WASHINGTON, D.C. – States like South Dakota rely heavily on immigrant farm workers in a number of ag-related industries.
Feeling the pressure of addressing a farm labor shortage, House Republicans last week urged the Senate to take up the “Farm Workforce Modernization Act” (FWMA). The bill would expand the H-2A visa system for agricultural workers. In March 2021, the House approved the FWMA.
Currently, H-2A visas allow immigrant farm laborers to enter the United States for temporary, seasonal work. The FWMA would open the H-2A visa program to year-round labor and provide a path to legal status for agricultural workers already in the country. But the measure caps the number of year-round visas at 20,000 annually, a provision opposed by NPPC and most other agricultural organizations.
In a June 12 press conference, GOP Reps. Jim Baird (Ind.), Doug LaMalfa (Calif.), Dan Newhouse (Wash.), and Mike Simpson (Idaho) highlighted the impact of farm labor shortages on food costs and cited a new study from Texas A&M University that shows increasing H-2A visa admissions is strongly correlated with a decrease in inflation, higher average wages, and lower unemployment.
