Traffic on all the bridges connecting Mexico to Texas is expected to get back to normal after Gov. Greg Abbott signed a fourth security agreement with a Mexican governor Friday afternoon.
Abbott, who is up for reelection in November, has agreed to end additional inspections on commercial vehicles crossing into Texas from Tamaulipas after that state's governor, Francisco Javier Garc铆a Cabeza de Vaca, promised to increase security on the Mexican side.
Tamaulipas is the to sign a deal with Abbott. None of the Mexican governors implemented anything new; they had already been doing what they pledged to do to enhance security at the border.
So, Abbott鈥檚 decision, although welcomed by many, comes after the state 鈥� and the nation 鈥� lost millions of dollars due to the searches, which have clogged up the international checkpoints.
鈥淲ith the volume of reduction we鈥檝e seen, you are costing the U.S. economy in total economic impact almost a billion dollars a day,鈥� Ray Perryman, president of the economic research firm Perryman Group, said.
The Waco-based firm has researched the economic impact of previous border slowdowns, the most recent in 2019.
Using that same model, Perryman said, his group estimates Texas has lost about $470 million a day due to the slowdowns.
鈥淔ood should not be used as a bargaining chip, especially at a time when supply chain pressures continue to be acute.鈥�Greg Ferrara, National Grocers Association
The National Grocers Association said in a statement the inspections have affected their membership.
鈥淲e have received reports of fresh produce being lost due to the shipping delays, adding to the growing list of factors impacting the movement of goods,鈥� Greg Ferrara, the president of the association, said. 鈥淔ood should not be used as a bargaining chip, especially at a time when supply chain pressures continue to be acute.鈥�
Consumers will feel the impact of Abbott鈥檚 inspection policies at the grocery store. They might see higher costs or even shipment delays, said Perryman.
The Fresh Produce Association of the Americas 鈥渇ood shortages will rise as we head into Easter.鈥�
In an , the chief executive of the Texas International Produce Association said people headed to the grocery store this weekend should expect empty shelves in the vegetable and fruit sections.
Perryman said the economy is likely to rebound quickly, however, once the flow of traffic on the international bridges improves.
鈥淭he difficulty is even before this we already had inadequate infrastructure at the border,鈥� he said. 鈥淪o we don鈥檛 start from a place where it automatically becomes seamless, but it does go back to the way it was and we鈥檝e managed to adapt and work with that.鈥�
Abbott has gotten backlash for the searches from Democrats, but also from members of his own Republican Party. Leaders on both sides.
Sid Miller, the Texas agriculture commissioner, characterized Abbott鈥檚 inspections as a 鈥渃log in the drain.
"You cannot solve a border crisis by creating another crisis at the border," he said.
Every year, billions of dollars in two-way trade passes between Texas and Mexico.
According to U.S. census data analyzed by , in 2021 the Laredo customs district saw the highest amount of trade, with about $243 billion. Ports of entry in Pharr, Eagle Pass and Brownsville also saw billions of dollars in trade last year.
Late Friday morning, Democratic gubernatorial candidate Beto O鈥橰ourke called the inspections nothing but a political stunt that hurt the border. He said it was time for communities along the Rio Grande to start fighting back.
鈥淚t is time that we stand up for ourselves. This is a beautiful, amazing, extraordinary community,鈥� he said during a news conference blocks away from the Bridge of the Americas in El Paso. 鈥淲e do not deserve these political stunts. We don鈥檛 deserve this abuse. We deserve so much better.鈥�
He reiterated that the so-called agreements with the Mexican governors were over measures already in place and that Abbott is trying to take the credit.
鈥淭his fake news that he鈥檚 trafficking to the people of Texas, we are not buying it,鈥� O'Rourke said. 鈥淲e are never going to forget what he has done to us and we will remember that we can do much better.鈥�
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