LAREDO, Texas (Nov. 20, 2017) – The Texas Border Coalition (TBC) today urged the Trump Administration and Congress to recognize the importance of trade between the U.S., Mexico and Canada and modernize the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) in a way that boosts economic growth, jobs and wages while helping secure the border.

“For many Texas border communities, NAFTA is essential for their continued prosperity and growth,” Laredo Mayor and TBC Chairman Pete Saenz told members of the U.S. Senate Finance Committee during a field hearing in San Antonio. “TBC supports efforts to renegotiate and modernize NAFTA. We stand ready to work with the president and Congress to achieve a trade deal that benefits U.S. workers and creates new opportunities for Texas border communities.”

During the hearing, Saenz submitted a TBC resolution outlining the coalition’s priorities for the NAFTA renegotiation process. In addition, the resolution calls for clear, straightforward rules of trade, supports advances in technology and improved cross- border coordination and discourages a one-size-fits-all barrier approach to border security.

For over a decade, TBC has urged investments in reducing the bottlenecks to trade among the NAFTA nations. TBC is of the opinion that the U.S. would gain greater economic growth from legitimate trade and travel by improving the nation’s land border crossing infrastructure, upgrading the technology that make customs clearances more efficient and by hiring the inspectors needed to minimize the hours-long backups at official border crossings.

“The NAFTA renegotiation should stimulate the American economy by growing jobs and wages and fueling partnerships with Canada and Mexico. This would send a clear message to the world that North America is and will continue to be the powerhouse of the global economy,” Saenz said.