U.S. Rep. Bill Huizenga (R-MI) helped lead a bipartisan group of 75 lawmakers in urging President Joe Biden to lift all pandemic-related travel restrictions to jumpstart the nation’s economic recovery, restore American jobs and reconnect the country to the global community.
“Due to the progress our country has made to defeat COVID-19, we respectfully urge your administration to begin taking science-based, data-driven steps to safely reopen international travel to the United States,” Rep. Huizenga and his colleagues wrote Biden in a July 7 letter, which was also led by U.S. Rep. Brian Higgins (D-NY), who serves alongside Rep. Huizenga as co-chair of the Canada-United States Interparliamentary Group.
Prior to the pandemic, international inbound travel to the U.S. contributed $234 billion in export income to the U.S. economy, generated a trade surplus of $51 billion, and directly supported 1.2 million American jobs, according to the lawmakers’ letter.
However, the steep decline in travel in 2020 resulted in the loss of $150 billion in export income,” they wrote. “If nothing is done to lift entry restrictions, the U.S. is projected to lose 1.1 million jobs and an additional $175 billion by the end of this year.”
The congressional members outlined action items that the Biden administration could take moving forward, including reopening the land border and restarting air travel between the U.S. and Canada, and between the U.S. and the United Kingdom; developing a risk-based, data-driven roadmap to ease inbound entry restrictions; and increasing visa processing capacity for tourism and business visas, among others.
“By taking these steps, your administration can both protect public health and safety, and accelerate economic recovery and rehiring in the hard-hit travel industry,” wrote Rep. Huizenga and his colleagues.