When and how will the U.S.-Canadian border open? These experts have some ideas

Laurie Trautman, one of the panelists and the director for the Border Policy Research Institute at Western Washington University, estimated that Whatcom County lost $60 million in cross-border retail sales in the first half of 2020.

Here are some of the topics discussed during the event:

WHEN WILL THE RESTRICTIONS END?

That remains unclear, but some of the panelists expect that the recent pandemic surge and U.S. presidential election is putting this issue on the back-burner for now.

What’s been particularly painful for businesses near both sides of the border is the 30-day extensions, said Andrea Van Vugt, one of the panelists and global director of Harper & Associates in Canada. It makes it difficult for businesses to plan; providing some measurement about when the border might open would be helpful, she said.