Mexican Trucking Group Suing U.S. for $6 Billion
Mexican trucking companies are suing the United States government for $6 billion over Washington’s refusal to allow Mexican carriers onto U.S. roads under the North American Free Trade Agreement, Reuters reported.
About 4,500 trucking companies represented by Mexico’s National Cargo Transportation Association are involved in the lawsuit, Reuters reported, citing the association, which is known as Canacar.
Canacar said in April it would seek monetary damages from the U.S. over what it considered NAFTA violations. (Click here for previous subscriber-content story.)
Companies can sue the governments of the three NAFTA signatories — Mexico, the United States and Canada — if they think they have been unfairly treated by public policies, Reuters reported.
U.S. Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood said May 21 in Washington that the U.S. may reopen its roads to Mexican trucks as soon as this month.
DOT set up a pilot program in 2007 under the Bush administration to allow a limited number of Mexican trucks beyond an approximately 25-mile border zone, and LaHood said he will bring up the issue with Congress in June, Bloomberg reported. (Click here for previous coverage.)
Congress and the Obama administration ended the program earlier this year, after which Mexico set tariffs on about $2.4 billion worth of U.S. goods in retaliation.
