Letter to the Hon. Antony Blinken, Secretary of State, and the Hon. Alejandro Mayorkas, Secretary of Homeland Security - Schumer Doubles Down On Border Reopening Fight; Senator Says Border Must Safely Reopen ASAP For Northern Border Communities, Families, & Economies To Fully Rebuild From Pandemic; Schumer Says That While The U.S. Waits For Canada, The U.S. Must Take The First Step -- Unilaterally Open Northern Border To Vaxxed Canadians -- & Let Ny Begin To Fully Recover

Letter

Dear Secretaries Blinken and Mayorkas:

I write again to urge the Department of State and the Department of Homeland Security to take immediate action to safely reopen the Northern Broder for nonessential travel. As we approach yet another expiration of the ban on nonessential travel between the United States and Canada without a transparent, bilateral plan to safely reopen the Northern Border, it is time that the United States take action unilaterally. Specifically, I request you take steps to expand essential travel definitions for Canadian Citizens entering the United States if a joint agreement is not reached by July 21st.

For months, I have asked that you work with your Canadian counterparts to finally develop a bi-national plan based on public health data and guidance -- with specific standards, protocols, and metrics -- to safely reopen the Northern Border to nonessential travel. Additionally I asked you to negotiate an interim expansion of the essential travel designation to include thousands of impacted New Yorkers, in addition to millions of other vaccinated American and Canadian citizens, while also clarifying the policy for boaters who traverse the border mid-transit. However there has been no reported progress on any of these measures even as the latest month-long extension of the border shutdown is set to expire on July 21st.

If no agreement can be reached with our Canadian allies, I ask that the Department of State and Department of Homeland Security unilaterally expand the definition of essential travel to include vaccinated Canadian citizens with family, property, educational, medical, or business interests in the United States. New York communities along the Northern Border depend on the cross-border commerce to sustain their economies and they cannot afford another summer like the last. For over a year, continuous extensions of the border closure -- without signs of progress -- have caused hardships for individuals, families and businesses on both sides of the border who remain trapped in a cycle of waiting. Action by the United States' to allow a broader definition of Canadian Citizens to cross the border will help bring some relief to property owners and businesses at risk of losing another summer season.

Once the epicenter of the global health and economic pandemic, New Yorkers have worked diligently to significantly reduce the spread of COVID infections and have led the nation in vaccinations; it is now incumbent on the federal government to do its part. Due to high vaccination rates of New Yorkers and the subsequent decline in cases in New York and elsewhere, it has become abundantly clear that an agreement can and should be reached to safely accommodate the border communities without compromising the fight against COVID-19.

I appreciate your attention on this important matter and look forward to further discussions.

Sincerely,

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