Gov. Greg Abbott’s slowdown of trucks at Texas border cost U.S. economy $9 billion, economist says

Produce shippers have complained about millions in spoilages due to Texas Gov. Greg Abbott’s widely criticized slowdown of border traffic. Shippers also threatened to pull out of the state over his move.

Now, a Texas economist has put a $9 billion price tag on the governor’s days-long program, which doubled the number of inspections of commercial trucks coming into the state from Mexico, Axios reports.

According to an analysis by the Waco-based Perryman Group, the U.S. lost an estimated $8.97 billion due to shipping delays between April 6 and 15, the time in which Abbott’s rule was in effect. Texas alone lost $4.23 billion in gross product.

The economics firm based its estimates on a 2019 study it conducted on a separate border slowdown and updated the data to account for this month’s different circumstances, CEO Ray Perryman told Axios.

Perryman promised to release more detailed numbers later this week.

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This article appears in Apr 20 – May 3, 2022.