Canada May Soon Be Paying For the US Budget Deficit At The Border

As part of Barack Obama's proposed 2012 budget, there's a levy - a "passenger inspection fee" of $5.50 deep within the fine print aimed at Canadians traveling by sea and air. Visitors arriving in private vehicles will be exempt, meaning cross-border shoppers won't be burdened.

The proposed fee was created by the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) as part of a certains of measures designed to relieve US taxpayers. The fee could generate as much as $100M, according to DHS.

In response, Prime Minister Harper, who met with Obama in Washington a little over a week ago to celebrate a "perimeter security agreement aimed at easing border congestion, said the inspection fee is not a "useful" way to generate revenue. But he acknowledged the financial crises in the US, which is over one trillions dollars annually.

In the days that followed their Washington meeting, the Canada Border Service Agency announced its intention to shutter three obscure border crossings and cut hours at four others starting in April. That decision, along with the proposed security fee, suggests the momentum for change is “moving in the wrong direction,” said Earl Fry, professor of Canadian Studies at Brigham Young University.