Sponsor: Lloydminster
Co-Sponsor: Southeast Alberta Chamber of Commerce

ISSUE
The country relies heavily on accessible transportation corridors and border services to facilitate the ever-growing economy, particularly in expanding natural resource investments, development of supply chain manufacturing and applicable service sectors. Although Alberta continues to have a very prosperous trading relationship with its neighbors in the U.S. it still has only one Designated Commercial Office (DCO) with a disparity to the trading relationship and access to adequate border facilities to facilitate efficient trade between Canada and the U.S.

BACKGROUND

Canada and the U.S. enjoy one of the most prosperous relationships in the world, with nearly $3.6 billion worth of goods and services crossing the border each day in 2023¹ as well as close to 400,000 people crossing our shared borders every day. In particular, Montana and Canada continue a profitable trading relationship with bilateral trade flows totaling $6.8 billion USD in 2022 ² . Moreover, Canada continues to be Montana’s most important customer with total Montana exports to Canada at $1 billion USD in 2022 while total Montana imports from Canada totaled $6.8 billion USD. Exports consist of primarily agriculture, chemicals, energy, minerals and metals. While 74 % of Alberta’s exports to the U.S. were energy related. With the fewest number of highway/land border crossings within Canada, Alberta is also currently the only province bordering the U.S. to have one Designated Commercial Office (DCO), situated in Coutts, Alberta³.

It is critical that we encourage the government to remove any barriers or encumbrances on imports and exports of our key sectors between Canada and the U.S. and work to improve international trade by removing pressure and congestion on a Designated Commercial Offices. To achieve these goals, it is important for the Canadian and U.S. Governments to work together to mirror expansion efforts on both sides of the border. 

Additionally, inadequate border facilities and a lack of technology is an impediment to the efficient movement of goods. By ensuring that facility standards mirror adjacent port facilities in the United States and that port facilities have Electronic Data Interchange (EDI) systems to facilitate electronic transmission and interchange of cargo would ensure a more efficient process in the movement of goods.

Transportation access is fuel for economic development. Regions with flexible, efficient transportation networks can access product markets, suppliers, vendors, workers and customers more efficiently and more cost effectively than those that do not. We need to encourage the further development of north/south trade and remove delays, restrictions and limitations on crossing times and access. Investment leads to trade, as companies’ activities increasingly become part of the global value chain, necessitating not only clear and open investment rules, but also ensuring that goods and services produced have easy access to markets in both countries and internationally.

Increased border access would enhance economic development, investment and security as well as address growing safety concerns. It would also assist truck traffic by providing an alternate route, easing lineups and delays and it would improve tourism travel by allowing increased travel service between Canada and the United States. 

It is in the best interest of Canada to expand trade linkages with the United States through transportation crossings and corridors that link Canada to the United States to facilitate a growing trading market. A continued effort is needed to eliminate the obstacles that continue to prevent the expansion of Designated Commercial offices and promote our north-south trade corridors.

RECOMMENDATIONS

The Southeast Alberta Chamber of Commerce, along with the Canadian Chamber of Commerce, recommends that the federal government:

1. Accelerate dialogue with U.S. counterparts to ensure that the hours of Canadian border crossings
consistently match the U.S. border hours in both traveler and commercial service hours and that facility
standards are equivalent on both sides of the border.
2. Work to accommodate shared port of entry facilities where the opportunity exists.
3. Ensure that regions with high volumes of bilateral trade and corridor traffic have equitable access to sufficient Designated Commercial Offices equipped with electronic data interchange for the electronic transmission and interchange of cargo, release, and accounting data.
4. Improve the structures, facilities and technology in port facilities to better serve present needs. 

Resources

1. Government of Canada: Canada-United States relations https://www.international.gc.ca/country-pays/us-eu/relations.aspx?lang=eng
2. Consulate General Connect2Canada: https://connect2canada.com/wp-content/fact-sheets/mt.pdf
3. https://open.alberta.ca/dataset/9269de23-6d7a-448e-867e-293b4b0568e1/resource/0476dbee-695c-41ac-8ef7-b76d52b6f65a/download/montana-ab.pdf
4. Canada Border Services Agency - Destinated Commercial Office: https://www.cbsa-asfc.gc.ca/do-rb/services/dco-bcd-eng.html
5. Statistics Canada: Population Estimates: https://www150.statcan.gc.ca/t1/tbl1/en/tv.action?pid=1710000901 

Date Approved: June 2011
Date Renewed: September 2014, September 2017, September 2020, October 2023
Date Updated and Approved by the CCC: October 18, 2024