country to spend money, as the study shows.

“While one of the stated goals of the program, improving U.S. homeland security, is clearly a worthy aim, it is not at all apparent that US-VISIT is the optimal (or even a viable) method for achieving this objective,” the report’s executive summary states. “In fact, the US-VISIT program has been called into question by the U.S. (Government Accountability Office), which in a recently released report described it as a high-risk endeavor.”

According to Perryman, delays at land ports of entry could cause greater than 1.4 million job losses — 800,000 of those in Texas. “The program is likely to prove particularly damaging to the economies of the border region,” the report states. It says border crossing delays would reduce Mexicans’ level of spending in this country as they stop coming here because of hassles while crossing.

The free flow of individuals across the border is vital for free trade and therefore, vital to the U.S. economy. The Department of Homeland Security should devote its resources to preventing the wrong people from obtaining visas in the first place, instead of backing up traffic at the border.

Source - http://www.themonitor.com/