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S. HRG. 110–255

ECONOMIC AND COMMUNITY IMPLICATIONS OF

NORTHERN BORDER SECURITY

HEARING

BEFORE THE

COMMITTEE ON THE JUDICIARY 

UNITED STATES SENATE

ONE HUNDRED TENTH CONGRESS

FIRST SESSION

OCTOBER 10, 2007

NEWPORT, VERMONT

Serial No. J–110–48

Printed for the use of the Committee on the Judiciary

(

(II)

COMMITTEE ON THE JUDICIARY 

PATRICK J. LEAHY, Vermont, Chairman 

EDWARD M. KENNEDY, Massachusetts 

JOSEPH R. BIDEN, JR., Delaware 

HERB KOHL, Wisconsin 

DIANNE FEINSTEIN, California 

RUSSELL D. FEINGOLD, Wisconsin 

CHARLES E. SCHUMER, New York 

RICHARD J. DURBIN, Illinois 

BENJAMIN L. CARDIN, Maryland 

SHELDON WHITEHOUSE, Rhode Island 

ARLEN SPECTER, Pennsylvania 

ORRIN G. HATCH, Utah 

CHARLES E. GRASSLEY, Iowa 

JON KYL, Arizona 

JEFF SESSIONS, Alabama 

LINDSEY O. GRAHAM, South Carolina 

JOHN CORNYN, Texas 

SAM BROWNBACK, Kansas 

TOM COBURN, Oklahoma 

BRUCE A. COHEN, Chief Counsel and Staff Director 

MICHAEL O’NEILL, Republican Chief Counsel and Staff Director 

(III)

C O N T E N T S 

STATEMENTS OF COMMITTEE MEMBERS 

Page

Leahy, Hon., Patrick J., a U.S. Senator from the State of Vermont ................... 1

prepared statement .......................................................................................... 33

WITNESSES 

Eidsness, Dana B., Director of International Trade, Vermont Global Trade 

Partnership, Newport, Vermont .......................................................................... 15

Hyde, Bruce, Commissioner, Vermont Department of Tourism and Marketing, 

Montpelier, Vermont ............................................................................................ 4

Picard, Curtis, Vice President, Vermont Chamber of Commerce, Montpelier, 

Vermont ................................................................................................................ 12

Sears, Patricia, Executive Director, Newport City Renaissance Corporation, 

Newport, Vermont ................................................................................................ 18

Shea, Timothy P., Vice President and Congressional Liaison, Lake Champlain 

Regional Chamber of Commerce, Burlington, Vermont .................................... 10

Stenger, Bill, President, Jay Peak Resort, Jay, Vermont ..................................... 7

SUBMISSIONS FOR THE RECORD 

Eidsness, Dana B., Director of International Trade Vermont Global Trade 

Partnership, Montpelier, Vermont, statement ................................................... 25

Hyde, Bruce, Commissioner, Vermont Department of Tourism and Marketing, 

Montpelier, Vermont, statement ......................................................................... 28

Jenne, Karen, Clerk/Treasurer, Derby Line, Vermont, letter .............................. 29

Klinefelter, Leslie, West Stewartstown, New Hampshire, letter ......................... 31

Searles, Brian, Director of Aviation, Burlington International Airport, Burlington, Vermont, statement ............................................................................... 36

Sears, Patricia, Executive Director, Newport City Renaissance Corporation, 

Newport, Vermont, statement ............................................................................. 37

Shea, Timothy P., Vice President and Congressional Liaison, Lake Champlain 

Regional Chamber of Commerce, Burlington, Vermont, statement and attachment ............................................................................................................... 41

Stenger, Bill, President, Jay Peak Resort, Jay, Vermont, statement .................. 60

Zuccareno, Bill, Chief International Officer, Economic Development Council 

of Northern Vermont, Northern Vermont-Quebec Trade Coalition, St. Albans, Vermont, statement ................................................................................... 62

(1)

ECONOMIC AND COMMUNITY IMPLICATIONS 

OF NORTHERN BORDER SECURITY 

WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 10, 2007

UNITED STATES SENATE, 

COMMITTEE ON THE JUDICIARY, 

Washington, D.C. 

The Committee met, Pursuant to notice, at 10:50 a.m., at the 

Gateway Center, 84 Fyfe Street, Newport, Vermont, Hon. Patrick 

J. Leahy, Chairman of the Committee, presiding. 

OPENING STATEMENT OF HON. PATRICK J. LEAHY, A U.S. 

SENATOR FROM THE STATE OF VERMONT 

Chairman LEAHY. Please sit down. I think this may be the first 

time the Senate Judiciary Committee has met in Newport, 

Vermont. I’m delighted to do it. 

I must admit that there are a number of Senators who told me 

that we could have done this on Monday. They wanted to be here. 

I think it has something to do with fall foliage time. I told them, 

when I was asked what I would do during these 2 days of break 

we have at the Senate, I said, at great personal sacrifice, I’m willing to be in Vermont at the height of the foliage season. 

[Laughter]. 

Nobody seemed to feel badly about that. 

But we’re going to focus on the impact of the policies set by the 

Department of Homeland Security. I fear they will have severe implications for the social and economic ways of life in border communities all across our country—not just in Vermont, but all the way 

across the country. I am told by the U.S. Chamber of Commerce 

that some of these policies, if fully implemented, will cause between $200 and $300 billion a year in jobs in the United States. 

I am pleased that a number of the business community leaders 

in Vermont are able to join us today. I would note that the importance of this hearing is that this will create a record for hearings 

we will then have with Condoleeza Rice, on a committee I chair, 

and Michael Chertoff. 

We will also, within a short while, be having hearings in the 

Senate Judiciary Committee with the new nominee to be Attorney 

General of the United States. Some of the things that will come out 

of this hearing will form the basis of some of the questions that 

will be asked of the Attorney General nominee. I mention this, because Newport is going to play a pivotal part in that debate. Incidentally, all the testimony of everybody, the prepared statement—

the whole prepared statement—will be part of the record. 

2

Mayor Guyette, I wanted to thank you for letting us be here. The 

city looks great. I drove by the building that had been a hospital 

where my wife was born here in Newport and it all looks good. We 

have representatives from Senator Sanders’s staff, Congressman 

Welch’s staff: Jeff Munger and Mary Sprayregen. They have been 

great partners on this issue in Washington. Senator Sanders is 

holding other hearings. Congressman Welch is in session. 

I also want to thank the citizens of Canada who have joined us 

here today, and the Canadian Consul General from Boston, Neal 

le Blanc, is here. Bienvenue, Monsieur le Blanc. 

In the wake of the September 11th terrorist attacks, a number 

of new border security measures have been put in place, from constructing border fences, to developing and deploying surveillance 

technologies and troops along our borders. They have all been done 

with the express goal of stopping another terrorist attack. We all 

agree that we have to protect our borders, but we have to do it sensibly and intelligently. 

It is sometimes convenient to forget that most of the 9/11 hijackers entered the United States through legal visas. They would have 

been able to enter no matter what kind of barriers we had. Some 

were on a secret watch list, but unfortunately nobody was watching 

them. It has nothing to do with our border. 9/11 could have been 

prevented had the dots been connected. In fact, some of the hijackers received from the U.S. Government notices that it was time to 

renew their visas, and they received those notices months after the 

attack on 9/11 when they died. 

So I’m afraid that the administration’s current policies threaten 

to fray the social fabric of countless communities that straddle the 

border, here in Vermont, of course, our primary concern, but also 

the other border States. I’ve heard from many Vermonters who 

have encountered problems at U.S. border crossings, with long traffic backups, invasive searches, questioning, and inadequate communication with government authorities about new facilities and 

procedures. 

That kind of top-down approach has not worked in interwoven 

communities. When you are used to walking across the street to 

talk with your neighbor, you don’t think about the fact that the 

middle of the street may be an international border. You’re thinking about the fact you want to go and talk with your neighbor. People cross daily for jobs, shopping, and other cultural things. 

Some of the procedures may have snared some illicit drug shipments from criminals, but it hasn’t done much in snaring a terrorist. Meanwhile, I think we’ve needlessly offended our neighbors 

and have sacrificed much of the traditional goodwill we’ve enjoyed 

and undermined our own economy and border communities like 

Newport and Derby, Richford, and Norton. 

That’s why I’ve worked hard to try to bring balance and I’ve tried 

to convey in Washington the fact that we have a special relationship with Canada. It’s something that we sometimes forget because 

we take it for granted here in Vermont. We can go back and forth. 

We have a lot of relatives, we have friends, we have business associates, we have tourists in Canada. Many of us have members of 

our family who are Canadian. Canada has been an important tradVerDate 0ct 09 2002 14:40 Jan 25, 2008 Jkt 040285 PO 00000 Frm 00006 Fmt 6633 Sfmt 6633 S:\GPO\HEARINGS\40285.TXT SJUD1 PsN: CMORC
3

ing partner and a friendly neighbor to Vermont and the United 

States for more than 200 years. 

So it’s in the best interests of both our countries to keep these 

relationships as positive and productive as possible. Post 9/11, people on both sides understand the need for security. I’ve talked with 

the intelligence authorities in Canada, as I have in our own country. I’ve talked about how you can have better cooperation between 

law enforcement in the United States and Canada, but you’re not 

going to create better security by simply locking down the border. 

We have heightened security around the U.S. Capitol where I 

work every day, in the White House. We built fences on the border 

near San Diego. But those procedures don’t work. 

So I’m troubled by the Western Hemisphere Travel Initiative. It’s 

going to require individuals from the United States, Canada, Mexico, and the Caribbean to present passports or documents proving 

citizenship when they come to the United States. There’s a dramatic change coming in the way border crossings will be processed 

in the western hemisphere. 

There’s a big difference since the Treaty of Paris on our international boundary. For those who weren’t around at the time of the 

Treaty of Paris, that boundary, that was 1783. I’m the only one 

that was there at that time. 

[Laughter]. 

The Departments of State and Homeland Security have been 

charged with implementing this law. They should be coordinating 

our efforts with their international neighbors to bring about a 

smooth transition. 

But I’ve told Secretary Rice and Secretary Chertoff on several occasions there were serious problems in the way in which their 

agencies have pushed for implementation of this law and this new 

initiative. They’ve got to put necessary technologies in. You have 

Homeland Security and Department of State that have computers 

that can’t talk to each other. This is a fiasco in the making. 

If they go forward with it, we’re going to see delays that are unconscionable and free traffic back and forth between two great 

countries is going to come to a screeching halt. We saw before what 

happened when they did this with air traffic when they said it was 

going to be done smoothly, and then they had to back off in just 

a matter of weeks. That’s only about 10 percent of the traffic. 

I don’t know how many calls we get a week. Every time I walk 

in my Vermont office, somebody is calling about a passport. They 

can’t get through. They’ve ordered an expedited passport—I see Mr. 

Hyde is shaking his head; he knows what that’s like. He gets the 

same calls—the passport hasn’t come through. 

Now, I think it’s time that we ignore the fiction that we can do 

this by the first of next year. Let’s find out how we can make it 

happen smoothly. Let’s find out how we can find a way. I know 

there are 2,000 different kinds of identification that you can look 

at and go through, but we can find a better way. 

Two great nations are going to have to sit down and work that 

out, but that cannot be done if the United States says, this is the 

way it’s going to be done, without realizing the tremendous cost to 

families, to businesses, and on relationships between our countries. 

4

Our first witness, Mr. Bruce Hyde, is Vermont’s Commissioner of 

Tourism. I might say that as a United States Senator I am an ambassador of the Vermont people to the rest of the world, but of 

course you are truly an ambassador to Vermont’s beauty, especially 

to all those who are carrying these ‘‘loonies’’ that are worth a lot 

more than they used to be. 

Through the work of the Vermont Chamber of Commerce, Lake 

Champlain Regional Chamber of Commerce, he’s helped educate 

people. He’s been down in Washington many times with the Business, Economic Security, Tourism and Trade Coalition. He offers us 

an interesting perspective as Commissioner of Tourism. He’s a 

long-time owner of an inn in Mad River Valley. I can look at the 

Mad River Valley from my front steps in Middlesex, Vermont every 

time I’m home. 

Normally we swear in witnesses. I’m not going to do that with 

this room. I know you all. I don’t see the necessity. 

Bruce, if you’d like to start, the floor is yours. 

STATEMENT OF BRUCE HYDE, COMMISSIONER, VERMONT DEPARTMENT OF TOURISM AND MARKETING, MONTPELIER, 

VERMONT 

Mr. HYDE. Thank you, Senator. Thank you for the opportunity to 

be here today. It’s a very timely meeting that you’ve called here. 

It’s peak foliage, as we look out the window. Plus it is Columbus 

Day weekend, probably the busiest weekend that we have in 

Vermont, and it coincides with Canadian Thanksgiving. 

We certainly heard about some border backups over the last few 

days and over the last months, actually, but a lot of traffic is coming down. The Canadian dollar is certainly encouraging more visitors to come down from Canada, and I’ve got some statistics to 

show you today. 

I also want to thank you for the leadership that you’ve taken on 

extending the passport requirement, to pass legislation that requires the administration to come up with a plan to make sure that 

all the technology is in place before they implement this requirement, and we appreciate that. 

Certainly we need to educate folks. We receive calls all the time 

about the passport requirement: do we need a passport now? What 

kind of documentation do we need? Some people—a lot of people—

think that they need a passport as of today, and that’s misinformation that we continue to try to educate about. 

I would go into my testimony. Canadian travel——

Chairman LEAHY. All of which will be part of the record. 

Mr. HYDE. Excuse me? 

Chairman LEAHY. I said, all of which will be part of the record. 

Mr. HYDE. Okay. Thank you. 

Canadian travel to Vermont is critical to the State’s economy. It 

is extremely important that the border facilitates the movement of 

travelers, goods, and services as expeditiously as possible. While security is paramount for the country’s well-being, it is also important to consider the economic impact if the border crossings limit 

this free flow of commerce. These issues are of critical importance 

to both the United States and to Canada. 

5

In 2005, there were over 1.9 million Canadian day visitors to Vermont, spending an average of $66 per day. Nearly $350,000 per 

day is spent by these Canadian day visitors to Vermont. Canadian 

day visitors comprise over two-thirds of our out-of-state day traffic 

to Vermont. Day visitation from our neighboring States of New 

York, Massachusetts, and New Hampshire, combined, is only onethird of the total. Of all the research the Vermont Department of 

Tourism and Marketing has done recently, the most surprising 

finding, according to State economist Jeff Carr, is that most of our 

day visitors come from north of the border. 

In 2005, Canadians accounted for 20 percent of our entire State 

visitation, with total Canadian visitors spending averaging more 

than $644,000 a day. In 2006, overnight Canadian visitors spent an 

average of $204 per trip, which was up 20 percent over 2005, due 

to longer stays and increased purchases of both goods and services. 

Vermont’s tourism infrastructure has a lot of room for growth. Currently, Vermont has an occupancy rate of about 40 percent, and the 

Canadian visitation is an important and increasing sector of this 

tourism economy. 

Web traffic and visitor inquiries continue to increase from Canada. Canadian requests for vacation information increased 17 percent in September over last year. This is clearly a result of the 

strong Canadian dollar and more aggressive marketing in Quebec 

by the Department of Tourism and Marketing and the private sector. 

Visitor centers along our northern borders have experienced double-digit increases over the last few months. While Canadian visitation has increased significantly over the past few years, international visitation to the United States has declined 17 percent 

since 2001, resulting in the loss of billions of dollars in revenue and 

over 200,000 jobs nationwide. 

During this same period, international travel increased over 20 

percent worldwide. The United States has lost a great deal of opportunity in this very important, low-impact export industry. The 

potential for international visitors entering Vermont from Montreal 

and other Canadian entry points is enormous, but, unfortunately, 

very curtailed in today’s environment. 

Canadians utilize the Burlington International Airport due to its 

convenience and competitive prices. Over 30 percent of travelers 

flying out of Burlington are from north of the border. The number 

continues to increase, despite very little marketing in Canada. The 

Western Hemisphere Travel Initiative has already had a negative 

impact on potential travelers from Canada. 

The Department of Tourism and Marketing and other Vermont 

organizations are constantly fielding questions from Canadians and 

tour operators about passport requirements. There’s a great deal of 

confusion about documents required at the border. Less than 40 

percent of Canadians have passports. It is a significant expense for 

many families, and most certainly is a deciding factor when Canadians plan a vacation or trip. 

Many of our border communities and families are split by the 

international property line that you just mentioned. Families live 

on either side. School activities, sporting events, festivals, family 

gatherings take place on both sides of the border. Travel to and 

6

from these activities should be easily accomplished. Commerce also 

needs to move as freely as possible. 

While the enhanced driver’s license will help Vermonters’ identification requirements when returning to the United States, it really 

does nothing to assist with Canadian entry. I hope the United 

States and Canadian governments can work together to establish 

efficient border criteria so that both countries can continue the 

longstanding exchange of people, goods, and services. 

I’d really highlight, over the years that I’ve been involved with 

WHTI, it’s been very clear that there’s been very little discussion 

between the U.S. Government and the Canadian Government as to 

how to resolve this issue. I think over the past few months there 

may be some more discussions going on, but we really need to 

make sure what works for us also works for the Canadians, 90 percent of which live within 100 miles of the U.S. border. It’s imperative that we try to keep that border as free flowing as possible. 

I’d like to just make one additional comment, which strays a little bit from today. Again, thank you for your leadership on the H2B 

visa program. It’s a critical issue in Vermont. With unemployment 

some of the lowest in the country, we don’t have enough workers 

in Vermont. We have not only the ski resorts, but places like Basin 

Harbor Club that could not exist without the H2B visa program. 

These are foreign workers that come in. They’re paid well. They 

certainly do not displace any Vermonters from that work. 

Every resort that I’ve talked to, whether it’s Basin Harbor, Jay 

Peak, or Killington, they certainly try to find Vermont workers 

first. But it’s a critical program that has a ceiling on it. I understand there were 33,000 openings just a couple weeks ago, and 

there were many, many times that that were applied for. I guess 

there was a lottery to pick who would get these H2B visas. Again, 

this is another critical item that we’d certainly like to keep on the 

record. 

Thank you. 

[The prepared statement of Mr. Hyde appears as a submission 

for the record.] 

Chairman LEAHY. Thank you. It is something that members of 

the delegation are working on. They are working on that, and also 

the question of year-round cultural visas. 

Bill Stenger is the president of Jay Peak Resort in Jay, Vermont. 

I almost feel like it’s close to Newcastle, introducing you here in 

Newport. But Jay Peak has become one of the northern New England’s most sought-out destinations. In fact, when I saw that as the 

plane came in here on Sunday and took a glide, I could see Jay 

Peak sticking up out of the clouds. But it’s been Bill’s business to 

have the creativity to develop a multi-season resort. I was congratulating Bill earlier on the golf course. 

He’s been a critical partner in the fight to protect our borders. 

He’s been very active in the Vermont Ski Areas Association and the 

United States Ski Association. He has a unique perspective on the 

importance of a friendly and secure border between Quebec and the 

United States. I know that I have probably talked with Bill 

Stenger as much as any single person in Vermont about the relationship of going back and forth, with the possible exception of 

Marcel’s relatives when they come across the border. 

7

Bill, it’s all yours. 

STATEMENT OF BILL STENGER, PRESIDENT, JAY PEAK 

RESORT, JAY, VERMONT 

Mr. STENGER. Thank you, Senator. I want to, first, thank you for 

bringing this hearing to Newport. It clearly shows me, and all the 

members of our community, that you are fully engaged with the serious concerns we all feel with the impending Western Hemisphere 

Travel Initiative policies affecting the cross-border travel. 

I also want to express my sincere appreciation to you and your 

very effective staff for the work that they do for us. They’re always 

available to us, and I appreciate it. I know our business community, and all homeowners, do as well. 

I’d like to share with you how the Western Hemisphere Travel 

Initiative policies can affect Jay Peak, Vermont and, indeed, our 

country. We’re a company that has been operating since 1955. We 

have grown from a modest local recreation area to an international 

resort where 300,000 skiers visit in winter and, now with the widely acclaimed championship golf course, we are attracting record 

numbers of summer visitors. 

Fifty percent of all of our guests to Jay Peak come from Canada. 

Of those, 75 percent come from the Province of Quebec and 25 percent from the Province of Ontario. Jay Peak employs 550 

Vermonters in winter, and 150 in the summer. These numbers are 

on the increase because millions of dollars of investment is planned 

for Jay Peak in the next few years, due to our optimism in our 

product and our market’s interest in it. 

All of our work in developing business momentum at Jay Peak 

and the northern communities that surround Jay Peak in Orleans 

and Franklin Counties will be at very serious risk if the Western 

Hemisphere Travel Initiative is implemented as now planned. 

Here are my concerns: guests from Canada are not compelled to 

come to Vermont for recreation. Quebec has a vibrant and healthy 

ski and golf industry. Canadians choose to come to Jay Peak because they love our product and our welcoming service attitude towards them. They feel like a guest and they look at Jay Peak as 

their own local area, a very special place for them. 

This vibrancy can be lost in a short time if crossing into Vermont 

becomes an expensive, unpredictable, time- consuming, and unfriendly process. Skiers know the best experience in an area is the 

first few hours of each day. If they’re blocked at the border with 

inefficient crossing restrictions and technology that is untested in 

winter, or any other environment, those Canadians will stay home 

where they know they can get swift access to their resort. 

I became very alarmed this spring when the initial implementation of the Western Hemisphere Travel Initiative was rolled out for 

the cruise industry. The Department of Homeland Security and the 

State Department were totally unprepared for the volume of passports required and thousands of Americans’ plans were disrupted, 

all because Federal authorities underestimated the impact. 

Senator Leahy, I and my fellow Vermonters cannot afford the 

State Department and the Department of Homeland Security to 

misjudge the impending policy changes and what will be required 

to implement them. They, and we, are not going to get a second 

8

chance. We will be fatally harmed economically if the new protocol 

is not right the first time. 

In fact, it is questionable whether the Western Hemisphere Travel Initiative is a solution to any problem. I believe there are a few 

things that everyone should keep in mind before assuming that the 

Western Hemisphere Travel Initiative is a useful tool to make us 

safer. 

Of all the illegal immigrants in the United States, Canadians 

comprise only 0.7 percent. In contrast, Mexicans constitute 68.7 of 

all illegal immigrants to the United States. That’s from the Department of Homeland Yearbook in 2003. 

As a practical matter, the Western Hemisphere Travel Initiatives 

target only Canadians. About 35.9 million cross our border with 

Canada annually without a passport. This is from the Detroit 

Chamber of Commerce. Except for Bermudans, all others who wish 

to enter the United States currently will need a passport. Non-Canadian citizens entering the U.S. from Canada currently require a 

passport. The Western Hemisphere Travel Initiative adds nothing 

new, except the burden on Canadians who are law- abiding. 

At the conclusion of a conference I attended in Burlington sponsored by the Department of Homeland Security about 2 years ago 

when they were introducing the Western Hemisphere Travel Initiative to our community leaders, the senior representative of the U.S. 

Consulate in Montreal concluded off the record that ‘‘Congress just 

forgot about Canada when it enacted the Western Hemisphere 

Travel Initiative’’, referring to the impact on border crossings and 

trade. 

About 35 percent of Canadians have passports. The cost is nearly 

$90 for every member of a family who wants to ski or golf in the 

United States. It takes at least a month for a Canadian to obtain 

a passport. Spontaneous leisure travel typically happens within 7 

days of the decision to come to the United States. 

In addition to Canadians recreating in Vermont and throughout 

the United States, they enter the U.S. to obtain medical care, go 

to school, participate in or attend athletic competitions, and for 

many other reasons. How will the Western Hemisphere Travel Initiative affect the ability to be in the U.S.? What will the true loss 

to our economy be once the Western Hemisphere Travel Initiative 

is effective on our northern border? 

In 2003, the American Truckers Association estimated that there 

are 11.5 million trucks, with more than 23 million crossings from 

Canada to the United States. These truckers will require a passport or new forms of travel documentation if the Western Hemisphere Travel Initiative is implemented at land port entries. 

How will real-time inventory control for manufacturing be affected by longer delays at our border? The Western Hemisphere 

Travel Initiative will depend on the radio frequency identification 

technology imbedded in travel documents. DHS is touting this technology to Congress and to the American public, but DHS’s own internal evaluation of the RFID technology concludes ‘‘we recommend 

that RFID be disfavored for identifying and tracking humans,’’ 

DHS Emerging Applications and Technology Subcommittee. That’s 

the source of that. 

9

The opening estimate for the cost of implementing this technology is several billions of dollars. I fear we haven’t tested the 

technology in winter conditions. They also haven’t taken into consideration what Canadian Immigration must do to comply with our 

new plans. It is embarrassing how little communication has occurred with our neighbors to the north and how little evaluation 

of the importance of economic impact Canada has on our State and 

across the Nation. 

DHS thinks exclusively about security, and I respect that. But 

someone needs to go beyond just security and recognize that the 

lives and livelihoods of tens of thousands of Americans will be 

sharply and negatively impact if the economic well-being of the border communities is not taken into consideration. 

We cannot afford to miss getting this balance right the first time. 

This whole issue gives one pause to consider just what will be accomplished by this massively heavy, and bureaucratically heavy, 

process. Will hardened professional terrorists really be deterred 

from entering the United States? Won’t the impending change simply create a high-technology underground document- forging business? 

Last spring, 17 terrorists were arrested in Toronto for plotting to 

destroy landmarks in Toronto. Every one of them had, or was entitled to obtain, a valid Canadian passport. Every one of them could 

have legally passed into the United States. 

Years ago, a man intent on detonating a bomb in Los Angeles 

International Airport was intercepted by an astute Immigration inspector as he entered the State of Washington. He was in possession of seven passports. What is really going to be accomplished 

here? We haven’t thought this through correctly. 

At the very least, the implementation should be delayed at least 

a year for testing to the standards in the Leahy-Stevens amendment. I urge you to seek implementation of the amendment that 

you sponsored and delay and defer the implementation of the Western Hemisphere Travel Initiative. 

Senator, I sincerely thank you for the opportunity to share these 

thoughts with you. 

[The prepared statement of Mr. Stenger appears as a submission 

for the record.] 

Chairman LEAHY. Bill, I appreciate it. You know, it’s interesting 

what the person from our consulate in Montreal has said because, 

of course, the Western Hemisphere Travel Initiative—which was 

actually an administration amendment that was slipped into another bill at their request, allows them to say they are following 

a congressional mandate. 

What they want to ignore is the Leahy-Stevens amendment, 

which has passed, that says that you have to wait until you can 

work all these problems out that you’ve talked about. We know, 

based on the scientific research, they’re not going to be able to 

work out many of the technical issues associated with WHTI. 

You talked about what happens in the meantime in RFID, and 

all the others. These things are just not going to work. There is a 

better way. I do understand that there are 2,000 different kinds of 

identification, but there is an easier and a better way that requires 

respectful work between the two countries. 

10

We were going to have Harry Hunt at Derby Line testify. He has 

had some health problems. We all hope he is going to be better, 

and we’ll make sure that the reports from Derby Line will be part 

of the record. 

But I also want to thank Tim Shea and Curtis Picard for being 

willing to help pick up some of that slack. 

Tim Shea is vice president of the Lake Champlain Regional 

Chamber of Commerce and handles a large segment of the chamber’s business and government relations. He has been an employee 

of the Lake Champlain Chamber of Commerce since 1994. He’s one 

of our most respected authorities on travel, business, and tourism. 

Like Commissioner Hyde, he’s been very active in the BESTT Coalition. He has worked with my office a great deal. We see each 

other in Washington and here in Vermont. It’s nice to have you 

here, Tim. Thank you. 

STATEMENT OF TIMOTHY P. SHEA, VICE PRESIDENT AND CONGRESSIONAL LIAISON, LAKE CHAMPLAIN REGIONAL CHAMBER OF COMMERCE, BURLINGTON, VERMONT 

Mr. SHEA. Thank you, Senator. I want to echo the comments of 

the previous speakers and thank you for your leadership on this 

issue and the opportunity to share my comments here today. 

The Lake Champlain Regional Chamber of Commerce has 2,500 

members located throughout northern Vermont, many of whom are 

very dependent on the flow of commerce across the northern border. 

Over the past 2 years, we’ve been an active member of the Business for Economic Security and Trade Coalition, the BEST Coalition, which represents 300,000 businesses. It’s an international coalition of businesses and trade associations across the United States 

and Canada who share a common concern about the ramifications 

of the Western Hemisphere Travel Initiative. Together, we have 

been working to find a solution for WHTI and reverse the devastating effect it will have on the U.S. economy. 

I want to expand upon the comments of those before me and provide a national perspective on the issue. Here are some figures: 90 

percent of Canadians live within 100 miles of the border; daily 

trade between the U.S. and Canada is estimated at $1.2 billion, 

and supports 5.2 million jobs; in 2005, there were 38 million trips 

by Canadians who visited the U.S. 

Twenty-six percent of Americans have passports, while 35 percent of Canadians have passports. This, however, is not just a 

northern border State issue. Florida, California, and Nevada rank 

in the top four for Canadian spending in the States. 

As part of my testimony today, I am submitting an analysis of 

the proposed WHTI rule recently prepared for the Tourism Industry Association of Canada. This report reviewed and assessed the 

economic analysis included in the Notice of Proposed Rulemaking 

related to the requirement for land and sea crossings within the 

western hemisphere. 

Chairman LEAHY. And without objection, that will be made a 

part of the record. 

Mr. SHEA. The report estimates that once land and sea passport 

requirements begin next year, the loss of expenditures from CanaVerDate 0ct 09 2002 14:40 Jan 25, 2008 Jkt 040285 PO 00000 Frm 00014 Fmt 6633 Sfmt 6633 S:\GPO\HEARINGS\40285.TXT SJUD1 PsN: CMORC
11

dian travelers to the United States will be roughly $820 million in 

the year 2008. This is a four-fold increase from the Department of 

Homeland Security’s estimate of $200 million. It was determined 

that the Department of Homeland Security report contained a 

number of calculation errors and used outdated tourism information. In addition, the DHS analysis does not consider the wider impacts of these regulations—these new regulations—would have on 

business and trade activity, which is what we’re exploring here 

today. 

As the report states, restrictions on trade, such as restrictions on 

the movement of people, have the potential to reduce the trade and 

harm the economies of both countries. 

I am also submitting a graph that tracks Canada and U.S. border crossings and compares that to the value of the Canadian dollar. 

Chairman LEAHY. The graph will be made part of the record. 

Mr. SHEA. Thank you, Senator. 

For over 20 years, the number of Canadians crossing our shared 

border mimic the rise and fall of the Canadian dollar: when the 

dollar was down, crossings were down; when the Canadian dollar 

rose against the U.S. dollars, crossings increased. Since 9/11, crossings have been nearly flat and at much lower levels than they were 

in 1991, the last time the Canadian dollar was close to parity. 

However, while the Canadian crossings have been flat, the Canadian dollar has increased from 63 percent to close to parity. 

It is our belief that one of the reasons Canadians have not returned to the levels they once did is tied directly to the issues at 

the border when entering the U.S. and confusion as to the proper 

documentation needed to enter the U.S. We also feel that the requirement for citizens to have a passport to enter the U.S. will only 

decrease the number of Canadians that travel to the U.S., regardless of the value of the dollar compared to ours. 

The bottom line is, the Western Hemisphere Travel Initiative, at 

best, will provide a false sense of security. While no one can debate 

the need for secure borders, the Western Hemisphere Travel Initiative is not the answer. Senator Leahy, I would again like to thank 

you for your leadership on this issue and encourage you to continue 

your efforts to delay implementation to no sooner than June 1, 

1909 so that we have time to find the appropriate solution. 

Thank you for the opportunity to testify. 

[The prepared statement of Mr. Shea appears as a submission for 

the record.] 

Chairman LEAHY. And we have to show some reality here. I recall once—I’m in Vermont almost every week, but once a year we 

drive it, during the summer break. We load up the car with all 

kinds of stuff that we have to have in our home in Vermont and 

we realize we don’t need it and we load it all up and bring it back. 

But I was about 100 miles from the border, driving back, and got 

stopped at the border. I was driving a car with license plate 1 from 

Vermont. I think it says down at the bottom, ‘‘U.S. Senate’’. The 

person comes over and demands to see proof of citizenship. I 

thought at first it was a joke. 

I said, what authority? He pointed to his gun. He said, ‘‘That’s 

all the authority I need.’’ I said, ‘‘Could I speak to your superVerDate 0ct 09 2002 14:40 Jan 25, 2008 Jkt 040285 PO 00000 Frm 00015 Fmt 6633 Sfmt 6633 S:\GPO\HEARINGS\40285.TXT SJUD1 PsN: CMORC
12

visor? ’’ He said, ‘‘Get out of the car.’’ I said, ‘‘Let me speak to your 

supervisor.’’ At that point, somebody with brass comes over and 

looks at the plate, looks and me and kind of groaned. I said, ‘‘You 

know, the Constitution required me to be a citizen.’’ But I said, ‘‘I 

don’t mind. I’d be happy to.’’ 

I go back and forth across the border. I show my ID when I go, 

even though a lot of times somebody will call me by name. I still 

show my ID, as I do at the airports. But a little courtesy. Most people are law-abiding. And showing a friendly face when they come 

here, goes a long way. I spent 8 years as a law enforcement and 

I know you have to be stern, but you also need to show a friendly 

face. 

Curtis Picard is the vice president of the Vermont Chamber of 

Commerce. He leads the international trade efforts. He frequently 

works with our neighbors in Quebec and Canada to ensure that 

goods flow back and forth. The Vermont Chamber has been a critical ally since before the passport requirements are slated to take 

effect as a result of the Western Hemisphere Travel Initiative. Curtis, along with Lake Champlain Regional Chamber of Commerce 

and the State of Vermont, believe in the issue of raising awareness 

of this issue of going across the country. 

So, Curtis, thank you for being here today. Please go ahead. 

STATEMENT OF CURTIS PICARD, VICE PRESIDENT, VERMONT 

CHAMBER OF COMMERCE, MONTPELIER, VERMONT 

Mr. PICARD. Good morning, Senator. Thank you for the opportunity to testify this morning. Your remarks are taken to heart. 

One of the things I’m most proud of with this Western Hemisphere 

Travel Initiative is the work that the folks sitting here in the audience have done, which is really a model of leadership and cooperation, your leadership on this issue in Washington, as well continued support of the congressional delegation, Senator Sanders, Congressman Welch. 

We’ve all been singing from the same song sheet. Governor Douglas, working with the State Governors Association, has produced 

resolutions and letters of support to the changes for the Western 

Hemisphere Travel Initiative, and Lieutenant Governor Dubie as 

well, with the Lieutenant Governors Association. 

Chairman LEAHY. In fact, if I might, you stated something I was 

going to say. I want to congratulate both the governor and the lieutenant governor in their support of this. Please pass that word 

back to Jim Douglas and Brian Dubie. I think by doing this, we’ve 

demonstrated this is not a partisan or a political thing. We’re 

locked at the hip on this issue. 

Mr. PICARD. Correct. 

Chairman LEAHY. Please go ahead. 

Mr. PICARD. And I think all Vermonters understand the impact 

that this issue would have. Also, I want to recognize our Vermont 

House and Senate representatives as well, who both passed resolutions supporting changes to the Western Hemisphere Travel Initiative. From a State Chamber perspective, the work we’ve done with 

my colleague, Tim Shea from the Lake Champlain Regional Chamber of Commerce, as well as other Chambers throughout the U.S., 

13

the Federation of Chambers of Quebec have worked closely with us 

on this issue, and small local Chambers as well. 

Through our work in spreading the word, we’ve been able to energize the trade groups to begin addressing this issue as well. The 

Vermont Farms Association to Promote Agritourism have a concern 

about this issue. The Vermont Association of Snow Travelers, the 

snowmobilers. For those of us in this room, snowmobiling is a huge 

economic engine for the State and often doesn’t get recognized in 

the lower 48 as in the northern border winter sport States. 

Chairman LEAHY. We have a vast trail that goes right through 

our property in Middlesex, Vermont. I appreciate how well they’ve 

maintained things; but I also appreciate the fact that this is an economic—a serious economic—issue. 

Mr. PICARD. Correct. And I think it’s even magnified in States 

like Maine as well, which has a much more extensive trail system 

for snowmobiles. What folks have told us, is they go across the border three or four times in a daily trip and not even realize it. I also 

want to thank Bill Stenger, representing Jay Peak, here. But there 

are a number of businesses that straddle the border as well. 

Tivoly, of course, here in the Newport area. The factory literally 

sits on the border. Employees literally walk across the country as 

they walk across the room. As we all know, the Haskell Opera 

House straddles the border too. I want to relate a story. Last week, 

I was able to meet with Brian Harwood, I’m sure you know, with 

Radio Vermont, formerly with HMC, who was up at the Haskell 

Opera House in Derby and attended the Vermont Symphony Orchestra concert. He stated he parked on the wrong side of the border, and there was a border agent ready to greet him when he 

came out. And after a stern tongue-lashing, he realized the error 

of his ways. 

But, you know, Brian’s been a lifelong Vermonter, supporter of 

many things, including the Vermont Symphony, and it would be a 

shame if cultural institutions like the Vermont Symphony could no 

longer perform at the Haskell Opera House because of the implementation of the Western Hemisphere Travel Initiative. 

Chairman LEAHY. I almost have this image of the strings section 

having to have their passports hanging on their bows. 

[Laughter]. 

Anyway, I’m sorry. I digress. 

Mr. PICARD. And I had an opportunity last Friday, not related to 

the Western Hemisphere Travel Initiative but the work we’re doing 

with the Vermont Aerospace and Aviation Association, of which you 

are an honorary chair of that group, to meet with some gentlemen 

up at the Franklin County State Airport on some aviation issues 

and he agreed to take us up in his Cessna and fly around and kind 

of see the landscape. We were able to fly over Lake Champlain 

from the new Missisquoi Bay Bridge, almost all the way to Jay 

Peak. 

I took some wonderful photographs, which I’m happy to submit 

as part of the record, that give you a different perspective of what 

the landscape really looks like from the air between Vermont and 

Canada, and there is absolutely no difference. So, any of those 

crossings, whether people want to cross through an official crossing 

or an unofficial crossing, it’s near impossible to really understand 

14

the impact of the entire border structure from Maine all the way 

to Washington State. And Vermont’s a small State. Once we get 

out to the midwest, that unprotected border is, to me, unimaginable. But it was interesting to see it from the air in a different 

perspective from the usual crossings that we all understand. 

Chairman LEAHY. The Senator from North Dakota showed me a 

border crossing. You probably have seen this in the northern parts 

of North Dakota. It has a border that goes almost the length of 

New England, and probably beyond that. And at the border, when 

whoever is assigned to this particular part has the day off, they put 

a cone in the middle of the road. 

Mr. PICARD. The cross-border cooperation that I referenced before 

is important. I’m not sure if it’s been mentioned, but since 2001 

Canada has spent over $10 billion on infrastructure and security 

improvements at the border as well, so they have been investigating this issue, as the United States has. I’m happy to report 

that the Province of Quebec Department of Motor Vehicles and the 

Vermont Department of Motor Vehicles are now talking about ways 

to come up with documentation that would be WHTI compliant. 

Finally, my last humorous story that I want to relate, is two of 

my colleagues, formerly with the Vermont Chamber, now reside in 

Maine and are getting married this year in Quebec City on New 

Year’s Eve. As they go through this wedding process, those of us 

that understand the issue are not worried about it. But I can assure you, their guest list is constantly calling them, wondering if 

they are going to need passports to be able to attend the wedding 

in Quebec City. 

With technology these days, their wedding invitation and site is 

actually on the web and the link to the BESTT Coalition site to 

give people the latest on the passport information. 

[Laughter]. 

But I’ve assured the bride that passports will not be needed by 

December 31st this year. She has made me swear that my work 

involved in this would try to make their wedding passport-free. 

In conclusion, thank you again, Senator, for your leadership on 

this. As I said, the work that Vermont has done as a whole has 

been a model for other States and the rest of the country to get behind this issue and I sincerely appreciate your efforts. 

Chairman LEAHY. Thank you. 

My wife’s mother was born in Quebec City and we go there often. 

I see an awful lot of Vermont cars there, just as I see an awful lot 

of Province of Quebec cars in Montpelier, Burlington, Newport, and 

elsewhere. I hope the wedding works out very well. Tell them to 

bring warm clothes, though. 

Several years ago, I worked in funding to boost technical assistance for Vermont businesses looking at international markets, 

wearing a hat as a member of the Appropriations Committee. The 

Director of that program, Dana Eidsness, has evolved the Vermont 

Global Trade Partnership into one of the region’s leading trade offices. 

Her experience in trade offices along the northern border, including the Maine International Trade Center has shown her the importance of trade between the U.S. and Canada. Many Vermont 

businesses call her daily to talk about exporting. I suspect she 

15

probably starts off with something like, let’s start in Canada and 

see where we go from there. So I hope that can continue to be a 

sound piece of advice. 

Dana, thank you for taking the time to come today. I look forward to your testimony. 

STATEMENT OF DANA B. EIDSNESS, DIRECTOR OF INTERNATIONAL TRADE, VERMONT GLOBAL TRADE PARTNERSHIP, MONTPELIER, VERMONT 

Ms. EIDSNESS. Thank you, Senator. Senator Leahy, I want to 

thank you for your leadership and I want to thank you for the opportunity to speak on this important issue. I’ll begin this morning 

by sharing some background on my program for the record to set 

the foundation for statistics that I’ll share later. I hope that my 

testimony this morning will demonstrate how crucial trade is to the 

Vermont economy as it relates to this issue. 

The Vermont Global Trade Partnership, or as I’ll call it moving 

forward the VGTP, is Vermont’s center for international business 

assistance and provides international market research, trade technical assistance, as well as educational programs on topics important to Vermont businesses. 

We partner with other organizations in the State to provide these 

services and expertise to companies throughout the State to help 

them do business internationally. Several of my partners are in the 

room today: the Vermont Chamber certainly is a partner, the U.S. 

Department of Commerce Commercial Service. We also work with 

regional development centers throughout the State. Basically, any 

business organization in the State that can provide some sort of 

international business development assistance to Vermont businesses, we want to work with. 

So far in 2007, the Vermont Global Trade Partnership has completed over 350 international market research and technical assistance projects for Vermont businesses. We are able to serve so many 

companies largely owing to this Federal earmark that you just 

mentioned—which, among other things, I use to support our very 

successful internship program at Champlain College. 

With this funding, the VGTP trains and supervises student interns in Vermont colleges and universities. These are paid internships, training future business leaders in Vermont. Through their 

work with us, we expose them to the State’s most internationally 

active businesses and more than quadruple our research output capacity. 

Since the inception of the VGTP in 2004, the funding you helped 

provide has enabled us to support over 1,400 Vermont business and 

organization contacts through research and technical assistance, 

educational programs, and trade missions. 

Our services were responsible for $23 million in exports last year 

for small- and medium-sized businesses in Vermont. I’d like to take 

this opportunity to thank you for supporting my program. 

Increasingly, our technical assistance requests have centered on 

topics related to the logistics of doing business with Canada. We 

have inquiries regarding NAFTA compliance, shipping documentation, understanding Canadian goods and services tax and provincial sales tax, how to participate in Canada’s non-resident importer 

16

program, and now more often regarding confusion over border 

crossing regulations. 

I was joking with one of my partners yesterday about how many 

of us it took to actually answer the question of what was needed 

to cross the land border from Vermont into Canada. It’s sort of like, 

how many folks does it take to screw in a light bulb. The answer 

is actually three. It took three of us to put our heads together to 

remember what the current policy is. 

The VGTP and its partners are seeing a greater volume of small 

and first-time exporters interested in the Canadian market. This, 

I think, is partially due to the parity of the Canadian dollar to the 

U.S. dollar, and it’s most definitely attributable to increased Internet access and the global market exposure that a web presence affords these companies. 

For instance, to give a local example, Al’s Snowmobile is selling 

product to customers on nearly every continent in the world from 

right here in Newport. Marketing for this company is done almost 

exclusively over the Internet, and 60 percent of Al’s Snowmobile orders are coming from Canada. 

Chairman LEAHY. What percent? 

Ms. EIDSNESS. Sixty percent. Vermont businesses are retaining 

jobs and they’re growing because of opportunities to sell products 

and services to the market next door. A free and open border for 

Vermont manufacturers, R&D, and retail businesses is more crucial than ever if our businesses and organizations are to remain 

globally competitive. 

I have some statistics to help illustrate this. The United States 

and Canada enjoy the largest bilateral trading relationship in the 

world, with more than $1.3 billion in goods and services crossing 

the border every day. More than 300,000 business people, tourists, 

and regular commuters travel between the U.S. and Canada daily. 

Trade with the world, both exports and imports of goods and 

services, create jobs in Vermont. Today, trade supports over 77,000 

jobs in our State. Vermont’s export shipments of merchandise in 

2006 totaled $3.8 billion, and our exports increased 51 percent from 

2002 to 2006. 

Our businesses exported to 148 foreign destinations in 2006 and 

it’s no surprise that the State’s largest market by far was NAFTA 

member Canada, which received Vermont exports of $1.7 billion, or 

44 percent of Vermont’s merchandise export total. 

We had a total of 828 companies exporting goods from Vermont 

locations in 2005. These are the most current statistics I have. Of 

those, 86 percent were small- and medium-sized enterprises. For 

the rest of the U.S., that definition is for companies with under 500 

employees. Here in Vermont, for the most part we’re looking at 

companies with fewer than 50 employees, or in some cases fewer 

than 10. 

Foreign-owned companies in Vermont, the majority of which are 

Canadian, employ more than 11,300 workers, which is nearly 4.3 

percent of Vermont’s private sector employment, and 17,500 

Vermont jobs are supported by U.S.-Canada trade. That number 

does not include services, industries, or other non-manufacturing 

sectors. 

17

In 2005, Vermont was Quebec’s number-two export destination in the world behind New York, with over $3 billion in exports to our 

State. We’re perennially in the top 10 as an importer of Quebec’s 

goods, sharing this top 10 ranking with the likes of the U.K., 

China, Germany, France, and New York. 

Vermont and Canada have a longstanding, mutually beneficial 

trade relationship. The prospect of complicating this process, which 

is already overwhelming to many small and first-time exporters, 

many of whom cross the border to deliver shipments themselves, 

is worrisome. 

The Western Hemisphere Travel Initiative requirements for air 

travel took effect on January 23, 2007. Since then, delays in processing passport applications under the WHTI air travel rules have 

resulted in considerable backlog of applications, which in turn has 

resulted in significant inconvenience and cost to thousands of 

Americans. Premature release of the land border rules will result 

in greater passport backlogs up here. 

In the U.S. and Canada, citizens have come to rely on their driver’s license as evidence of who they are. We have long relied on our 

license as being the only identity document needed, whether it’s for 

opening a bank account or a quick trip across the nearest land border. The Western Hemisphere Travel Initiative is about to change 

that. 

To date, very few studies have been conducted on what, if any, 

economic impact WHTI may have on U.S.- Canadian travel, tourism, or trade. My clients are concerned about the expense, the inconvenience of passport processing delays, delays crossing the border, and how these issues will impact their flow of business. 

As you know, Governor Douglas and Secretary Michael Chertoff 

signed an agreement on September 26, 2007 that will allow 

Vermont to issue an enhanced driver’s license and ID card, the 

EDL ID, to Vermont citizens for cross- border purposes. The State 

of Vermont plans to begin issuing the EDL ID in late 2008. It will 

securely denote identity and citizenship and will become an acceptable alternative to a passport for free entry into the U.S. at land 

and sea borders between the U.S., Canada, Mexico, Bermuda, and 

the Caribbean. 

The State of Vermont believes that in order to preserve the economic gains of recent years and to allow for free and easy travel 

between Vermont and Quebec, it’s equally important for the citizens of Quebec to have easy and affordable access to an enhanced 

driver’s license. 

Vermont’s trade with Canada is tremendously important to our 

economy, and the Western Hemisphere Travel Initiative will have 

an impact on our businesses, the communities we serve, and the 

Vermont and American economies. I understand the importance of 

secure borders for our State and Nation, and I encourage measures 

to create an affordable, simple solution for businesses, tourists, and 

commuters to travel across our borders for the mutual benefit of 

our economies and for the continued growth of our cultural and 

economic ties. 

Thank you again, Senator Leahy, for allowing me this opportunity to outline the importance of ensuring efficient border crossing for Vermont’s people and commercial goods. I’d also like to exVerDate 0ct 09 2002 14:40 Jan 25, 2008 Jkt 040285 PO 00000 Frm 00021 Fmt 6633 Sfmt 6633 S:\GPO\HEARINGS\40285.TXT SJUD1 PsN: CMORC
18

tend a special thanks to you and your staff for the work you do to 

support Vermont businesses. 

Thank you. 

[The prepared statement of Ms. Eidsness appears as a submission for the record.] 

Chairman LEAHY. Thank you very much. You mentioned these 

companies and government organizations. I see Connie and Stanley 

Lowe here, and we have Maureen Connolly, Bill Zuccareno from 

the Economic Development Corporation of Northern Vermont. 

Steve Patterson. I was talking with him the other day for the Regional Development Corporation. Rudy Chase, from MSA and the 

helmets that are made here. Susan Murray from the Department 

of Commerce Commercial Service, and others. There are so many 

people who are connected with this. 

The businesses that are on both sides of the border—my fatherin-law worked in one of those. I visited once, and went back and 

forth across several times. This was years ago, when I was growing 

up. My annual disclosure for the Senate, when you visit other 

countries and put down how many times, it said to count the number of times you went by and what the transportation was. On such 

and such a date, 10 trips to Canada. Transportation: I walked. I 

got a lot of very strange looks from the secretary of the Senate on 

that one. 

But I also, in preparing for this hearing, was telling some of our 

grown children, I was born in Montpelier. When I was a little kid, 

I’d ride up with my parents for the day to Canada, usually Montreal. We’d just drive up for the day. Their comment was, being totally unimpressed, was, ‘‘Dad, did they have cars when you were 

a little boy? ’’ 

[Laughter]. 

I just want you to know that sometimes within your family 

they’re not the least bit impressed with the title. 

Patricia Sears, or many of us know her as Tricia, is the executive 

director of the Newport City Renaissance Corporation. She served 

as chair of the Northeast Kingdom Collaborative, so she has a 

great, unique perspective on this. 

I have heard from Newport merchants that they would carry Canadian currency in their cash drawers and were fluently bilingual, 

and they depend upon those Quebec license plates for a large portion of their businesses. Tricia, it’s good to see you. It’s been, what, 

all of 2 weeks since I saw you last in Burlington? 

Ms. SEARS. Yes. 

Chairman LEAHY. Please go ahead. 

STATEMENT OF PATRICIA SEARS, EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR, 

NEWPORT CITY RENAISSANCE CORPORATION, NEWPORT, 

VERMONT 

Ms. SEARS. Good morning. Senator Leahy and distinguished 

members of the U.S. Senate Judiciary Committee, fellow panelists, 

and guests, I appreciate the opportunity to testify on behalf of the 

Newport City Renaissance Corporation, addressing the economic 

and community implications of northern border security. 

19

First, I’d like to welcome you all to our fair city of Newport, gateway to Vermont’s northeast kingdom, one of only two National Geographic geotourism destinations in the entire country. 

If you look out the windows here and you look out to the north, 

you will see Canada and the border is not visible. The beautiful 

international Lake Memphramagog is a rich region whose culture 

spans two languages, two countries, one lake. 

We enjoy a robust relationship with potential partnerships that 

would push and pull international trade and tourism. These partnerships are at risk, at risk of enduring a chilling effect because 

of border delays and hostility by border guards. 

Momentum is building for Newport’s renaissance of commercial 

and community development. We do not appreciate the timing of 

the unwarranted tension and high cost of crossing the border. The 

direct business impact on downtown merchants of Newport is illustrated by Main Street proprietors Steve Crevochet and Madeline 

Wingfield with this quote: ‘‘As a business in downtown Newport, 

we have been profoundly affected by the new difficulties encountered by our customers when crossing the border. Please remember, 

and let it be an indication of the historically high level of international mixing of populations, that many Americans live on the 

Canadian side of the border. 

Many of them are our customers. They repeatedly confide to us 

that the frequency of their border crossing has been diminished 

quite a bit. One good customer now limits her trips to Vermont 

once every 2 weeks, and she is a U.S. citizen.’’ 

The implications are simple and easily understood: the tighter 

and farther-reaching of the border policies, the greater impact on 

the choices people make to come to our beautiful city as visitors. 

Why would someone planning a trip to Newport to shop, enjoy a 

meal, walk along Lake Memphramagog on the beautiful boardwalk, 

maybe even take a boat ride, all of which might last four to 5 

hours, why would they do so if they had to, at the very least, endure an unwelcoming attitude and a long wait at the border, or at 

the worst, face outright hostility? And even if such long waits are 

infrequent, why would they want to take the risk that they might 

wait that long? 

How do I, as a representative of the Newport City Downtown 

Renaissance Corporation, or any other Newport business owner, 

answer the tourist who has encountered situations like this and 

asks, why? Why do the crossings have to be so unfriendly? This 

could become a fact of daily operations here in Newport and, thus, 

dampening the enhancement, the expansion, or new location of 

businesses on main street. 

With the U.S. dollar currently on par with the Canadian dollar, 

the potential for Canadian investment in property and co-locating 

businesses here should be huge. However, Frank Knowle, a private 

developer of Mt. Vernon Estates here in Newport, offers ‘‘any Newport company doing business with Canada will be affected by costly 

restrictions. Having invested a considerable amount in infrastructure and upscale residences for the Newport area, we are having 

potential buyers from Canada consider not having a second home 

here if border restrictions and delays increase. Everyone understands the need for security. There simply needs to be a streamVerDate 0ct 09 2002 14:40 Jan 25, 2008 Jkt 040285 PO 00000 Frm 00023 Fmt 6633 Sfmt 6633 S:\GPO\HEARINGS\40285.TXT SJUD1 PsN: CMORC
20

lined entry procedure for Canadians having a second home in 

Vermont.’’ 

Lately, we’ve been made aware that a decision made from a distance and in isolation from our daily lives here in the kingdom is 

aimed at implementing the Western Hemisphere Travel Initiative. 

This initiative has a requirement for passports, for land crossings 

between Canada and the U.S. It is scheduled for implementation 

January of 2008. 

This initiative could further shut us off from visitors. Experience 

tells us we do not have the infrastructure in place to handle the 

demand for these passports. For this reason, we would support delaying its implementation to June of 2009 at the earliest. In this 

way, we allow time to develop a system that meets best practice 

standards for border protection and satisfies the needs of the traveler. 

I’m going to leave you with a message from an Amish community 

regarding a recent event in their community about a year ago: hostility destroys community. Avoid being hostage to hostility. 

I ask that the balance of my remarks be entered into the record, 

and I thank you, Senator. 

Chairman LEAHY. Without objection, it will be. 

[The prepared statement of Ms. Sears appears as a submission 

fro the record.] 

Chairman LEAHY. Thank you. I know the incident of which you 

speak. I also know what that community did for the family of the 

person who created so much tragedy. It should be a model to all 

of us in the way we should live our lives. 

As you note, Representative Al Perry, of Richford is here. I see 

you back there. And Representative Mike Marcotte of Newport. I 

don’t know if we have other representatives here. Former representatives, and others. 

We’re going to use your testimony and it’s going to be the basis 

of other hearings I’ll be holding, both in Appropriations and in Judiciary. If you had Secretary Rice and Secretary Chertoff sitting 

here, both with concerns about the security of this country—and I 

respect that, we all do. After all, I go to work every day in a building that was marked for destruction by the hijackers, and it is still 

a major target, from all the information we have. I am proud to go. 

I feel gratitude to Vermonters who have allowed me to go to work 

every day there. 

But if you had them here and they said to you, okay, what would 

you do to have something that would have clear, definable, easily 

used identification, talking just about the northern border now, 

what would you recommend? Because they’re going to come up 

with something. What would you recommend that they work out 

with the Canadians? 

Bruce, do you want to start with that one? And incidentally, as 

I always do in these, I keep the record open for a week, so after 

you’ve seen the transcript, if you want to add to it, of course you’re 

free to. I made the same offer to now former Attorney General—

he resigned. 

[Laughter]. 

Mr. HYDE. I’d better watch what I say here. 

[Laughter]. 

21

Chairman LEAHY. I’m not suggesting that for any of you. No. 

You’ve all taken a great deal of time out of your schedule to be 

here, and I appreciate that. 

But Bruce, what would you do? 

Mr. HYDE. What I would do is ask them to take a look at the 

European Union and how there is free passage across borders in 

Europe of dissimilar cultures, warring communities that at this 

point have free passage. I would ask them to really look at working 

with Canadian intelligence much more closely to try to come up 

with a plan that would be much more intelligent, for one thing, but 

also be able to hopefully stop the bad people and allow the good 

people to pass through. 

Chairman LEAHY. Bill? 

Mr. STENGER. Well, Senator, in addition to Secretary Rice and 

Secretary Chertoff, I would ask you to invite the Secretary of Commerce to be in that room as well, because I think this is a perfect 

example of silo government action. We have the State Department 

that thinks only about its issues, Homeland Security that thinks 

only about its issues, and the economy of the northern border is not 

on either of their agendas. 

So I think, unless they’re made aware of the fact that their actions can seriously injure our economy, they’re not going to take 

into consideration our feelings and our needs. There are thousands 

of businesses, and tens of thousands of Americans, who rely on this 

border for not just their security, but their livelihood. 

It’s a very real issue for those of us that live and work on the 

border throughout this northern tier. So, I think they need to be 

broadened in their horizon a bit to respect the economic impacts 

that are at risk, and I think they could benefit from that. 

The other thing, I think from a tangible standpoint, of all the 

issues that we have come across with this problem, I think the one 

that perhaps has some promise is the enhanced license. We all 

have to renew our driver’s license every few years. If we are able 

to find the right technology that can be implemented into the State 

driver’s licenses and it’s an optional thing, it may be a phaseable, 

affordable mechanism for some kind of border security. 

It’s worthless in this economic issue if the Provinces of Quebec 

and Ontario, in our region, are not included in it. There is a test 

program under way in Washington State, and the Province of British Columbia is a partner in that. So the enhanced license might 

be promising. It needs to be tested thoroughly before implementation. Obviously our neighbors or provinces to the north need to be 

included in that whole mix. Thank you. 

Chairman LEAHY. Thank you. 

Tim? 

Mr. SHEA. I will echo Bill’s statement, but first state that I suggest they take their foot off the gas pedal on this one here. We all 

want secure borders, but this is moving too fast to find a good solution here. So, one, we need more time. 

Two, I think, as Bill said, the driver’s license offers great potential, provided it works for our friends north of the border. Third, 

would be more formal discussions with the Canadian Government 

to find a solution that works for all of us. This is such a unique 

situation we have with the northern border when compared to 

22

other borders. We need to have some more formal discussions to 

have the Canadian Government at the table to find an appropriate 

solution. 

Chairman LEAHY. And, of course, we have to look at the fact that 

you have people who won’t have a driver’s license, either very 

young or very old. 

Mr. SHEA. That will need to be addressed also. 

Chairman LEAHY. Curtis? Incidentally, the president of the U.S. 

Chamber of Commerce came in to see me and was just beside himself at the projections of the hundreds of billions of dollars worth 

of jobs that will be lost if we don’t do this right. 

Curtis, what would you suggest? 

Mr. PICARD. I would echo Commissioner Hyde as well. I think 

the European Union is an excellent model to look at. I keep going 

back to the very fundamental issue that, in 2007, it should be easier to go between the United States and Canada, not harder. Whatever the solution is, it needs to be simple, easy, and easily adoptable on both sides of the border. 

The last point I’ll make is, whether you go ahead and get a passport or an enhanced driver’s license, it’s the foundation documents 

that you go back to that establish your citizenship. For me, that 

is a single sheet of paper, typewritten back in the late 1960’s that 

verifies that I was born in the United States. 

Those foundation documents aren’t going to change for most of 

us anytime soon. So, establishing citizenship—you know, basically 

they’re saying we’re assuming everybody’s bad until you prove 

they’re good. As we’ve said all along, who is this really going to 

catch? I think the people that wish to do harm to the United States 

or to Canada are going to find a way to get in legally. 

Chairman LEAHY. And Dana? I agree with you. 

Ms. EIDSNESS. I think I echo the comments of my partners here 

at the table. The EU is a great model. I would urge DHS to please 

consider the commercial considerations. I do think the enhanced license is promising, but I echo Curtis’s remarks, in that it really 

does need to be a very simple solution. Maybe that’s as simple as 

reducing the price of passports and making them more accessible 

to people. Obviously we’ll need to staff up and ensure that there 

aren’t tremendous backlogs because of that. 

Chairman LEAHY. And that has to be done on the other side of 

the border, too, right? 

Ms. EIDSNESS. Absolutely. That was my next comment, is that I 

would like to see negotiations for a reciprocal program in Canada. 

I think there needs to be more discourse about that. 

Chairman LEAHY. Thank you. 

Tricia? 

Ms. SEARS. I would offer to Secretaries Chertoff and Rice that, 

even as the token flatlander in my family, I have come to fully appreciate the common sense approach of Vermonters, and I would 

offer that as a model. I would offer that as slowing down, figuring 

out what common sense will tell them as far as implementing 

something of such vast proportions, the unintended consequences 

that it would have on private businesses and individuals, and the 

value of partnerships, and especially partnerships with non-governmental folks, very much the business sector, but also the rest of us. 

23

Chairman LEAHY. Well, you’re going to hear many of these 

things quoted back in further hearings. Bill Stenger, the idea of the 

Secretary of Commerce—I’m going to call Secretary Gutierrez as 

soon as I get back from Washington. I may even call him from 

home this afternoon. I think that is a good idea. 

Bruce, you mentioned the EU. Many of my mother’s family—my 

grandparents—had emigrated. My maternal grandparents emigrated to Vermont from Italy, up in the northeast corner of Italy. 

Marcel and I have driven back and forth and you’re crossing two 

or three borders, the Austrian border, the Italian border there. 

When we’ve driven it, when I reach for my passport, suddenly I 

realize I’ve crossed the border because the signs, the languages 

changed. It is seamless. They go from France to neighboring countries. You see signs in French and then they’re in a different language. These are things we should consider. 

Tim, you’re right in saying slow down. This is what Senator Stevens and I, in our legislation, are trying to do. We’ve tried to make 

sure that people understand that it’s not a partisan issue. We’ve 

got conservatives, liberals, Republicans, and Democrats on it. The 

governor and I see eye to eye on this. We all do. We’re trying to 

slow down before you create a fiasco. 

Curtis, what you said, I absolutely agree with, the idea of a simple solution, whatever that might be. I think what we’re getting to 

is far more complicated than what it’s going to be, or needs to be. 

If I thought it enhanced our security, it would be one thing. I suggested to the—there’s been talk about improved intelligence. 

I suggested there’s hundreds of billions of dollars of income we 

could lose in this country, and it would be a lot better if we spent 

a billion or so in improving the intelligence on both sides of the 

border because there are people who prove a threat to both Canada 

and the United States who want to come in. That’s a fact of life. 

That’s not going to change in my lifetime or your lifetime. But this 

is not the thing that will stop them. As Tricia said, most people are 

very good. We know that here in Vermont. 

So I thank you all for doing this. You’ve taken a great deal of 

time out of your schedules. 

I’m glad to have our Court Reporter who usually is with us in 

a very dark, windowless hearing room in Washington. Do you like 

this better? Is this better? I like it better. I wish I could hold all 

of my hearings in here. It is interesting, I should tell you, in late 

January. 

[Laughter]. 

Everybody who lives here is nodding. 

Mr. STENGER. Senator, one thing I’d like to ask for your help on. 

There’s damage being done right now. The uncertainty in the marketplace—Curtis’s comments about the wedding party that was 

going to Quebec. The communications out of the Department of 

Homeland Security have been inconsistent at best. We’re heading 

into holiday periods. We’ve gone through a terrible summer. 

This past weekend I was in Montreal. The radio stations give the 

sports scores, they give the weather report, and they give the waiting time at the border now. I was coming back to Vermont and the 

comments on the radio were, well, coming into Canada was a 15-

24

minute wait, but coming into the United States from Canada was 

a 2-hour wait. 

When your family is in Stansted or north of Burlington and 

you’re thinking of coming into the country and you’re hearing that 

on the radio, a 2-hour delay, you’re not going to come. I’ve seen 

over the last six or 8 months communiques from Homeland Security that have been inaccurate, amazingly so, that they would put 

out something that is legally or technically incorrect and they’d 

have to retract it. 

So I know that you have great influence, and I hope that over 

the next few months, as we get closer to decision-making points, 

that people will think before they speak because the impact is profound. This Main Street of Newport is being harmed right now because of the uncertainty of what’s out there in this issue. Frankly, 

I fear for my winter because of the uncertainty of what people are 

thinking about what will happen January 1, and when will it be 

implemented. So, you’re a champion of ours, and I mean that. 

Chairman LEAHY. Thank you. 

Mr. STENGER. I thank you again for this opportunity. 

Chairman LEAHY. Well, we’re concerned about it. I mean, I obviously have a family and personal interest in Canada. But just looking at it objectively as a U.S. Senator, I think how fortunate we 

are to have a 5,000- mile unguarded frontier where, in today’s 

world, we have a friend on the other side. I once said in a speech 

in Ottawa—in fact, the speech was 10 years ago and we were talking about land mines. I began my speech, in the first couple of 

paragraphs, in both French and English. 

But I said, coming from the State of Vermont, I think of Canada 

as that giant to the north. But we are fortunate to have it. Do we 

ever have political differences with Canada? Of course we do. Do 

we have political differences among each other in Vermont? Of 

course we do. But we don’t seal off the border. I will bring back 

these comments, having more perspective and clarity. 

Curtis, I want to use your example with the wedding, because I 

suspect that could be replicated thousands of times in other things: 

it’s a family reunion, it’s the anniversary, it’s the birthday party, 

it’s the wedding, it’s whatever it might be and how we do that. 

One of Marcel’s relatives died last year and we were driving up 

to Canada. We had others coming to join us. Her brother from Chicago had asked me, do I need to bring a passport? This is to go to 

a funeral 20 miles on the other side of the border. 

So, thank you all very much. 

[Whereupon, at 12:14 p.m. the hearing was adjourned.] 

[Submissions for the record follow.]

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