SCHUMER: TRUMP’S TARIFF WAR CONTINUES CRUSHING UPSTATE NY’S SUMMER TOURISM ECONOMY WITH CANADIAN CROSSINGS PLUMMETING NEARLY 500,000 LAST MONTH – NOW OVER 2 MILLION DECREASE IN TRAVELERS AROSS UPSTATE SINCE TRUMP TOOK OFFICE – HURTING MAIN STREETS, THREATENING JOBS, AND UPSTATE NEW YORKERS’ LIVELIHOODS

Canadians’ Opinions Of Americans Are At Historic Lows & United States Is The Only Country Where International Tourism Is Expected To Drop –A Whopping $12.5 BILLION; With Upstate NY On The Frontlines As One Of The Places Most Reliant On Canadian Summer Tourism Boom To Sustain Small Businesses & Jobs

Senator Will Force A Vote When The Senate Returns To End Trump’s Ill-Conceived Trade War With Canada, And Demands NY House Republicans Stand Up For Upstate NY

Schumer: We Must End Trump Tariffs To Save Main Streets Across Upstate NY

As a recent study reveals Canadians’ opinions of Americans are at historic lows amid Trump’s ill-conceived and irregularly implemented trade war, U.S. Senator Chuck Schumer revealed new data showing border crossings continue to plummet at all major land ports of entry in New York. New data shows nearly 500,000 fewer travelers crossed the Upstate NY-Canada border via land in July 2025 compared to July 2024, according to CBP, a 22% decrease. Now, since Trump took office, there have been 2 million fewer travelers over the Upstate NY-Canada border compared to last year.

“Upstate NY’s Main Streets are paying the price for Trump’s tariffs with higher costs and fewer tourists. New York wants to welcome our Canadian friends with open arms, but Trump has crushed NY’s summer tourism industry by driving them away with his reckless trade war with Canada. Since Trump took office, we have seen over 2 million fewer travelers cross over the Upstate NY-Canada border, and nearly 500,000 fewer in July, which is usually the height of tourism season,” said Senator Schumer. “From Buffalo to the Thousand Islands to Plattsburgh, and everywhere in between, Upstate NY can’t afford Trump’s tariff chaos to continue. That’s why, when the Senate returns, I will force a vote to end this reckless trade war with Canada that is crushing Upstate NY’s economy. Republicans know how unpopular these tariffs are with the American people who are footing the bill – we need NY House Republicans to join us and stand up to Trump and stand up for NY’s Main Streets. It is time we put an end to Trump’s reckless and costly trade war once and for all.”

According to new data from CBP, Upstate NY and Canada saw approximately 1.7 million border crossings in July 2025, compared to 2.2 million during the same month in 2024, a 497,987 (22%) decrease across land (both road and bridge) crossings frequented by tourists. This follows a months-long trend since Trump took office of Canadian border crossings plummeting, with 2,038,465 fewer visitors across the Upstate NY-Canada border compared to last year, meaning fewer tourists at NY’s hotels, shops, & restaurants. Nationally, border crossings decreased from approximately 6.2 million to 4.8 million in July 2025 compared to July 2024.

According to the World Travel and Tourism Council, the United States is the only country out of 184 studied where international tourism is expected to drop.

After Trump raised tariffs on Canada to 35% last month, Schumer announced Democrats will force a vote in the Senate to put an end to Trump’s ill-conceived cost-raising trade war with Canada that is killing the summer tourism economy, threatening thousands of jobs and Main Streets across Upstate New York, and called on NY House Republicans to stand with the families & small businesses that are footing the bill for these costly Trump tariffs.

A breakdown bridge-by-bridge from the Bridge and Tunnel Operators Association of July 2025 crossings shows just how steeply tourism is declining across all the major bridge ports of entry between Upstate NY and Canada:

Trump’s tariff war with Canada is having a devastating impact on tourism in New York and across the United States. According to the World Travel and Tourism Council, the United States is the only country out of 184 studied where international tourism is expected to drop, with a $12.5 billion decrease. Schumer said this will be felt beyond the tourism industry, with jobs and local businesses impacted across the country. The United States is welcoming fewer Canadian visitors, with Canadian bookings down more than 20% compared to last year. A new Pew Research study recently revealed that Canadians’ opinions of Americans and Trump are at or near historic lows.

Trump’s tariffs are also raising costs for American families, with working families hit hardest because they tend to buy more goods in industries being tariffed. According to the Budget Lab at Yale, Trump’s tariffs are expected to cost families more than $2,700 every year. Americans are already seeing higher prices; in June 2025, prices increased by 2.7% compared to the previous year. Trump’s continued threats of even higher tariffs mean even higher costs for Upstate NY families and small businesses. Additionally, in anticipation of further cost increases in the future, many families face pressures to make large purchases now despite a lack of current financial security and are thereby forced to take on added debt.

Schumer continues to be one of the leading advocates in Congress to end this unnecessary, damaging trade war with Canada that is decimating Upstate NY’s economy, tourism, small businesses, and local jobs. The senator announced he will use a special fast-track process to force a vote when the Senate returns to end Trump’s destructive trade war with Canada.

Earlier this year, the Senate passed a bipartisan resolution to end tariffs on Canada. The senator said small businesses in Western NY can’t wait for so-called “trade deals” with no details and said NY House Republicans must stand up for Upstate NY businesses and working families footing the bill for Trump’s tariff tax by taking up this resolution and passing it as well. Schumer said with every economic data point flashing red because of Trump’s chaotic trade war, more Republicans in the Senate will break with Trump to help families and end the tariffs, and it's time NY House Republicans did the same. Under Schumer’s leadership, Senate Democrats are also pushing for tariff exemptions for small businesses and putting an end to Trump’s across-the-board tariffs, and Schumer has co-led amicus briefs in the lawsuit challenging Trump’s authority to levy tariffs. Schumer said ending this costly trade war is key to protecting American families from price increases and job losses.

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