Dreier, Stenholm Meet With Yucatan Governor
Members Discuss Importance of U.S. Investment in Yucatan Peninsula
See Also:
Dreier, Stenholm Launch U.S.-Mexico Congressional Caucus
March 13, 2003
WASHINGTON, DC - As the first order of business for the newly formed U.S.-Mexico Congressional Caucus Congressman David Dreier (R-CA), Chairman of the House Rules Committee, and Congressman Charlie Stenholm (D-TX) met today with the Governor of Yucatan, Patricio Patron Laviada, to discuss the economic relationship of the United States and the state of Yucatan. Caucus Member Congressman Jeff Flake (R-AZ) also attended the meeting.
"I'm very pleased to welcome Governor Laviada to Washington this morning," Dreier said. "As Mr. Stenholm and I said at yesterday's Caucus launch, we want to expand the dialogue with our neighbors to the south so that we can foster and improve our already strong economic ties. Governor Laviada discussed with us just how much free trade has brought to the Yucatan peninsula. It's our hope that as we work toward a Free Trade Area of the Americas, we can create more opportunities for economic growth on both sides of the border."
In today's meeting, Governor Laviada spoke with members about the tremendous impact the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) has had on his state saying that, "[t]hrough NAFTA, the business community of Yucatán has not only improved its competitiveness levels but has demonstrated the Mexican-American commercial potential." In the first eight years since NAFTA was implemented, Yucatan's trade has multiplied by five, reaching nearly $2.1 billion in 2001. In that same time period, U.S. sales to Yucatan have grown by over 300% while the United States currently accounts for 82 percent of Yucatan's total trade. NAFTA also brought about new investment in the Yucatan peninsula which created more than 24,000 new jobs directly related to trade activity. These jobs are actually better paying because export related workers earn salaries that are 26% higher than the rest of the manufacturing sector.
The newly founded U.S.-Mexico Caucus is a bipartisan group of House Members dedicated to improving the bilateral trade relationship between the U.S. and Mexico. With our nations sharing a 2,000-mile border and generating nearly $250 billion in bilateral trade, the Caucus will promote dialogue on the challenges and opportunities presented by our special relationship with Mexico.
