[Congressional Record Volume 165, Number 198 (Wednesday, December 11, 2019)]
[House]
[Pages H10044-H10082]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
FARM WORKFORCE MODERNIZATION ACT OF 2019
Mr. NADLER. Mr. Speaker, pursuant to House Resolution 758, I call up
the bill (H.R. 5038) to amend the Immigration and Nationality Act to
provide for
[[Page H10045]]
terms and conditions for nonimmigrant workers performing agricultural
labor or services, and for other purposes, and ask for its immediate
consideration.
The Clerk read the title of the bill.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to House Resolution 758, in lieu of
the amendment in the nature of a substitute recommended by the
Committee on the Judiciary printed in the bill, an amendment in the
nature of a substitute consisting of the text of Rules Committee Print
116-42, modified by the amendment printed in part C of House Report
116-334, is adopted, and the bill, as amended, is considered read.
The text of the bill, as amended, is as follows:
H.R. 5038
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of
the United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE; TABLE OF CONTENTS.
(a) Short Title.--This Act may be cited as the ``Farm
Workforce Modernization Act of 2019''.
(b) Table of Contents.--The table of contents for this Act
is as follows:
Sec. 1. Short title; table of contents.
TITLE I--SECURING THE DOMESTIC AGRICULTURAL WORKFORCE
Subtitle A--Temporary Status for Certified Agricultural Workers
Sec. 101. Certified agricultural worker status.
Sec. 102. Terms and conditions of certified status.
Sec. 103. Extensions of certified status.
Sec. 104. Determination of continuous presence.
Sec. 105. Employer obligations.
Sec. 106. Administrative and judicial review.
Subtitle B--Optional Earned Residence for Long-term Workers
Sec. 111. Optional adjustment of status for long-term agricultural
workers.
Sec. 112. Payment of taxes.
Sec. 113. Adjudication and decision; review.
Subtitle C--General Provisions
Sec. 121. Definitions.
Sec. 122. Rulemaking; Fees.
Sec. 123. Background checks.
Sec. 124. Protection for children.
Sec. 125. Limitation on removal.
Sec. 126. Documentation of agricultural work history.
Sec. 127. Employer protections.
Sec. 128. Correction of social security records.
Sec. 129. Disclosures and privacy.
Sec. 130. Penalties for false statements in applications.
Sec. 131. Dissemination of information.
Sec. 132. Exemption from numerical limitations.
Sec. 133. Reports to Congress.
Sec. 134. Grant program to assist eligible applicants.
Sec. 135. Authorization of appropriations.
TITLE II--ENSURING AN AGRICULTURAL WORKFORCE FOR THE FUTURE
Subtitle A--Reforming the H-2A Temporary Worker Program
Sec. 201. Comprehensive and streamlined electronic h-2a platform.
Sec. 202. H-2a program requirements.
Sec. 203. Agency roles and responsibilities.
Sec. 204. Worker protection and compliance.
Sec. 205. Report on wage protections.
Sec. 206. Portable h-2a visa pilot program.
Sec. 207. Improving access to permanent residence.
Subtitle B--Preservation and Construction of Farmworker Housing
Sec. 220. Short title.
Sec. 221. Permanent establishment of housing preservation and
revitalization program.
Sec. 222. Eligibility for rural housing vouchers.
Sec. 223. Amount of voucher assistance.
Sec. 224. Rental assistance contract authority.
Sec. 225. Funding for multifamily technical improvements.
Sec. 226. Plan for preserving affordability of rental projects.
Sec. 227. Covered housing programs.
Sec. 228. New farmworker housing.
Sec. 229. Loan and grant limitations.
Sec. 230. Operating assistance subsidies.
Sec. 231. Eligibility of certified workers.
Subtitle C--Foreign Labor Recruiter Accountability
Sec. 251. Registration of foreign labor recruiters.
Sec. 252. Enforcement.
Sec. 253. Appropriations.
Sec. 254. Definitions.
TITLE III--ELECTRONIC VERIFICATION OF EMPLOYMENT ELIGIBILITY
Sec. 301. Electronic employment eligibility verification system.
Sec. 302. Mandatory electronic verification for the agricultural
industry.
Sec. 303. Coordination with E-Verify Program.
Sec. 304. Fraud and misuse of documents.
Sec. 305. Technical and conforming amendments.
Sec. 306. Protection of Social Security Administration programs.
Sec. 307. Report on the implementation of the electronic employment
verification system.
Sec. 308. Modernizing and streamlining the employment eligibility
verification process.
Sec. 309. Rulemaking and Paperwork Reduction Act.
TITLE I--SECURING THE DOMESTIC AGRICULTURAL WORKFORCE
Subtitle A--Temporary Status for Certified Agricultural Workers
SEC. 101. CERTIFIED AGRICULTURAL WORKER STATUS.
(a) Requirements for Certified Agricultural Worker
Status.--
(1) Principal aliens.--The Secretary may grant certified
agricultural worker status to an alien who submits a
completed application, including the required processing
fees, before the end of the period set forth in subsection
(c) and who--
(A) performed agricultural labor or services in the United
States for at least 1,035 hours (or 180 work days) during the
2-year period preceding the date of the introduction of this
Act;
(B) on the date of the introduction of this Act--
(i) is inadmissible or deportable from the United States;
or
(ii) is under a grant of deferred enforced departure or has
temporary protected status under section 244 of the
Immigration and Nationality Act;
(C) subject to section 104, has been continuously present
in the United States since the date of the introduction of
this Act and until the date on which the alien is granted
certified agricultural worker status; and
(D) is not otherwise ineligible for certified agricultural
worker status as provided in subsection (b).
(2) Dependent spouse and children.--The Secretary may grant
certified agricultural dependent status to the spouse or
child of an alien granted certified agricultural worker
status under paragraph (1) if the spouse or child is not
ineligible for certified agricultural dependent status as
provided in subsection (b).
(b) Grounds for Ineligibility.--
(1) Grounds of inadmissibility.--Except as provided in
paragraph (3), an alien is ineligible for certified
agricultural worker or certified agricultural dependent
status if the Secretary determines that the alien is
inadmissible under section 212(a) of the Immigration and
Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1182(a)), except that in
determining inadmissibility--
(A) paragraphs (4), (5), (7), and (9)(B) of such section
shall not apply;
(B) subparagraphs (A), (C), (D), (F), and (G) of such
section 212(a)(6) and paragraphs (9)(C) and (10)(B) of such
section 212(a) shall not apply unless based on the act of
unlawfully entering the United States after the date of
introduction of this Act; and
(C) paragraphs (6)(B) and (9)(A) of such section 212(a)
shall not apply unless the relevant conduct began on or after
the date of filing of the application for certified
agricultural worker status.
(2) Additional criminal bars.--Except as provided in
paragraph (3), an alien is ineligible for certified
agricultural worker or certified agricultural dependent
status if the Secretary determines that, excluding any
offense under State law for which an essential element is the
alien's immigration status and any minor traffic offense, the
alien has been convicted of--
(A) any felony offense;
(B) an aggravated felony (as defined in section 101(a)(43)
of the Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1101(a)(43))
at the time of the conviction);
(C) two misdemeanor offenses involving moral turpitude, as
described in section 212(a)(2)(A)(i)(I) of the Immigration
and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1182(a)(2)(A)(i)(I)), unless an
offense is waived by the Secretary under paragraph (3)(B); or
(D) three or more misdemeanor offenses not occurring on the
same date, and not arising out of the same act, omission, or
scheme of misconduct.
(3) Waivers for certain grounds of inadmissibility.--For
humanitarian purposes, family unity, or if otherwise in the
public interest, the Secretary may waive the grounds of
inadmissibility under--
(A) paragraph (1), (6)(E), or (10)(D) of section 212(a) of
the Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1182(a)); or
(B) subparagraphs (A) and (D) of section 212(a)(2) of the
Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1182(a)(2)), unless
inadmissibility is based on a conviction that would otherwise
render the alien ineligible under subparagraph (A), (B), or
(D) of paragraph (2).
(c) Application.--
(1) Application period.--Except as provided in paragraph
(2), the Secretary shall accept initial applications for
certified agricultural worker status during the 18-month
period beginning on the date on which the interim final rule
is published in the Federal Register pursuant to section
122(a).
(2) Extension.--If the Secretary determines, during the
initial period described in paragraph (1), that additional
time is required to process initial applications for
certified agricultural worker status or for other good cause,
the Secretary may extend the period for accepting
applications for up to an additional 12 months.
(3) Submission of applications.--
(A) In general.--An alien may file an application with the
Secretary under this section with the assistance of an
attorney or a nonprofit religious, charitable, social
service, or similar organization recognized by the Board of
Immigration Appeals under section 292.2 of title 8, Code of
Federal Regulations. The Secretary shall also create a
procedure for accepting applications filed by qualified
designated entities with the consent of the applicant.
(B) Farm service agency offices.--The Secretary, in
consultation with the Secretary of Agriculture, shall
establish a process for the filing of applications under this
section at Farm Service Agency offices throughout the United
States.
[[Page H10046]]
(4) Evidence of application filing.--As soon as practicable
after receiving an application for certified agricultural
worker status, the Secretary shall provide the applicant with
a document acknowledging the receipt of such application.
Such document shall serve as interim proof of the alien's
authorization to accept employment in the United States and
shall be accepted by an employer as evidence of employment
authorization under section 274A(b)(1)(C) of the Immigration
and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1324a(b)(1)(C)), if the
employer is employing the holder of such document to perform
agricultural labor or services, pending a final
administrative decision on the application.
(5) Effect of pending application.--During the period
beginning on the date on which an alien applies for certified
agricultural worker status under this subtitle, and ending on
the date on which the Secretary makes a final administrative
decision regarding such application, the alien and any
dependents included in the application--
(A) may apply for advance parole, which shall be granted
upon demonstrating a legitimate need to travel outside the
United States for a temporary purpose;
(B) may not be detained by the Secretary or removed from
the United States unless the Secretary makes a prima facie
determination that such alien is, or has become, ineligible
for certified agricultural worker status;
(C) may not be considered unlawfully present under section
212(a)(9)(B) of the Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C.
1182(a)(9)(B)); and
(D) may not be considered an unauthorized alien (as defined
in section 274A(h)(3) of the Immigration and Nationality Act
(8 U.S.C. 1324a(h)(3))).
(6) Withdrawal of application.--The Secretary shall, upon
receipt of a request from the applicant to withdraw an
application for certified agricultural worker status under
this subtitle, cease processing of the application, and close
the case. Withdrawal of the application shall not prejudice
any future application filed by the applicant for any
immigration benefit under this Act or under the Immigration
and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1101 et seq.).
(d) Adjudication and Decision.--
(1) In general.--Subject to section 123, the Secretary
shall render a decision on an application for certified
agricultural worker status not later than 180 days after the
date the application is filed.
(2) Notice.--Prior to denying an application for certified
agricultural worker status, the Secretary shall provide the
alien with--
(A) written notice that describes the basis for
ineligibility or the deficiencies in the evidence submitted;
and
(B) at least 90 days to contest ineligibility or submit
additional evidence.
(3) Amended application.--An alien whose application for
certified agricultural worker status is denied under this
section may submit an amended application for such status to
the Secretary if the amended application is submitted within
the application period described in subsection (c) and
contains all the required information and fees that were
missing from the initial application.
(e) Alternative h-2a Status.--An alien who has not met the
required period of agricultural labor or services under
subsection (a)(1)(A), but is otherwise eligible for certified
agricultural worker status under such subsection, shall be
eligible for classification as a nonimmigrant described in
section 101(a)(15)(H)(ii)(a) of the Immigration and
Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1101(a)(15)(H)(ii)(a)) upon
approval of a petition submitted by a sponsoring employer, if
the alien has performed at least 575 hours (or 100 work days)
of agricultural labor or services during the 3-year period
preceding the date of the introduction of this Act. The
Secretary shall create a procedure to provide for such
classification without requiring the alien to depart the
United States and obtain a visa abroad.
SEC. 102. TERMS AND CONDITIONS OF CERTIFIED STATUS.
(a) In General.--
(1) Approval.--Upon approval of an application for
certified agricultural worker status, or an extension of such
status pursuant to section 103, the Secretary shall issue--
(A) documentary evidence of such status to the applicant;
and
(B) documentary evidence of certified agricultural
dependent status to any qualified dependent included on such
application.
(2) Documentary evidence.--In addition to any other
features and information as the Secretary may prescribe, the
documentary evidence described in paragraph (1)--
(A) shall be machine-readable and tamper-resistant;
(B) shall contain a digitized photograph;
(C) shall serve as a valid travel and entry document for
purposes of applying for admission to the United States; and
(D) shall be accepted during the period of its validity by
an employer as evidence of employment authorization and
identity under section 274A(b)(1)(B) of the Immigration and
Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1324a(b)(1)(B)).
(3) Validity period.--Certified agricultural worker and
certified agricultural dependent status shall be valid for
five and one-half years beginning on the date of approval.
(4) Travel authorization.--An alien with certified
agricultural worker or certified agricultural dependent
status may--
(A) travel within and outside of the United States,
including commuting to the United States from a residence in
a foreign country; and
(B) be admitted to the United States upon return from
travel abroad without first obtaining a visa if the alien is
in possession of--
(i) valid, unexpired documentary evidence of certified
agricultural worker or certified agricultural worker
dependent status as described in subsection (a); or
(ii) a travel document that has been approved by the
Secretary and was issued to the alien after the alien's
original documentary evidence was lost, stolen, or destroyed.
(b) Ability to Change Status.--
(1) Change to certified agricultural worker status.--
Notwithstanding section 101(a), an alien with valid certified
agricultural dependent status may apply to change to
certified agricultural worker status, at any time, if the
alien--
(A) submits a completed application, including the required
processing fees; and
(B) is not ineligible for certified agricultural worker
status under section 101(b).
(2) Clarification.--Nothing in this title prohibits an
alien granted certified agricultural worker or certified
agricultural dependent status from changing status to any
other nonimmigrant classification for which the alien may be
eligible.
(c) Prohibition on Public Benefits, Tax Benefits, and
Health Care Subsidies.--Aliens granted certified agricultural
worker or certified agricultural dependent status shall be
considered lawfully present in the United States for all
purposes for the duration of their status, except that such
aliens--
(1) shall be ineligible for Federal means-tested public
benefits to the same extent as other individuals who are not
qualified aliens under section 431 of the Personal
Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act of
1996 (8 U.S.C. 1641);
(2) are not entitled to the premium assistance tax credit
authorized under section 36B of the Internal Revenue Code of
1986 (26 U.S.C. 36B), and shall be subject to the rules
applicable to individuals who are not lawfully present set
forth in subsection (e) of such section;
(3) shall be subject to the rules applicable to individuals
who are not lawfully present set forth in section 1402(e) of
the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (42 U.S.C.
18071(e)); and
(4) shall be subject to the rules applicable to individuals
not lawfully present set forth in section 5000A(d)(3) of the
Internal Revenue Code of 1986 (26 U.S.C. 5000A(d)(3)).
(d) Revocation of Status.--
(1) In general.--The Secretary may revoke certified
agricultural worker or certified agricultural dependent
status if, after providing notice to the alien and the
opportunity to provide evidence to contest the proposed
revocation, the Secretary determines that the alien no longer
meets the eligibility requirements for such status under
section 101(b).
(2) Invalidation of documentation.--Upon the Secretary's
final determination to revoke an alien's certified
agricultural worker or certified agricultural dependent
status, any documentation issued by the Secretary to such
alien under subsection (a) shall automatically be rendered
invalid for any purpose except for departure from the United
States.
SEC. 103. EXTENSIONS OF CERTIFIED STATUS.
(a) Requirements for Extensions of Status.--
(1) Principal aliens.--The Secretary may extend certified
agricultural worker status for additional periods of five and
one-half years to an alien who submits a completed
application, including the required processing fees, within
the 120-day period beginning 60 days before the expiration of
the fifth year of the immediately preceding grant of
certified agricultural worker status, if the alien--
(A) except as provided in section 126(c), has performed
agricultural labor or services in the United States for at
least 575 hours (or 100 work days) for each of the prior five
years in which the alien held certified agricultural worker
status; and
(B) has not become ineligible for certified agricultural
worker status under section 101(b).
(2) Dependent spouse and children.--The Secretary may grant
or extend certified agricultural dependent status to the
spouse or child of an alien granted an extension of certified
agricultural worker status under paragraph (1) if the spouse
or child is not ineligible for certified agricultural
dependent status under section 101(b).
(3) Waiver for late filings.--The Secretary may waive an
alien's failure to timely file before the expiration of the
120-day period described in paragraph (1) if the alien
demonstrates that the delay was due to extraordinary
circumstances beyond the alien's control or for other good
cause.
(b) Status for Workers With Pending Applications.--
(1) In general.--Certified agricultural worker status of an
alien who timely files an application to extend such status
under subsection (a) (and the status of the alien's
dependents) shall be automatically extended through the date
on which the Secretary makes a final administrative decision
regarding such application.
(2) Documentation of employment authorization.--As soon as
practicable after receipt of an application to extend
certified agricultural worker status under subsection (a),
the Secretary shall issue a document to the alien
acknowledging the receipt of such application. An employer of
the worker may not refuse to accept such document as evidence
of employment authorization under section 274A(b)(1)(C) of
the Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C.
1324a(b)(1)(C)), pending a final administrative decision on
the application.
(c) Notice.--Prior to denying an application to extend
certified agricultural worker status, the Secretary shall
provide the alien with--
(1) written notice that describes the basis for
ineligibility or the deficiencies of the evidence submitted;
and
(2) at least 90 days to contest ineligibility or submit
additional evidence.
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SEC. 104. DETERMINATION OF CONTINUOUS PRESENCE.
(a) Effect of Notice to Appear.--The continuous presence in
the United States of an applicant for certified agricultural
worker status under section 101 shall not terminate when the
alien is served a notice to appear under section 239(a) of
the Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1229(a)).
(b) Treatment of Certain Breaks in Presence.--
(1) In general.--Except as provided in paragraphs (2) and
(3), an alien shall be considered to have failed to maintain
continuous presence in the United States under this subtitle
if the alien departed the United States for any period
exceeding 90 days, or for any periods, in the aggregate,
exceeding 180 days.
(2) Extensions for extenuating circumstances.--The
Secretary may extend the time periods described in paragraph
(1) for an alien who demonstrates that the failure to timely
return to the United States was due to extenuating
circumstances beyond the alien's control, including the
serious illness of the alien, or death or serious illness of
a spouse, parent, son or daughter, grandparent, or sibling of
the alien.
(3) Travel authorized by the secretary.--Any period of
travel outside of the United States by an alien that was
authorized by the Secretary shall not be counted toward any
period of departure from the United States under paragraph
(1).
SEC. 105. EMPLOYER OBLIGATIONS.
(a) Record of Employment.--An employer of an alien in
certified agricultural worker status shall provide such alien
with a written record of employment each year during which
the alien provides agricultural labor or services to such
employer as a certified agricultural worker.
(b) Civil Penalties.--
(1) In general.--If the Secretary determines, after notice
and an opportunity for a hearing, that an employer of an
alien with certified agricultural worker status has knowingly
failed to provide the record of employment required under
subsection (a), or has provided a false statement of material
fact in such a record, the employer shall be subject to a
civil penalty in an amount not to exceed $500 per violation.
(2) Limitation.--The penalty under paragraph (1) for
failure to provide employment records shall not apply unless
the alien has provided the employer with evidence of
employment authorization described in section 102 or 103.
(3) Deposit of civil penalties.--Civil penalties collected
under this paragraph shall be deposited into the Immigration
Examinations Fee Account under section 286(m) of the
Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1356(m)).
SEC. 106. ADMINISTRATIVE AND JUDICIAL REVIEW.
(a) Administrative Review.--The Secretary shall establish a
process by which an applicant may seek administrative review
of a denial of an application for certified agricultural
worker status under this subtitle, an application to extend
such status, or a revocation of such status.
(b) Admissibility in Immigration Court.--Each record of an
alien's application for certified agricultural worker status
under this subtitle, application to extend such status,
revocation of such status, and each record created pursuant
to the administrative review process under subsection (a) is
admissible in immigration court, and shall be included in the
administrative record.
(c) Judicial Review.--Notwithstanding any other provision
of law, judicial review of the Secretary's decision to deny
an application for certified agricultural worker status, an
application to extend such status, or the decision to revoke
such status, shall be limited to the review of an order of
removal under section 242 of the Immigration and Nationality
Act (8 U.S.C. 1252).
Subtitle B--Optional Earned Residence for Long-term Workers
SEC. 111. OPTIONAL ADJUSTMENT OF STATUS FOR LONG-TERM
AGRICULTURAL WORKERS.
(a) Requirements for Adjustment of Status.--
(1) Principal aliens.--The Secretary may adjust the status
of an alien from that of a certified agricultural worker to
that of a lawful permanent resident if the alien submits a
completed application, including the required processing and
penalty fees, and the Secretary determines that--
(A) except as provided in section 126(c), the alien
performed agricultural labor or services for not less than
575 hours (or 100 work days) each year--
(i) for at least 10 years prior to the date of the
enactment of this Act and for at least 4 years in certified
agricultural worker status; or
(ii) for fewer than 10 years prior to the date of the
enactment of this Act and for at least 8 years in certified
agricultural worker status; and
(B) the alien has not become ineligible for certified
agricultural worker status under section 101(b).
(2) Dependent aliens.--
(A) In general.--The spouse and each child of an alien
described in paragraph (1) whose status has been adjusted to
that of a lawful permanent resident may be granted lawful
permanent residence under this subtitle if--
(i) the qualifying relationship to the principal alien
existed on the date on which such alien was granted
adjustment of status under this subtitle; and
(ii) the spouse or child is not ineligible for certified
agricultural worker dependent status under section 101(b).
(B) Protections for spouses and children.--The Secretary of
Homeland Security shall establish procedures to allow the
spouse or child of a certified agricultural worker to self-
petition for lawful permanent residence under this subtitle
in cases involving--
(i) the death of the certified agricultural worker, so long
as the spouse or child submits a petition not later than 2
years after the date of the worker's death; or
(ii) the spouse or a child being battered or subjected to
extreme cruelty by the certified agricultural worker.
(3) Documentation of work history.--An applicant for
adjustment of status under this section shall not be required
to resubmit evidence of work history that has been previously
submitted to the Secretary in connection with an approved
extension of certified agricultural worker status.
(b) Penalty Fee.--In addition to any processing fee that
the Secretary may assess in accordance with section 122(b), a
principal alien seeking adjustment of status under this
subtitle shall pay a $1,000 penalty fee, which shall be
deposited into the Immigration Examinations Fee Account
pursuant to section 286(m) of the Immigration and Nationality
Act (8 U.S.C.1356(m)).
(c) Effect of Pending Application.--During the period
beginning on the date on which an alien applies for
adjustment of status under this subtitle, and ending on the
date on which the Secretary makes a final administrative
decision regarding such application, the alien and any
dependents included on the application--
(1) may apply for advance parole, which shall be granted
upon demonstrating a legitimate need to travel outside the
United States for a temporary purpose;
(2) may not be detained by the Secretary or removed from
the United States unless the Secretary makes a prima facie
determination that such alien is, or has become, ineligible
for adjustment of status under subsection (a);
(3) may not be considered unlawfully present under section
212(a)(9)(B) of the Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C.
1182(a)(9)(B)); and
(4) may not be considered an unauthorized alien (as defined
in section 274A(h)(3) of the Immigration and Nationality Act
(8 U.S.C. 1324a(h)(3))).
(d) Evidence of Application Filing.--As soon as practicable
after receiving an application for adjustment of status under
this subtitle, the Secretary shall provide the applicant with
a document acknowledging the receipt of such application.
Such document shall serve as interim proof of the alien's
authorization to accept employment in the United States and
shall be accepted by an employer as evidence of employment
authorization under section 274A(b)(1)(C) of the Immigration
and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1324a(b)(1)(C)), pending a
final administrative decision on the application.
(e) Withdrawal of Application.--The Secretary shall, upon
receipt of a request to withdraw an application for
adjustment of status under this subtitle, cease processing of
the application, and close the case. Withdrawal of the
application shall not prejudice any future application filed
by the applicant for any immigration benefit under this Act
or under the Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1101
et seq.).
SEC. 112. PAYMENT OF TAXES.
(a) In General.--An alien may not be granted adjustment of
status under this subtitle unless the applicant has satisfied
any applicable Federal tax liability.
(b) Compliance.--An alien may demonstrate compliance with
subsection (a) by submitting such documentation as the
Secretary, in consultation with the Secretary of the
Treasury, may require by regulation.
SEC. 113. ADJUDICATION AND DECISION; REVIEW.
(a) In General.--Subject to the requirements of section
123, the Secretary shall render a decision on an application
for adjustment of status under this subtitle not later than
180 days after the date on which the application is filed.
(b) Notice.--Prior to denying an application for adjustment
of status under this subtitle, the Secretary shall provide
the alien with--
(1) written notice that describes the basis for
ineligibility or the deficiencies of the evidence submitted;
and
(2) at least 90 days to contest ineligibility or submit
additional evidence.
(c) Administrative Review.--The Secretary shall establish a
process by which an applicant may seek administrative review
of a denial of an application for adjustment of status under
this subtitle.
(d) Judicial Review.--Notwithstanding any other provision
of law, an alien may seek judicial review of a denial of an
application for adjustment of status under this title in an
appropriate United States district court.
Subtitle C--General Provisions
SEC. 121. DEFINITIONS.
In this title:
(1) In general.--Except as otherwise provided, any term
used in this title that is used in the immigration laws shall
have the meaning given such term in the immigration laws (as
such term is defined in section 101 of the Immigration and
Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1101)).
(2) Agricultural labor or services.--The term
``agricultural labor or services'' means--
(A) agricultural labor or services as such term is used in
section 101(a)(15)(H)(ii) of the Immigration and Nationality
Act (8 U.S.C. 1101(a)(15)(H)(ii)), without regard to whether
the labor or services are of a seasonal or temporary nature;
and
(B) agricultural employment as such term is defined in
section 3 of the Migrant and Seasonal Agricultural Worker
Protection Act (29 U.S.C. 1802), without regard to whether
the specific service or activity is temporary or seasonal.
(3) Applicable federal tax liability.--The term
``applicable Federal tax liability'' means
[[Page H10048]]
all Federal income taxes assessed in accordance with section
6203 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 beginning on the
date on which the applicant was authorized to work in the
United States as a certified agricultural worker.
(4) Appropriate united states district court.--The term
``appropriate United States district court'' means the United
States District Court for the District of Columbia or the
United States district court with jurisdiction over the
alien's principal place of residence.
(5) Child.--The term ``child'' has the meaning given such
term in section 101(b)(1) of the Immigration and Nationality
Act (8 U.S.C. 1101(b)(1)).
(6) Convicted or conviction.--The term ``convicted'' or
``conviction'' does not include a judgment that has been
expunged or set aside, that resulted in a rehabilitative
disposition, or the equivalent.
(7) Employer.--The term ``employer'' means any person or
entity, including any labor contractor or any agricultural
association, that employs workers in agricultural labor or
services.
(8) Qualified designated entity.--The term ``qualified
designated entity'' means--
(A) a qualified farm labor organization or an association
of employers designated by the Secretary; or
(B) any other entity that the Secretary designates as
having substantial experience, demonstrated competence, and a
history of long-term involvement in the preparation and
submission of application for adjustment of status under
title II of the Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C.
1151 et seq.).
(9) Secretary.--The term ``Secretary'' means the Secretary
of Homeland Security.
(10) Work day.--The term ``work day'' means any day in
which the individual is employed 5.75 or more hours in
agricultural labor or services.
SEC. 122. RULEMAKING; FEES.
(a) Rulemaking.--Not later than 180 days after the date of
the enactment of this Act, the Secretary shall publish in the
Federal Register, an interim final rule implementing this
title. Notwithstanding section 553 of title 5, United States
Code, the rule shall be effective, on an interim basis,
immediately upon publication, but may be subject to change
and revision after public notice and opportunity for comment.
The Secretary shall finalize such rule not later than 1 year
after the date of the enactment of this Act.
(b) Fees.--
(1) In general.--The Secretary may require an alien
applying for any benefit under this title to pay a reasonable
fee that is commensurate with the cost of processing the
application.
(2) Fee waiver; installments.--
(A) In general.--The Secretary shall establish procedures
to allow an alien to--
(i) request a waiver of any fee that the Secretary may
assess under this title if the alien demonstrates to the
satisfaction of the Secretary that the alien is unable to pay
the prescribed fee; or
(ii) pay any fee or penalty that the Secretary may assess
under this title in installments.
(B) Clarification.--Nothing in this section shall be read
to prohibit an employer from paying any fee or penalty that
the Secretary may assess under this title on behalf of an
alien and the alien's spouse or children.
SEC. 123. BACKGROUND CHECKS.
(a) Submission of Biometric and Biographic Data.--The
Secretary may not grant or extend certified agricultural
worker or certified agricultural dependent status under
subtitle A, or grant adjustment of status to that of a lawful
permanent resident under subtitle B, unless the alien submits
biometric and biographic data, in accordance with procedures
established by the Secretary. The Secretary shall provide an
alternative procedure for aliens who cannot provide all
required biometric or biographic data because of a physical
impairment.
(b) Background Checks.--The Secretary shall use biometric,
biographic, and other data that the Secretary determines
appropriate to conduct security and law enforcement
background checks and to determine whether there is any
criminal, national security, or other factor that would
render the alien ineligible for status under this title. An
alien may not be granted any such status under this title
unless security and law enforcement background checks are
completed to the satisfaction of the Secretary.
SEC. 124. PROTECTION FOR CHILDREN.
(a) In General.--Except as provided in subsection (b), for
purposes of eligibility for certified agricultural dependent
status or lawful permanent resident status under this title,
a determination of whether an alien is a child shall be made
using the age of the alien on the date on which the initial
application for certified agricultural worker status is filed
with the Secretary of Homeland Security.
(b) Limitation.--Subsection (a) shall apply for no more
than 10 years after the date on which the initial application
for certified agricultural worker status is filed with the
Secretary of Homeland Security.
SEC. 125. LIMITATION ON REMOVAL.
(a) In General.--An alien who appears to be prima facie
eligible for status under this title shall be given a
reasonable opportunity to apply for such status. Such an
alien may not be placed in removal proceedings or removed
from the United States until a final administrative decision
establishing ineligibility for such status is rendered.
(b) Aliens in Removal Proceedings.--Notwithstanding any
other provision of the law, the Attorney General shall (upon
motion by the Secretary with the consent of the alien, or
motion by the alien) terminate removal proceedings, without
prejudice, against an alien who appears to be prima facie
eligible for status under this title, and provide such alien
a reasonable opportunity to apply for such status.
(c) Effect of Final Order.--An alien present in the United
States who has been ordered removed or has been permitted to
depart voluntarily from the United States may,
notwithstanding such order or permission to depart, apply for
status under this title. Such alien shall not be required to
file a separate motion to reopen, reconsider, or vacate the
order of removal. If the Secretary approves the application,
the Secretary shall notify the Attorney General of such
approval, and the Attorney General shall cancel the order of
removal. If the Secretary renders a final administrative
decision to deny the application, the order of removal or
permission to depart shall be effective and enforceable to
the same extent as if the application had not been made, only
after all available administrative and judicial remedies have
been exhausted.
(d) Effect of Departure.--Section 101(g) of the Immigration
and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1101(g)) shall not apply to an
alien who departs the United States--
(1) with advance permission to return to the United States
granted by the Secretary under this title; or
(2) after having been granted certified agricultural worker
status or lawful permanent resident status under this title.
SEC. 126. DOCUMENTATION OF AGRICULTURAL WORK HISTORY.
(a) Burden of Proof.--An alien applying for certified
agricultural worker status under subtitle A or adjustment of
status under subtitle B has the burden of proving by a
preponderance of the evidence that the alien has worked the
requisite number of hours or days required under section 101,
103, or 111, as applicable. The Secretary shall establish
special procedures to properly credit work in cases in which
an alien was employed under an assumed name.
(b) Evidence.--An alien may meet the burden of proof under
subsection (a) by producing sufficient evidence to show the
extent of such employment as a matter of just and reasonable
inference. Such evidence may include--
(1) an annual record of certified agricultural worker
employment as described in section 105(a), or other
employment records from employers;
(2) employment records maintained by collective bargaining
associations;
(3) tax records or other government records;
(4) sworn affidavits from individuals who have direct
knowledge of the alien's work history; or
(5) any other documentation designated by the Secretary for
such purpose.
(c) Exception for Extraordinary Circumstances.--
(1) In general.--In determining whether an alien has met
the requirement under section 103(a)(1)(A) or 111(a)(1)(A),
the Secretary may credit the alien with not more than 575
hours (or 100 work days) of agricultural labor or services in
the United States if the alien was unable to perform the
required agricultural labor or services due to--
(A) pregnancy, illness, disease, disabling injury, or
physical limitation of the alien;
(B) injury, illness, disease, or other special needs of the
alien's child or spouse;
(C) severe weather conditions that prevented the alien from
engaging in agricultural labor or services; or
(D) termination from agricultural employment, if the
Secretary determines that--
(i) the termination was without just cause; and
(ii) the alien was unable to find alternative agricultural
employment after a reasonable job search.
(2) Effect of determination.--A determination under
paragraph (1)(D) shall not be conclusive, binding, or
admissible in a separate or subsequent judicial or
administrative action or proceeding between the alien and a
current or prior employer of the alien or any other party.
SEC. 127. EMPLOYER PROTECTIONS.
(a) Continuing Employment.--An employer that continues to
employ an alien knowing that the alien intends to apply for
certified agricultural worker status under subtitle A shall
not violate section 274A(a)(2) of the Immigration and
Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1324a(a)(2)) by continuing to
employ the alien for the duration of the application period
under section 101(c), and with respect to an alien who
applies for certified agricultural status, for the duration
of the period during which the alien's application is pending
final determination.
(b) Use of Employment Records.--Copies of employment
records or other evidence of employment provided by an alien
or by an alien's employer in support of an alien's
application for certified agricultural worker or adjustment
of status under this title may not be used in a civil or
criminal prosecution or investigation of that employer under
section 274A of the Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C.
1324a) or the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 for the prior
unlawful employment of that alien regardless of the outcome
of such application.
(c) Additional Protections.--Employers that provide
unauthorized aliens with copies of employment records or
other evidence of employment in support of an application for
certified agricultural worker status or adjustment of status
under this title shall not be subject to civil and criminal
liability pursuant to such section 274A for employing such
unauthorized aliens. Records or other evidence of employment
provided by employers in response to a request for such
records for the purpose of establishing eligibility for
status under this title may not be used for any purpose other
than establishing such eligibility.
(d) Limitation on Protection.--The protections for
employers under this section shall not apply if the employer
provides employment
[[Page H10049]]
records to the alien that are determined to be fraudulent.
SEC. 128. CORRECTION OF SOCIAL SECURITY RECORDS; CONFORMING
AMENDMENTS.
(a) In General.--Section 208(e)(1) of the Social Security
Act (42 U.S.C. 408(e)(1)) is amended--
(1) in subparagraph (B)(ii), by striking ``or'' at the end;
(2) in subparagraph (C), by inserting ``or'' at the end;
(3) by inserting after subparagraph (C) the following:
``(D) who is granted certified agricultural worker status,
certified agricultural dependent status, or lawful permanent
resident status under title I of the Farm Work Modernization
Act of 2019,''; and
(4) in the undesignated matter following subparagraph (D),
as added by paragraph (3), by striking ``1990.'' and
inserting ``1990, or in the case of an alien described in
subparagraph (D), if such conduct is alleged to have occurred
before the date on which the alien was granted status under
title I of the Farm Work Modernization Act of 2019.''.
(b) Effective Date.--The amendments made by subsection (a)
shall take effect on the first day of the seventh month that
begins after the date of the enactment of this Act.
(c) Conforming Amendments.--
(1) Social security act.--Section 210(a)(1) of the Social
Security Act (42 U.S.C. 410(a)(1)) is amended by inserting
before the semicolon the following: ``(other than aliens
granted certified agricultural worker status or certified
agricultural dependent status under title I of the Farm Work
Modernization Act of 2019''.
(2) Internal revenue code of 1986.--Section 3121(b)(1) of
the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 is amended by inserting
before the semicolon the following: ``(other than aliens
granted certified agricultural worker status or certified
agricultural dependent status under title I of the Farm Work
Modernization Act of 2019''.
(3) Effective date.--The amendments made by this subsection
shall apply with respect to service performed after the date
of the enactment of this Act.
(d) Automated System to Assign Social Security Account
Numbers.--Section 205(c)(2)(B) of the Social Security Act (42
U.S.C. 405(c)(2)(B)) is amended by adding at the end the
following:
``(iv) The Commissioner of Social Security shall, to the
extent practicable, coordinate with the Secretary of the
Department of Homeland Security to implement an automated
system for the Commissioner to assign social security account
numbers to aliens granted certified agricultural worker
status or certified agricultural dependent status under title
I of the Farm Work Modernization Act of 2019. An alien who is
granted such status, and who was not previously assigned a
social security account number, shall request assignment of a
social security account number and a social security card
from the Commissioner through such system. The Secretary
shall collect and provide to the Commissioner such
information as the Commissioner deems necessary for the
Commissioner to assign a social security account number,
which information may be used by the Commissioner for any
purpose for which the Commissioner is otherwise authorized
under Federal law. The Commissioner may maintain, use, and
disclose such information only as permitted by the Privacy
Act and other Federal law.''.
SEC. 129. DISCLOSURES AND PRIVACY.
(a) In General.--The Secretary may not disclose or use
information provided in an application for certified
agricultural worker status or adjustment of status under this
title (including information provided during administrative
or judicial review) for the purpose of immigration
enforcement.
(b) Referrals Prohibited.--The Secretary, based solely on
information provided in an application for certified
agricultural worker status or adjustment of status under this
title (including information provided during administrative
or judicial review), may not refer an applicant to U.S.
Immigration and Customs Enforcement, U.S. Customs and Border
Protection, or any designee of either such entity.
(c) Exceptions.--Notwithstanding subsections (a) and (b),
information provided in an application for certified
agricultural worker status or adjustment of status under this
title may be shared with Federal security and law enforcement
agencies--
(1) for assistance in the consideration of an application
under this title;
(2) to identify or prevent fraudulent claims or schemes;
(3) for national security purposes; or
(4) for the investigation or prosecution of any felony not
related to immigration status.
(d) Penalty.--Any person who knowingly uses, publishes, or
permits information to be examined in violation of this
section shall be fined not more than $10,000.
(e) Privacy.--The Secretary shall ensure that appropriate
administrative and physical safeguards are in place to
protect the security, confidentiality, and integrity of
personally identifiable information collected, maintained,
and disseminated pursuant to this title.
SEC. 130. PENALTIES FOR FALSE STATEMENTS IN APPLICATIONS.
(a) Criminal Penalty.--Any person who--
(1) files an application for certified agricultural worker
status or adjustment of status under this title and knowingly
falsifies, conceals, or covers up a material fact or makes
any false, fictitious, or fraudulent statements or
representations, or makes or uses any false writing or
document knowing the same to contain any false, fictitious,
or fraudulent statement or entry; or
(2) creates or supplies a false writing or document for use
in making such an application,
shall be fined in accordance with title 18, United States
Code, imprisoned not more than 5 years, or both.
(b) Inadmissibility.--An alien who is convicted under
subsection (a) shall be deemed inadmissible to the United
States under section 212(a)(6)(C)(i) of the Immigration and
Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1182(a)(6)(C)(i)).
(c) Deposit.--Fines collected under subsection (a) shall be
deposited into the Immigration Examinations Fee Account
pursuant to section 286(m) of the Immigration and Nationality
Act (8 U.S.C. 1356(m)).
SEC. 131. DISSEMINATION OF INFORMATION.
(a) In General.--Beginning not later than the first day of
the application period described in section 101(c)--
(1) the Secretary of Homeland Security, in cooperation with
qualified designated entities, shall broadly disseminate
information described in subsection (b); and
(2) the Secretary of Agriculture, in consultation with the
Secretary of Homeland Security, shall disseminate to
agricultural employers a document containing the information
described in subsection (b) for posting at employer
worksites.
(b) Information Described.--The information described in
this subsection shall include--
(1) the benefits that aliens may receive under this title;
and
(2) the requirements that an alien must meet to receive
such benefits.
SEC. 132. EXEMPTION FROM NUMERICAL LIMITATIONS.
The numerical limitations under title II of the
Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1151 et seq.) shall
not apply to the adjustment of aliens to lawful permanent
resident status under this title, and such aliens shall not
be counted toward any such numerical limitation.
SEC. 133. REPORTS TO CONGRESS.
Not later than 180 days after the publication of the final
rule under section 122(a), and annually thereafter for the
following 10 years, the Secretary shall submit a report to
Congress that identifies, for the previous fiscal year--
(1) the number of principal aliens who applied for
certified agricultural worker status under subtitle A, and
the number of dependent spouses and children included in such
applications;
(2) the number of principal aliens who were granted
certified agricultural worker status under subtitle A, and
the number of dependent spouses and children who were granted
certified agricultural dependent status;
(3) the number of principal aliens who applied for an
extension of their certified agricultural worker status under
subtitle A, and the number of dependent spouses and children
included in such applications;
(4) the number of principal aliens who were granted an
extension of certified agricultural worker status under
subtitle A, and the number of dependent spouses and children
who were granted certified agricultural dependent status
under such an extension;
(5) the number of principal aliens who applied for
adjustment of status under subtitle B, and the number of
dependent spouses and children included in such applications;
(6) the number of principal aliens who were granted lawful
permanent resident status under subtitle B, and the number of
spouses and children who were granted such status as
dependents;
(7) the number of principal aliens included in petitions
described in section 101(e), and the number of dependent
spouses and children included in such applications; and
(8) the number of principal aliens who were granted H-2A
status pursuant to petitions described in section 101(e), and
the number of dependent spouses and children who were granted
H-4 status.
SEC. 134. GRANT PROGRAM TO ASSIST ELIGIBLE APPLICANTS.
(a) Establishment.--The Secretary shall establish a program
to award grants, on a competitive basis, to eligible
nonprofit organizations to assist eligible applicants under
this title by providing them with the services described in
subsection (c).
(b) Eligible Nonprofit Organization.--For purposes of this
section, the term ``eligible nonprofit organization'' means
an organization described in section 501(c)(3) of the
Internal Revenue Code of 1986 (excluding a recipient of funds
under title X of the Economic Opportunity Act of 1964 (42
U.S.C. 2996 et seq.)) that has demonstrated qualifications,
experience, and expertise in providing quality services to
farm workers or aliens.
(c) Use of Funds.--Grant funds awarded under this section
may be used for the design and implementation of programs
that provide--
(1) information to the public regarding the eligibility and
benefits of certified agricultural worker status authorized
under this title; and
(2) assistance, within the scope of authorized practice of
immigration law, to individuals submitting applications for
certified agricultural worker status or adjustment of status
under this title, including--
(A) screening prospective applicants to assess their
eligibility for such status;
(B) completing applications, including providing assistance
in obtaining necessary documents and supporting evidence; and
(C) providing any other assistance that the Secretary
determines useful to assist aliens in applying for certified
agricultural worker status or adjustment of status under this
title.
(d) Source of Funds.--In addition to any funds appropriated
to carry out this section, the Secretary may use up to
$10,000,000 from the Immigration Examinations Fee Account
under section 286(m) of the Immigration and Nationality Act
(8 U.S.C. 1356(m)) to carry out this section.
[[Page H10050]]
(e) Eligibility for Services.--Section 504(a)(11) of Public
Law 104-134 (110 Stat. 1321-53 et seq.) shall not be
construed to prevent a recipient of funds under title X of
the Economic Opportunity Act of 1964 (42 U.S.C. 2996 et seq.)
from providing legal assistance directly related to an
application for status under this title or to an alien
granted such status.
SEC. 135. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.
There is authorized to be appropriated to the Secretary,
such sums as may be necessary to implement this title,
including any amounts needed for costs associated with the
initiation of such implementation, for each of fiscal years
2020 through 2022.
TITLE II--ENSURING AN AGRICULTURAL WORKFORCE FOR THE FUTURE
Subtitle A--Reforming the H-2A Temporary Worker Program
SEC. 201. COMPREHENSIVE AND STREAMLINED ELECTRONIC H-2A
PLATFORM.
(a) Streamlined h-2a Platform.--
(1) In general.--Not later than 12 months after the date of
the enactment of this Act, the Secretary of Homeland
Security, in consultation with the Secretary of Labor, the
Secretary of Agriculture, the Secretary of State, and United
States Digital Service, shall ensure the establishment of an
electronic platform through which a petition for an H-2A
worker may be filed. Such platform shall--
(A) serve as a single point of access for an employer to
input all information and supporting documentation required
for obtaining labor certification from the Secretary of Labor
and the adjudication of the H-2A petition by the Secretary of
Homeland Security;
(B) serve as a single point of access for the Secretary of
Homeland Security, the Secretary of Labor, and State
workforce agencies to concurrently perform their respective
review and adjudicatory responsibilities in the H-2A process;
(C) facilitate communication between employers and agency
adjudicators, including by allowing employers to--
(i) receive and respond to notices of deficiency and
requests for information;
(ii) submit requests for inspections and licensing;
(iii) receive notices of approval and denial; and
(iv) request reconsideration or appeal of agency decisions;
and
(D) provide information to the Secretary of State and U.S.
Customs and Border Protection necessary for the efficient and
secure processing of H-2A visas and applications for
admission.
(2) Objectives.--In developing the platform described in
paragraph (1), the Secretary of Homeland Security, in
consultation with the Secretary of Labor, the Secretary of
Agriculture, the Secretary of State, and United States
Digital Service, shall streamline and improve the H-2A
process, including by--
(A) eliminating the need for employers to submit duplicate
information and documentation to multiple agencies;
(B) eliminating redundant processes, where a single matter
in a petition is adjudicated by more than one agency;
(C) reducing the occurrence of common petition errors, and
otherwise improving and expediting the processing of H-2A
petitions; and
(D) ensuring compliance with H-2A program requirements and
the protection of the wages and working conditions of
workers.
(b) Online Job Registry.--The Secretary of Labor shall
maintain a national, publicly-accessible online job registry
and database of all job orders submitted by H-2A employers.
The registry and database shall--
(1) be searchable using relevant criteria, including the
types of jobs needed to be filled, the date(s) and
location(s) of need, and the employer(s) named in the job
order;
(2) provide an interface for workers in English, Spanish,
and any other language that the Secretary of Labor determines
to be appropriate; and
(3) provide for public access of job orders approved under
section 218(h)(2) of the Immigration and Nationality Act.
SEC. 202. H-2A PROGRAM REQUIREMENTS.
Section 218 of the Immigration and Nationality Act (8
U.S.C. 1188) is amended to read as follows:
``SEC. 218. ADMISSION OF TEMPORARY H-2A WORKERS.
``(a) Labor Certification Conditions.--The Secretary of
Homeland Security may not approve a petition to admit an H-2A
worker unless the Secretary of Labor has certified that--
``(1) there are not sufficient United States workers who
are able, willing and qualified, and who will be available at
the time and place needed, to perform the agricultural labor
or services described in the petition; and
``(2) the employment of the H-2A worker in such labor or
services will not adversely affect the wages and working
conditions of workers in the United States who are similarly
employed.
``(b) H-2a Petition Requirements.--An employer filing a
petition for an H-2A worker to perform agricultural labor or
services shall attest to and demonstrate compliance, as and
when appropriate, with all applicable requirements under this
section, including the following:
``(1) Need for labor or services.--The employer has
described the need for agricultural labor or services in a
job order that includes a description of the nature and
location of the work to be performed, the anticipated period
or periods (expected start and end dates) for which the
workers will be needed, and the number of job opportunities
in which the employer seeks to employ the workers.
``(2) Nondisplacement of united states workers.--The
employer has not and will not displace United States workers
employed by the employer during the period of employment of
the H-2A worker and during the 60-day period immediately
preceding such period of employment in the job for which the
employer seeks approval to employ the H-2A worker.
``(3) Strike or lockout.--Each place of employment
described in the petition is not, at the time of filing the
petition and until the petition is approved, subject to a
strike or lockout in the course of a labor dispute.
``(4) Recruitment of united states workers.--The employer
shall engage in the recruitment of United States workers as
described in subsection (c) and shall hire such workers who
are able, willing and qualified, and who will be available at
the time and place needed, to perform the agricultural labor
or services described in the petition. The employer may
reject a United States worker only for lawful, job-related
reasons.
``(5) Wages, benefits, and working conditions.--The
employer shall offer and provide, at a minimum, the wages,
benefits, and working conditions required by this section to
the H-2A worker and all workers who are similarly employed.
The employer--
``(A) shall offer such similarly employed workers not less
than the same benefits, wages, and working conditions that
the employer is offering or will provide to the H-2A worker;
and
``(B) may not impose on such similarly employed workers any
restrictions or obligations that will not be imposed on the
H-2A worker.
``(6) Workers' compensation.--If the job opportunity is not
covered by or is exempt from the State workers' compensation
law, the employer shall provide, at no cost to the worker,
insurance covering injury and disease arising out of, and in
the course of, the worker's employment which will provide
benefits at least equal to those provided under the State
workers' compensation law.
``(7) Compliance with labor and employment laws.--The
employer shall comply with all applicable Federal, State and
local employment-related laws and regulations.
``(8) Compliance with foreign labor recruitment laws.--The
employer shall comply with subtitle C of title II of the Farm
Workforce Modernization Act of 2019.
``(c) Recruiting Requirements.--
``(1) In general.--The employer may satisfy the recruitment
requirement described in subsection (b)(4) by satisfying all
of the following:
``(A) Job order.--As provided in subsection (h)(1), the
employer shall complete a job order for posting on the
electronic job registry maintained by the Secretary of Labor
and for distribution by the appropriate State workforce
agency. Such posting shall remain on the job registry as an
active job order through the period described in paragraph
(2)(B).
``(B) Former workers.--At least 45 days before each start
date identified in the petition, the employer shall--
``(i) make reasonable efforts to contact any United States
worker the employer employed in the previous year in the same
occupation and area of intended employment for which an H-2A
worker is sought (excluding workers who were terminated for
cause or abandoned the worksite); and
``(ii) post such job opportunity in a conspicuous location
or locations at the place of employment.
``(C) Positive recruitment.--During the period of
recruitment, the employer shall complete any other positive
recruitment steps within a multi-State region of traditional
or expected labor supply where the Secretary of Labor finds
that there are a significant number of qualified United
States workers who, if recruited, would be willing to make
themselves available for work at the time and place needed.
``(2) Period of recruitment.--
``(A) In general.--For purposes of this subsection, the
period of recruitment begins on the date on which the job
order is posted on the online job registry and ends on the
date that H-2A workers depart for the employer's place of
employment. For a petition involving more than 1 start date
under subsection (h)(1)(C), the end of the period of
recruitment shall be determined by the date of departure of
the H-2A workers for the final start date identified in the
petition.
``(B) Requirement to hire us workers.--
``(i) In general.--Notwithstanding the limitations of
subparagraph (A), the employer will provide employment to any
qualified United States worker who applies to the employer
for any job opportunity included in the petition until the
later of--
``(I) the date that is 30 days after the date on which work
begins; or
``(II) the date on which--
``(aa) 33 percent of the work contract for the job
opportunity has elapsed; or
``(bb) if the employer is a labor contractor, 50 percent of
the work contract for the job opportunity has elapsed.
``(ii) Staggered entry.--For a petition involving more than
1 start date under subsection (h)(1)(C), each start date
designated in the petition shall establish a separate job
opportunity. An employer may not reject a United States
worker because the worker is unable or unwilling to fill more
than 1 job opportunity included in the petition.
``(iii) Exception.--Notwithstanding clause (i), the
employer may offer a job opportunity to an H-2A worker
instead of an alien granted certified agricultural worker
status under title I of the Farm Workforce Modernization Act
of 2019 if the H-2A worker was employed by the employer in
each of 3 years during the most recent 4-year period.
``(3) Recruitment report.--
``(A) In general.--The employer shall maintain a
recruitment report through the applicable period described in
paragraph (2)(B) and submit regular updates through the
electronic platform on the results of recruitment. The
employer
[[Page H10051]]
shall retain the recruitment report, and all associated
recruitment documentation, for a period of 3 years from the
date of certification.
``(B) Burden of proof.--If the employer asserts that any
eligible individual who has applied or been referred is not
able, willing or qualified, the employer bears the burden of
proof to establish that the individual is not able, willing
or qualified because of a lawful, employment-related reason.
``(d) Wage Requirements.--
``(1) In general.--Each employer under this section will
offer the worker, during the period of authorized employment,
wages that are at least the greatest of--
``(A) the agreed-upon collective bargaining wage;
``(B) the adverse effect wage rate (or any successor wage
established under paragraph (7));
``(C) the prevailing wage (hourly wage or piece rate); or
``(D) the Federal or State minimum wage.
``(2) Adverse effect wage rate determinations.--
``(A) In general.--Except as provided under subparagraph
(B), the applicable adverse effect wage rate for each State
and occupational classification for a calendar year shall be
as follows:
``(i) The annual average hourly wage for the occupational
classification in the State or region as reported by the
Secretary of Agriculture based on a wage survey conducted by
such Secretary.
``(ii) If a wage described in clause (i) is not reported,
the national annual average hourly wage for the occupational
classification as reported by the Secretary of Agriculture
based on a wage survey conducted by such Secretary.
``(iii) If a wage described in clause (i) or (ii) is not
reported, the Statewide annual average hourly wage for the
standard occupational classification as reported by the
Secretary of Labor based on a wage survey conducted by such
Secretary.
``(iv) If a wage described in clause (i), (ii), or (iii) is
not reported, the national average hourly wage for the
occupational classification as reported by the Secretary of
Labor based on a wage survey conducted by such Secretary.
``(B) Limitations on wage fluctuations.--
``(i) Wage freeze for calendar year 2020.--For calendar
year 2020, the adverse effect wage rate for each State and
occupational classification under this subsection shall be
the adverse effect wage rate that was in effect for H-2A
workers in the applicable State in calendar year 2019.
``(ii) Calendar years 2021 through 2029.--For each of
calendar years 2021 through 2029, the adverse effect wage
rate for each State and occupational classification under
this subsection shall be the wage calculated under
subparagraph (A), except that such wage may not--
``(I) be more than 1.5 percent lower than the wage in
effect for H-2A workers in the applicable State and
occupational classification in the immediately preceding
calendar year;
``(II) except as provided in clause (III), be more than
3.25 percent higher than the wage in effect for H-2A workers
in the applicable State and occupational classification in
the immediately preceding calendar year; and
``(III) if the application of clause (II) results in a wage
that is lower than 110 percent of the applicable Federal or
State minimum wage, be more than 4.25 percent higher than the
wage in effect for H-2A workers in the applicable State and
occupational classification in the immediately preceding
calendar year.
``(iii) Calendar years after 2029.--For any calendar year
after 2029, the applicable wage rate described in paragraph
(1)(B) shall be the wage rate established pursuant to
paragraph (7)(D). Until such wage rate is effective, the
adverse effect wage rate for each State and occupational
classification under this subsection shall be the wage
calculated under subparagraph (A), except that such wage may
not be more than 1.5 percent lower or 3.25 percent higher
than the wage in effect for H-2A workers in the applicable
State and occupational classification in the immediately
preceding calendar year.
``(3) Multiple occupations.--If the primary job duties for
the job opportunity described in the petition do not fall
within a single occupational classification, the applicable
wage rates under subparagraphs (B) and (C) of paragraph (1)
for the job opportunity shall be based on the highest such
wage rates for all applicable occupational classifications.
``(4) Publication; wages in effect.--
``(A) Publication.--Prior to the start of each calendar
year, the Secretary of Labor shall publish the applicable
adverse effect wage rate (or successor wage rate, if any),
and prevailing wage if available, for each State and
occupational classification through notice in the Federal
Register.
``(B) Job orders in effect.--Except as provided in
subparagraph (C), publication by the Secretary of Labor of an
updated adverse effect wage rate or prevailing wage for a
State and occupational classification shall not affect the
wage rate guaranteed in any approved job order for which
recruitment efforts have commenced at the time of
publication.
``(C) Exception for year-round jobs.--If the Secretary of
Labor publishes an updated adverse effect wage rate or
prevailing wage for a State and occupational classification
concerning a petition described in subsection (i), and the
updated wage is higher than the wage rate guaranteed in the
work contract, the employer shall pay the updated wage not
later than 14 days after publication of the updated wage in
the Federal Register.
``(5) Workers paid on a piece rate or other incentive
basis.--If an employer pays by the piece rate or other
incentive method and requires 1 or more minimum productivity
standards as a condition of job retention, such standards
shall be specified in the job order and shall be no more than
those normally required (at the time of the first petition
for H-2A workers) by other employers for the activity in the
area of intended employment, unless the Secretary of Labor
approves a higher minimum standard resulting from material
changes in production methods.
``(6) Guarantee of employment.--
``(A) Offer to worker.--The employer shall guarantee the
worker employment for the hourly equivalent of at least
three-fourths of the work days of the total period of
employment, beginning with the first work day after the
arrival of the worker at the place of employment and ending
on the date specified in the job offer. For purposes of this
subparagraph, the hourly equivalent means the number of hours
in the work days as stated in the job offer and shall exclude
the worker's Sabbath and Federal holidays. If the employer
affords the worker less employment than that required under
this paragraph, the employer shall pay the worker the amount
which the worker would have earned had the worker, in fact,
worked for the guaranteed number of hours.
``(B) Failure to work.--Any hours which the worker fails to
work, up to a maximum of the number of hours specified in the
job offer for a work day, when the worker has been offered an
opportunity to do so, and all hours of work actually
performed (including voluntary work in excess of the number
of hours specified in the job offer in a work day, on the
worker's Sabbath, or on Federal holidays) may be counted by
the employer in calculating whether the period of guaranteed
employment has been met.
``(C) Abandonment of employment; termination for cause.--If
the worker voluntarily abandons employment without good cause
before the end of the contract period, or is terminated for
cause, the worker is not entitled to the guarantee of
employment described in subparagraph (A).
``(D) Contract impossibility.--If, before the expiration of
the period of employment specified in the job offer, the
services of the worker are no longer required for reasons
beyond the control of the employer due to any form of natural
disaster before the guarantee in subparagraph (A) is
fulfilled, the employer may terminate the worker's
employment. In the event of such termination, the employer
shall fulfill the employment guarantee in subparagraph (A)
for the work days that have elapsed from the first work day
after the arrival of the worker to the termination of
employment. The employer shall make efforts to transfer a
worker to other comparable employment acceptable to the
worker. If such transfer is not effected, the employer shall
provide the return transportation required in subsection
(f)(2).
``(7) Wage standards after 2029.--
``(A) Study of adverse effect wage rate.--Beginning in
fiscal year 2026, the Secretary of Agriculture and Secretary
of Labor shall jointly conduct a study that addresses--
``(i) whether the employment of H-2A workers has depressed
the wages of United States farm workers;
``(ii) whether an adverse effect wage rate is necessary to
protect the wages of United States farm workers in
occupations in which H-2A workers are employed;
``(iii) whether alternative wage standards would be
sufficient to prevent wages in occupations in which H-2A
workers are employed from falling below the wage level that
would have prevailed in the absence of H-2A employment;
``(iv) whether any changes are warranted in the current
methodologies for calculating the adverse effect wage rate
and the prevailing wage rate; and
``(v) recommendations for future wage protection under this
section.
``(B) Final report.--Not later than October 1, 2027, the
Secretary of Agriculture and Secretary of Labor shall jointly
prepare and submit a report to the Congress setting forth the
findings of the study conducted under subparagraph (A) and
recommendations for future wage protections under this
section.
``(C) Consultation.--In conducting the study under
subparagraph (A) and preparing the report under subparagraph
(B), the Secretary of Agriculture and Secretary of Labor
shall consult with representatives of agricultural employers
and an equal number of representatives of agricultural
workers, at the national, State and local level.
``(D) Wage determination after 2029.--Upon publication of
the report described in subparagraph (B), the Secretary of
Labor, in consultation with and the approval of the Secretary
of Agriculture, shall make a rule to establish a process for
annually determining the wage rate for purposes of paragraph
(1)(B) for fiscal years after 2029. Such process shall be
designed to ensure that the employment of H-2A workers does
not undermine the wages and working conditions of similarly
employed United States workers.
``(e) Housing Requirements.--Employers shall furnish
housing in accordance with regulations established by the
Secretary of Labor. Such regulations shall be consistent with
the following:
``(1) In general.--The employer shall be permitted at the
employer's option to provide housing meeting applicable
Federal standards for temporary labor camps or to secure
housing which meets the local standards for rental and/or
public accommodations or other substantially similar class of
habitation: Provided, That in the absence of applicable local
standards, State standards for rental and/or public
accommodations or other substantially similar class of
habitation shall be met: Provided further, That in the
absence of applicable local or State standards, Federal
temporary labor camp standards shall apply.
``(2) Family housing.--Except as otherwise provided in
subsection (i)(5), the employer shall
[[Page H10052]]
provide family housing to workers with families who request
it when it is the prevailing practice in the area and
occupation of intended employment to provide family housing.
``(3) United states workers.--Notwithstanding paragraphs
(1) and (2), an employer is not required to provide housing
to United States workers who are reasonably able to return to
their residence within the same day.
``(4) Timing of inspection.--
``(A) In general.--The Secretary of Labor or designee shall
make a determination as to whether the housing furnished by
an employer for a worker meets the requirements imposed by
this subsection prior to the date on which the Secretary of
Labor is required to make a certification with respect to a
petition for the admission of such worker.
``(B) Timely inspection.--The Secretary of Labor shall
provide a process for--
``(i) an employer to request inspection of housing up to 60
days before the date on which the employer will file a
petition under this section; and
``(ii) annual inspection of housing for workers who are
engaged in agricultural employment that is not of a seasonal
or temporary nature.
``(f) Transportation Requirements.--
``(1) Travel to place of employment.--A worker who
completes 50 percent of the period of employment specified in
the job order shall be reimbursed by the employer for the
cost of the worker's transportation and subsistence from the
place from which the worker came to work for the employer (or
place of last employment, if the worker traveled from such
place) to the place of employment.
``(2) Travel from place of employment.--For a worker who
completes the period of employment specified in the job order
or who is terminated without cause, the employer shall
provide or pay for the worker's transportation and
subsistence from the place of employment to the place from
which the worker, disregarding intervening employment, came
to work for the employer, or to the place of next employment,
if the worker has contracted with a subsequent employer who
has not agreed to provide or pay for the worker's
transportation and subsistence to such subsequent employer's
place of employment.
``(3) Limitation.--
``(A) Amount of reimbursement.--Except as provided in
subparagraph (B), the amount of reimbursement provided under
paragraph (1) or (2) to a worker need not exceed the lesser
of--
``(i) the actual cost to the worker of the transportation
and subsistence involved; or
``(ii) the most economical and reasonable common carrier
transportation charges and subsistence costs for the distance
involved.
``(B) Distance traveled.--For travel to or from the
worker's home country, if the travel distance between the
worker's home and the relevant consulate is 50 miles or less,
reimbursement for transportation and subsistence may be based
on transportation to or from the consulate.
``(g) Heat Illness Prevention Plan.--
``(1) In general.--The employer shall maintain a reasonable
plan that describes the employer's procedures for the
prevention of heat illness, including appropriate training,
access to water and shade, the provision of breaks, and the
protocols for emergency response. Such plan shall--
``(A) be in writing in English and, to the extent
necessary, any language common to a significant portion of
the workers if they are not fluent in English; and
``(B) be posted at a conspicuous location at the worksite
and provided to employees prior to the commencement of labor
or services.
``(2) Clarification.--Nothing in this subsection is
intended to limit any other Federal or State authority to
promulgate, enforce, or maintain health and safety standards
related to heat-related illness.
``(h) H-2a Petition Procedures.--
``(1) Submission of petition and job order.--
``(A) In general.--The employer shall submit information
required for the adjudication of the H-2A petition, including
a job order, through the electronic platform no more than 75
calendar days and no fewer than 60 calendar days before the
employer's first date of need specified in the petition.
``(B) Filing by agricultural associations.--An association
of agricultural producers that use agricultural services may
file an H-2A petition under subparagraph (A). If an
association is a joint or sole employer of workers who
perform agricultural labor or services, H-2A workers may be
used for the approved job opportunities of any of the
association's producer members and such workers may be
transferred among its producer members to perform the
agricultural labor or services for which the petition was
approved.
``(C) Petitions involving staggered entry.--
``(i) In general.--Except as provided in clause (ii), an
employer may file a petition involving employment in the same
occupational classification and same area of intended
employment with multiple start dates if--
``(I) the petition involves temporary or seasonal
employment and no more than 10 start dates;
``(II) the multiple start dates share a common end date;
``(III) no more than 120 days separate the first start date
and the final start date listed in the petition; and
``(IV) the need for multiple start dates arises from
variations in labor needs associated with the job opportunity
identified in the petition.
``(ii) Labor contractors.--A labor contractor may not file
a petition described in clause (i) unless the labor
contractor--
``(I) is filing as a joint employer with its contractees,
or is operating in a State in which joint employment and
liability between the labor contractor and its contractees is
otherwise established; or
``(II) has posted and is maintaining a premium surety bond
as described in subsection (l)(1).
``(2) Labor certification.--
``(A) Review of job order.--
``(i) In general.--The Secretary of Labor, in consultation
with the relevant State workforce agency, shall review the
job order for compliance with this section and notify the
employer through the electronic platform of any deficiencies
not later than 7 business days from the date the employer
submits the necessary information required under paragraph
(1)(A). The employer shall be provided 5 business days to
respond to any such notice of deficiency.
``(ii) Standard.--The job order must include all material
terms and conditions of employment, including the
requirements of this section, and must be otherwise
consistent with the minimum standards provided under Federal,
State or local law. In considering the question of whether a
specific qualification is appropriate in a job order, the
Secretary of Labor shall apply the normal and accepted
qualification required by non-H-2A employers in the same or
comparable occupations and crops.
``(iii) Emergency procedures.--The Secretary of Labor shall
establish emergency procedures for the curing of deficiencies
that cannot be resolved during the period described in clause
(i).
``(B) Approval of job order.--
``(i) In general.--Upon approval of the job order, the
Secretary of Labor shall immediately place for public
examination a copy of the job order on the online job
registry, and the State workforce agency serving the area of
intended employment shall commence the recruitment of United
States workers.
``(ii) Referral of united states workers.--The Secretary of
Labor and State workforce agency shall keep the job order
active until the end of the period described in subsection
(c)(2) and shall refer to the employer each United States
worker who applies for the job opportunity.
``(C) Review of information for deficiencies.--Within 7
business days of the approval of the job order, the Secretary
of Labor shall review the information necessary to make a
labor certification and notify the employer through the
electronic platform if such information does not meet the
standards for approval. Such notification shall include a
description of any deficiency, and the employer shall be
provided 5 business days to cure such deficiency.
``(D) Certification and authorization of workers.--Not
later than 30 days before the date that labor or services are
first required to be performed, the Secretary of Labor shall
issue the requested labor certification if the Secretary
determines that the requirements set forth in this section
have been met.
``(E) Expedited administrative appeals of certain
determinations.--The Secretary of Labor shall by regulation
establish a procedure for an employer to request the
expedited review of a denial of a labor certification under
this section, or the revocation of such a certification. Such
procedure shall require the Secretary to expeditiously, but
no later than 72 hours after expedited review is requested,
issue a de novo determination on a labor certification that
was denied in whole or in part because of the availability of
able, willing and qualified workers if the employer
demonstrates, consistent with subsection (c)(3)(B), that such
workers are not actually available at the time or place such
labor or services are required.
``(3) Petition decision.--
``(A) In general.--Not later than 7 business days after the
Secretary of Labor issues the certification, the Secretary of
Homeland Security shall issue a decision on the petition and
shall transmit a notice of action to the petitioner via the
electronic platform.
``(B) Approval.--Upon approval of a petition under this
section, the Secretary of Homeland Security shall ensure that
such approval is noted in the electronic platform and is
available to the Secretary of State and U.S. Customs and
Border Protection, as necessary, to facilitate visa issuance
and admission.
``(C) Partial approval.--A petition for multiple named
beneficiaries may be partially approved with respect to
eligible beneficiaries notwithstanding the ineligibility, or
potential ineligibility, of one or more other beneficiaries.
``(D) Post-certification amendments.--The Secretary of
Labor shall provide a process for amending a request for
labor certification in conjunction with an H-2A petition,
subsequent to certification by the Secretary of Labor, in
cases in which the requested amendment does not materially
change the petition (including the job order).
``(4) Roles of agricultural associations.--
``(A) Member's violation does not necessarily disqualify
association or other members.--If an individual producer
member of a joint employer association is determined to have
committed an act that results in the denial of a petition
with respect to the member, the denial shall apply only to
that member of the association unless the Secretary of Labor
determines that the association or other member participated
in, had knowledge of, or reason to know of, the violation.
``(B) Association's violation does not necessarily
disqualify members.--
``(i) If an association representing agricultural producers
as a joint employer is determined to have committed an act
that results in the denial of a petition with respect to the
association, the denial shall apply only to the association
and does not apply to any individual producer member of the
association unless the Secretary of Labor determines that the
member participated in, had knowledge of, or reason to know
of, the violation.
[[Page H10053]]
``(ii) If an association of agricultural producers
certified as a sole employer is determined to have committed
an act that results in the denial of a petition with respect
to the association, no individual producer member of such
association may be the beneficiary of the services of H-2A
workers in the commodity and occupation in which such aliens
were employed by the association which was denied during the
period such denial is in force, unless such producer member
employs such aliens in the commodity and occupation in
question directly or through an association which is a joint
employer of such workers with the producer member.
``(5) Special procedures.--The Secretary of Labor, in
consultation with the Secretary of Agriculture and Secretary
of Homeland Security, may by regulation establish alternate
procedures that reasonably modify program requirements under
this section, when the Secretary determines that such
modifications are required due to the unique nature of the
work involved.
``(6) Construction occupations.--An employer may not file a
petition under this section on behalf of a worker if the
majority of the worker's duties will fall within a
construction or extraction occupational classification.
``(i) Non-temporary or -seasonal Needs.--
``(1) In general.--Notwithstanding the requirement in
section 101(a)(15)(H)(ii)(a) that the agricultural labor or
services performed by an H-2A worker be of a temporary or
seasonal nature, the Secretary of Homeland Security may,
consistent with the provisions of this subsection, approve a
petition for an H-2A worker to perform agricultural services
or labor that is not of a temporary or seasonal nature.
``(2) Numerical limitations.--
``(A) First 3 fiscal years.--The total number of aliens who
may be issued visas or otherwise provided H-2A nonimmigrant
status under paragraph (1) for the first fiscal year during
which the first visa is issued under such paragraph and for
each of the following two fiscal years may not exceed 20,000.
``(B) Fiscal years 4 through 10.--
``(i) In general.--The total number of aliens who may be
issued visas or otherwise provided H-2A nonimmigrant status
under paragraph (1) for the first fiscal year following the
fiscal years referred to in subparagraph (A) and for each of
the following six fiscal years may not exceed a numerical
limitation jointly imposed by the Secretary of Agriculture
and Secretary of Labor in accordance with clause (ii).
``(ii) Annual adjustments.--For each fiscal year referred
to in clause (i), the Secretary of Agriculture and Secretary
of Labor, in consultation with the Secretary of Homeland
Security, shall establish a numerical limitation for purposes
of clause (i). Such numerical limitation may not be lower
20,000 and may not vary by more than 12.5 percent compared to
the numerical limitation applicable to the immediately
preceding fiscal year. In establishing such numerical
limitation, the Secretaries shall consider appropriate
factors, including--
``(I) a demonstrated shortage of agricultural workers;
``(II) the level of unemployment and underemployment of
agricultural workers during the preceding fiscal year;
``(III) the number of H-2A workers sought by employers
during the preceding fiscal year to engage in agricultural
labor or services not of a temporary or seasonal nature;
``(IV) the number of such H-2A workers issued a visa in the
most recent fiscal year who remain in the United States in
compliance with the terms of such visa;
``(V) the estimated number of United States workers,
including workers who obtained certified agricultural worker
status under title I of the Farm Workforce Modernization Act
of 2019, who worked during the preceding fiscal year in
agricultural labor or services not of a temporary or seasonal
nature;
``(VI) the number of such United States workers who
accepted jobs offered by employers using the online job
registry during the preceding fiscal year;
``(VII) any growth or contraction of the United States
agricultural industry that has increased or decreased the
demand for agricultural workers; and
``(VIII) any changes in the real wages paid to agricultural
workers in the United States as an indication of a shortage
or surplus of agricultural labor.
``(C) Subsequent fiscal years.--For each fiscal year
following the fiscal years referred to in subparagraph (B),
the Secretary of Agriculture and Secretary of Labor shall
jointly determine, in consultation with the Secretary of
Homeland Security, and after considering appropriate factors,
including those factors listed in subclauses (I) through
(VIII) of subparagraph (B)(ii), whether to establish a
numerical limitation for that fiscal year. If a numerical
limitation is so established--
``(i) such numerical limitation may not be lower than
highest number of aliens admitted under this subsection in
any of the three fiscal years immediately preceding the
fiscal year for which the numerical limitation is to be
established; and
``(ii) the total number of aliens who may be issued visas
or otherwise provided H-2A nonimmigrant status under
paragraph (1) for that fiscal year may not exceed such
numerical limitation.
``(D) Emergency procedures.--The Secretary of Agriculture
and Secretary of Labor, in consultation with the Secretary of
Homeland Security, shall jointly establish by regulation
procedures for immediately adjusting a numerical limitation
imposed under subparagraph (B) or (C) to account for
significant labor shortages.
``(3) Allocation of visas.--
``(A) Bi-annual allocation.--The annual allocation of visas
described in paragraph (2) shall be evenly allocated between
two halves of the fiscal year unless the Secretary of
Homeland Security, in consultation with the Secretary of
Agriculture and Secretary of Labor, determines that an
alternative allocation would better accommodate demand for
visas. Any unused visas in the first half of the fiscal year
shall be added to the allocation for the subsequent half of
the same fiscal year.
``(B) Reserve for dairy labor or services.--
``(i) In general.--Of the visa numbers made available in
each half of the fiscal year pursuant to subparagraph (A), 50
percent of such visas shall be reserved for employers filing
petitions seeking H-2A workers to engage in agricultural
labor or services in the dairy industry.
``(ii) Exception.--If, after four months have elapsed in
one half of the fiscal year, the Secretary of Homeland
Security determines that application of clause (i) will
result in visas going unused during that half of the fiscal
year, clause (i) shall not apply to visas under this
paragraph during the remainder of such calendar half.
``(C) Limited allocation for certain special procedures
industries.--
``(i) In general.--Notwithstanding the numerical
limitations under paragraph (2), up to 500 aliens may be
issued visas or otherwise provided H-2A nonimmigrant status
under paragraph (1) in a fiscal year for range sheep or goat
herding.
``(ii) Limitation.--The total number of aliens in the
United States in valid H-2A status under clause (i) at any
one time may not exceed 500.
``(iii) Clarification.--Any visas issued under this
subparagraph may not be considered for purposes of the annual
adjustments under subparagraphs (B) and (C) of paragraph (2).
``(4) Annual round trip home.--
``(A) In general.--In addition to the other requirements of
this section, an employer shall provide H-2A workers employed
under this subsection, at no cost to such workers, with
annual round trip travel, including transportation and
subsistence during travel, to their homes in their
communities of origin. The employer must provide such travel
within 14 months of the initiation of the worker's
employment, and no more than 14 months can elapse between
each required period of travel.
``(B) Limitation.--The cost of travel under subparagraph
(A) need not exceed the lesser of--
``(i) the actual cost to the worker of the transportation
and subsistence involved; or
``(ii) the most economical and reasonable common carrier
transportation charges and subsistence costs for the distance
involved.
``(5) Family housing.--An employer seeking to employ an H-
2A worker pursuant to this subsection shall offer family
housing to workers with families if such workers are engaged
in agricultural employment that is not of a seasonal or
temporary nature. The worker may reject such an offer. The
employer may not charge the worker for the worker's housing,
except that if the worker accepts family housing, a prorated
rent based on the fair market value for such housing may be
charged for the worker's family members.
``(6) Workplace safety plan for dairy employees.--
``(A) In general.--If an employer is seeking to employ a
worker in agricultural labor or services in the dairy
industry pursuant to this subsection, the employer must
report incidents consistent with the requirements under
section 1904.39 of title 29, Code of Federal Regulations, and
maintain an effective worksite safety and compliance plan to
prevent workplace accidents and otherwise ensure safety. Such
plan shall--
``(i) be in writing in English and, to the extent
necessary, any language common to a significant portion of
the workers if they are not fluent in English; and
``(ii) be posted at a conspicuous location at the worksite
and provided to employees prior to the commencement of labor
or services.
``(B) Contents of plan.--The Secretary of Labor, in
consultation with the Secretary of Agriculture, shall
establish by regulation the minimum requirements for the plan
described in subparagraph (A). Such plan shall include
measures to--
``(i) require workers (other than the employer's family
members) whose positions require contact with animals to
complete animal care training, including animal handling and
job-specific animal care;
``(ii) protect against sexual harassment and violence,
resolve complaints involving harassment or violence, and
protect against retaliation against workers reporting
harassment or violence; and
``(iii) contain other provisions necessary for ensuring
workplace safety, as determined by the Secretary of Labor, in
consultation with the Secretary of Agriculture.
``(C) Clarification.--Nothing in this paragraph is intended
to apply to persons or entities that are not seeking to
employ workers under this section. Nothing in this paragraph
is intended to limit any other Federal or State authority to
promulgate, enforce, or maintain health and safety standards
related to the dairy industry.
``(j) Eligibility for h-2a Status and Admission to the
United States.--
``(1) Disqualification.--An alien shall be ineligible for
admission to the United States as an H-2A worker pursuant to
a petition filed under this section if the alien was admitted
to the United States as an H-2A worker within the past 5
years of the date the petition was filed and--
``(A) violated a material provision of this section,
including the requirement to promptly depart the United
States when the alien's authorized period of admission has
expired, unless the alien has good cause for such failure to
depart; or
[[Page H10054]]
``(B) otherwise violated a term or condition of admission
into the United States as an H-2A worker.
``(2) Visa validity.--A visa issued to an H-2A worker shall
be valid for three years and shall allow for multiple entries
during the approved period of admission.
``(3) Period of authorized stay; admission.--
``(A) In general.--An alien admissible as an H-2A worker
shall be authorized to stay in the United States for the
period of employment specified in the petition approved by
the Secretary of Homeland Security under this section. The
maximum continuous period of authorized stay for an H-2A
worker is 36 months.
``(B) Requirement to remain outside the united states.--In
the case of an H-2A worker whose maximum continuous period of
authorized stay (including any extensions) has expired, the
alien may not again be eligible for such stay until the alien
remains outside the United States for a cumulative period of
at least 45 days.
``(C) Exceptions.--The Secretary of Homeland Security shall
deduct absences from the United States that take place during
an H-2A worker's period of authorized stay from the period
that the alien is required to remain outside the United
States under subparagraph (B), if the alien or the alien's
employer requests such a deduction, and provides clear and
convincing proof that the alien qualifies for such a
deduction. Such proof shall consist of evidence including,
but not limited to, arrival and departure records, copies of
tax returns, and records of employment abroad.
``(D) Admission.--In addition to the maximum continuous
period of authorized stay, an H-2A worker's authorized period
of admission shall include an additional period of 10 days
prior to the beginning of the period of employment for the
purpose of traveling to the place of employment and 45 days
at the end of the period of employment for the purpose of
traveling home or seeking an extension of status based on a
subsequent offer of employment if the worker has not reached
the maximum continuous period of authorized stay under
subparagraph (A) (subject to the exceptions in subparagraph
(C)).
``(4) Continuing h-2a workers.--
``(A) Successive employment.--An H-2A worker is authorized
to start new or concurrent employment upon the filing of a
nonfrivolous H-2A petition, or as of the requested start
date, whichever is later if--
``(i) the petition to start new or concurrent employment
was filed prior to the expiration of the H-2A worker's period
of admission as defined in paragraph (3)(D); and
``(ii) the H-2A worker has not been employed without
authorization in the United States from the time of last
admission to the United States in H-2A status through the
filing of the petition for new employment.
``(B) Protection due to immigrant visa backlogs.--
Notwithstanding the limitations on the period of authorized
stay described in paragraph (3), any H-2A worker who--
``(i) is the beneficiary of an approved petition, filed
under section 204(a)(1)(E) or (F) for preference status under
section 203(b)(3)(A)(iii); and
``(ii) is eligible to be granted such status but for the
annual limitations on visas under section 203(b)(3)(A),
may apply for, and the Secretary of Homeland Security may
grant, an extension of such nonimmigrant status until the
Secretary of Homeland Security issues a final administrative
decision on the alien's application for adjustment of status
or the Secretary of State issues a final decision on the
alien's application for an immigrant visa.
``(5) Abandonment of employment.--
``(A) In general.--Except as provided in subparagraph (B),
an H-2A worker who abandons the employment which was the
basis for the worker's authorized stay, without good cause,
shall be considered to have failed to maintain H-2A status
and shall depart the United States or be subject to removal
under section 237(a)(1)(C)(i).
``(B) Grace period to secure new employment.--An H-2A
worker shall not be considered to have failed to maintain H-
2A status solely on the basis of a cessation of the
employment on which the alien's classification was based for
a period of 45 consecutive days, or until the end of the
authorized validity period, whichever is shorter, once during
each authorized validity period.
``(k) Required Disclosures.--
``(1) Disclosure of work contract.--Not later than the time
the H-2A worker applies for a visa, the employer shall
provide the worker with a copy of the work contract that
includes the disclosures and rights under this section (or in
the absence of such a contract, a copy of the job order and
proof of the certification described in subparagraphs (B) and
(D) of subsection (h)(2)). An H-2A worker moving from one H-
2A employer to a subsequent H-2A employer shall be provided
with a copy of the new employment contract no later than the
time an offer of employment is made by the subsequent
employer.
``(2) Hours and earnings statements.--The employer shall
furnish to H-2A workers, on or before each payday, in 1 or
more written statements--
``(A) the worker's total earnings for the pay period;
``(B) the worker's hourly rate of pay, piece rate of pay,
or both;
``(C) the hours of employment offered to the worker and the
hours of employment actually worked;
``(D) if piece rates of pay are used, the units produced
daily;
``(E) an itemization of the deductions made from the
worker's wages; and
``(F) any other information required by Federal, State or
local law.
``(3) Notice of worker rights.--The employer must post and
maintain in a conspicuous location at the place of
employment, a poster provided by the Secretary of Labor in
English, and, to the extent necessary, any language common to
a significant portion of the workers if they are not fluent
in English, which sets out the rights and protections for
workers employed pursuant to this section.
``(l) Labor Contractors; Foreign Labor Recruiters;
Prohibition on Fees.--
``(1) Labor contractors.--
``(A) Surety bond.--An employer that is a labor contractor
who seeks to employ H-2A workers shall maintain a surety bond
in an amount required under subparagraph (B). Such bond shall
be payable to the Secretary of Labor or pursuant to the
resolution of a civil or criminal proceeding, for the payment
of wages and benefits, including any assessment of interest,
owed to an H-2A worker or a similarly employed United States
worker, or a United States worker who has been rejected or
displaced in violation of this section.
``(B) Amount of bond.--The Secretary of Labor shall
annually publish in the Federal Register a schedule of
required bond amounts that are determined by such Secretary
to be sufficient for labor contractors to discharge financial
obligations under this section based on the number of workers
the labor contractor seeks to employ and the wages such
workers are required to be paid.
``(C) Premium bond.--A labor contractor seeking to file a
petition involving more than 1 start date under subsection
(h)(1)(C) shall maintain a surety bond that is at least 15
percent higher than the applicable bond amount determined by
the Secretary under subparagraph (B).
``(D) Use of funds.--Any sums paid to the Secretary under
subparagraph (A) that are not paid to a worker because of the
inability to do so within a period of 5 years following the
date of a violation giving rise to the obligation to pay
shall remain available to the Secretary without further
appropriation until expended to support the enforcement of
this section.
``(2) Prohibition against employees paying fees.--Neither
the employer nor its agents shall seek or receive payment of
any kind from any worker for any activity related to the H-2A
process, including payment of the employer's attorneys' fees,
application fees, or recruitment costs. An employer and its
agents may receive reimbursement for costs that are the
responsibility and primarily for the benefit of the worker,
such as government-required passport fees.
``(3) Third party contracts.--The contract between an
employer and any labor contractor or any foreign labor
recruiter (or any agent of such labor contractor or foreign
labor recruiter) whom the employer engages shall include a
term providing for the termination of such contract for cause
if the contractor or recruiter, either directly or
indirectly, in the placement or recruitment of H-2A workers
seeks or receives payments or other compensation from
prospective employees. Upon learning that a labor contractor
or foreign labor recruiter has sought or collected such
payments, the employer shall so terminate any contracts with
such contractor or recruiter.
``(m) Enforcement Authority.--
``(1) In general.--The Secretary of Labor is authorized to
take such actions against employers, including imposing
appropriate penalties and seeking monetary and injunctive
relief and specific performance of contractual obligations,
as may be necessary to ensure compliance with the
requirements of this section and with the applicable terms
and conditions of employment.
``(2) Complaint process.--
``(A) Process.--The Secretary of Labor shall establish a
process for the receipt, investigation, and disposition of
complaints alleging failure of an employer to comply with the
requirements under this section and with the applicable terms
and conditions of employment.
``(B) Filing.--A complaint referred to in subparagraph (A)
may be filed not later than 2 years after the date of the
conduct that is the subject of the complaint.
``(C) Complaint not exclusive.--A complaint filed under
this paragraph is not an exclusive remedy and the filing of
such a complaint does not waive any rights or remedies of the
aggrieved party under this law or other laws.
``(D) Decision and remedies.--If the Secretary of Labor
finds, after notice and opportunity for a hearing, that the
employer failed to comply with the requirements of this
section or the terms and conditions of employment, the
Secretary of Labor may require payment of unpaid wages,
unpaid benefits, fees assessed in violation of this section,
damages, and civil money penalties. The Secretary is also
authorized to impose other administrative remedies, including
disqualification of the employer from utilizing the H-2A
program for a period of up to 5 years in the event of willful
or multiple material violations. The Secretary is authorized
to permanently disqualify an employer from utilizing the H-2A
program upon a subsequent finding involving willful or
multiple material violations.
``(E) Disposition of penalties.--Civil penalties collected
under this paragraph shall be deposited into the H-2A Labor
Certification Fee Account established under section 203 of
the Farm Workforce Modernization Act of 2019.
``(3) Statutory construction.--Nothing in this subsection
may be construed as limiting the authority of the Secretary
of Labor to conduct an investigation--
``(A) under any other law, including any law affecting
migrant and seasonal agricultural workers; or
``(B) in the absence of a complaint.
``(4) Retaliation prohibited.--It is a violation of this
subsection for any person to intimidate, threaten, restrain,
coerce, blacklist, discharge, or in any other manner
discriminate
[[Page H10055]]
against, or to cause any person to intimidate, threaten,
restrain, coerce, blacklist, or in any manner discriminate
against, an employee, including a former employee or an
applicant for employment, because the employee--
``(A) has disclosed information to the employer, or to any
other person, that the employee reasonably believes evidences
a violation under this section, or any rule or regulation
relating to this section;
``(B) has filed a complaint concerning the employer's
compliance with the requirements under this section or any
rule or regulation pertaining to this section;
``(C) cooperates or seeks to cooperate in an investigation
or other proceeding concerning the employer's compliance with
the requirements under this section or any rule or regulation
pertaining to this section; or
``(D) has taken steps to exercise or assert any right or
protection under the provisions of this section, or any rule
or regulation pertaining to this section, or any other
relevant Federal, State, or local law.
``(5) Interagency communication.--The Secretary of Labor,
in consultation with the Secretary of Homeland Security,
Secretary of State and the Equal Employment Opportunity
Commission, shall establish mechanisms by which the agencies
and their components share information, including by public
electronic means, regarding complaints, studies,
investigations, findings and remedies regarding compliance by
employers with the requirements of the H-2A program and other
employment-related laws and regulations.
``(n) Definitions.--In this section:
``(1) Displace.--The term `displace' means to lay off a
similarly employed United States worker, other than for
lawful job-related reasons, in the occupation and area of
intended employment for the job for which H-2A workers are
sought.
``(2) H-2a worker.--The term `H-2A worker' means a
nonimmigrant described in section 101(a)(15)(H)(ii)(a).
``(3) Job order.--The term `job order' means the document
containing the material terms and conditions of employment,
including obligations and assurances required under this
section or any other law.
``(4) Online job registry.--The term `online job registry'
means the online job registry of the Secretary of Labor
required under section 201(b) of the Farm Workforce
Modernization Act of 2019 (or similar successor registry).
``(5) Similarly employed.--The term `similarly employed',
in the case of a worker, means a worker in the same
occupational classification as the classification or
classifications for which the H-2A worker is sought.
``(6) United states worker.--The term `United States
worker' means any worker who is--
``(A) a citizen or national of the United States;
``(B) an alien who is lawfully admitted for permanent
residence, is admitted as a refugee under section 207, is
granted asylum under section 208, or is an immigrant
otherwise authorized to be employed in the United States;
``(C) an alien granted certified agricultural worker status
under title I of the Farm Workforce Modernization Act of
2019; or
``(D) an individual who is not an unauthorized alien (as
defined in section 274A(h)(3)) with respect to the employment
in which the worker is engaging.
``(o) Fees; Authorization of Appropriations.--
``(1) Fees.--
``(A) In general.--The Secretary of Homeland Security shall
impose a fee to process petitions under this section. Such
fee shall be set at a level that is sufficient to recover the
reasonable costs of processing the petition, including the
reasonable costs of providing labor certification by the
Secretary of Labor.
``(B) Distribution.--Fees collected under subparagraph (A)
shall be deposited as offsetting receipts into the
immigration examinations fee account in section 286(m),
except that the portion of fees assessed for the Secretary of
Labor shall be deposited into the H-2A Labor Certification
Fee Account established pursuant to section 203(c) of the
Farm Workforce Modernization Act of 2019 .
``(2) Appropriations.--There are authorized to be
appropriated for each fiscal year such sums as necessary for
the purposes of--
``(A) recruiting United States workers for labor or
services which might otherwise be performed by H-2A workers,
including by ensuring that State workforce agencies are
sufficiently funded to fulfill their functions under this
section;
``(B) enabling the Secretary of Labor to make
determinations and certifications under this section and
under section 212(a)(5)(A)(i);
``(C) monitoring the terms and conditions under which H-2A
workers (and United States workers employed by the same
employers) are employed in the United States; and
``(D) enabling the Secretary of Agriculture to carry out
the Secretary of Agriculture's duties and responsibilities
under this section.''.
SEC. 203. AGENCY ROLES AND RESPONSIBILITIES.
(a) Responsibilities of the Secretary of Labor.--With
respect to the administration of the H-2A program, the
Secretary of Labor shall be responsible for--
(1) consulting with State workforce agencies to--
(A) review and process job orders;
(B) facilitate the recruitment and referral of able,
willing and qualified United States workers who will be
available at the time and place needed;
(C) determine prevailing wages and practices; and
(D) conduct timely inspections to ensure compliance with
applicable Federal, State, or local housing standards and
Federal regulations for H-2A housing;
(2) determining whether the employer has met the conditions
for approval of the H-2A petition described in section 218 of
the Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1188);
(3) determining, in consultation with the Secretary of
Agriculture, whether a job opportunity is of a seasonal or
temporary nature;
(4) determining whether the employer has complied or will
comply with the H-2A program requirements set forth in
section 218 of the Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C.
1188);
(5) processing and investigating complaints consistent with
section 218(m) of the Immigration and Nationality Act (8
U.S.C. 1188(m));
(6) referring any matter as appropriate to the Inspector
General of the Department of Labor for investigation;
(7) ensuring that guidance to State workforce agencies to
conduct wage surveys is regularly updated; and
(8) issuing such rules and regulations as are necessary to
carry out the Secretary of Labor's responsibilities under
section 218 of the Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C.
1188).
(b) Responsibilities of the Secretary of Homeland
Security.--With respect to the administration of the H-2A
program, the Secretary of Homeland Security shall be
responsible for--
(1) adjudicating petitions for the admission of H-2A
workers, which shall include an assessment as to whether each
beneficiary will be employed in accordance with the terms and
conditions of the certification and whether any named
beneficiaries qualify for such employment;
(2) transmitting a copy of the final decision on the
petition to the employer, and in the case of approved
petitions, ensuring that the petition approval is reflected
in the electronic platform to facilitate the prompt issuance
of a visa by the Department of State (if required) and the
admission of the H-2A workers to the United States;
(3) establishing a reliable and secure method through which
H-2A workers can access information about their H-2A visa
status, including information on pending, approved, or denied
petitions to extend such status;
(4) investigating and preventing fraud in the program,
including the utilization of H-2A workers for other than
allowable agricultural labor or services; and
(5) issuing such rules and regulations as are necessary to
carry out the Secretary of Homeland Security's
responsibilities under section 218 of the Immigration and
Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1188).
(c) Establishment of Account and Use of Funds.--
(1) Establishment of account.--There is established in the
general fund of the Treasury a separate account, which shall
be known as the ``H-2A Labor Certification Fee Account''.
Notwithstanding any other provisions of law, there shall be
deposited as offsetting receipts into the account all
amounts--
(A) collected as a civil penalty under section
218(m)(2)(E)of the Immigration and Nationality Act; and
(B) collected as a fee under section 218(o)(1)(B) of the
Immigration and Nationality Act.
(2) Use of fees.--Amounts deposited into the H-2A Labor
Certification Fee Account shall be available (except as
otherwise provided in this paragraph) without fiscal year
limitation and without the requirement for specification in
appropriations Acts to the Secretary of Labor for use,
directly or through grants, contracts, or other arrangements,
in such amounts as the Secretary of Labor determines are
necessary for the costs of Federal and State administration
in carrying out activities in connection with labor
certification under section 218 of the Immigration and
Nationality Act. Such costs may include personnel salaries
and benefits, equipment and infrastructure for adjudication
and customer service processes, the operation and maintenance
of an on-line job registry, and program integrity activities.
The Secretary, in determining what amounts to transfer to
States for State administration in carrying out activities in
connection with labor certification under section 218 of the
Immigration and Nationality Act shall consider the number of
H-2A workers employed in that State and shall adjust the
amount transferred to that State accordingly. In addition, 10
percent of the amounts deposited into the H-2A Labor
Certification Fee Account shall be available to the Office of
Inspector General of the Department of Labor to conduct
audits and criminal investigations relating to such foreign
labor certification programs.
(3) Additional funds.--Amounts available under paragraph
(1) shall be available in addition to any other funds
appropriated or made available to the Department of Labor
under other laws, including section 218(o)(2) of the
Immigration and Nationality Act.
SEC. 204. WORKER PROTECTION AND COMPLIANCE.
(a) Equality of Treatment.--H-2A workers shall not be
denied any right or remedy under any Federal, State, or local
labor or employment law applicable to United States workers
engaged in agricultural employment.
(b) Applicability of Other Laws.--
(1) Migrant and seasonal agricultural worker protection
act.--H-2A workers shall be considered migrant agricultural
workers for purposes of the Migrant and Seasonal Agricultural
Worker Protection Act (29 U.S.C. 1801 et seq.).
(2) Waiver of rights prohibited.--Agreements by H-2A
workers to waive or modify any rights or protections under
this Act or section 218 of the Immigration and Nationality
Act (8 U.S.C. 1188) shall be considered void or contrary to
public policy except as provided in a collective bargaining
agreement with a bona fide labor organization.
[[Page H10056]]
(3) Mediation.--
(A) Free mediation services.--The Federal Mediation and
Conciliation Service shall be available to assist in
resolving disputes arising under this section between H-2A
workers and agricultural employers without charge to the
parties.
(B) Complaint.--If an H-2A worker files a civil lawsuit
alleging one or more violations of section 218 of the
Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1188), the Fair
Labor Standards Act of 1938 (29 U.S.C. 201 et seq.), or the
Migrant and Seasonal Agricultural Worker Protection Act (29
U.S.C. 1801 et seq.), not later than 60 days after the filing
of proof of service of the complaint, a party to the lawsuit
may file a request with the Federal Mediation and
Conciliation Service to assist the parties in reaching a
satisfactory resolution of all issues involving all parties
to the dispute.
(C) Notice.--Upon filing a request under subparagraph (B)
and giving of notice to the parties, the parties shall
attempt mediation within the period specified in subparagraph
(D), except that nothing in this paragraph shall limit the
ability of a court to order preliminary injunctive relief to
protect health and safety or to otherwise prevent irreparable
harm.
(D) 90-day limit.--The Federal Mediation and Conciliation
Service may conduct mediation or other nonbinding dispute
resolution activities for a period not to exceed 90 days
beginning on the date on which the Federal Mediation and
Conciliation Service receives a request for assistance under
subparagraph (B) unless the parties agree to an extension of
such period.
(E) Authorization of appropriations.--
(i) In general.--Subject to clause (ii), there is
authorized to be appropriated to the Federal Mediation and
Conciliation Service, such sums as may be necessary for each
fiscal year to carry out this subparagraph.
(ii) Mediation.--Notwithstanding any other provision of
law, the Director of the Federal Mediation and Conciliation
Service is authorized--
(I) to conduct the mediation or other dispute resolution
activities from any other account containing amounts
available to the Director; and
(II) to reimburse such account with amounts appropriated
pursuant to clause (i).
(F) Private mediation.--If all parties agree, a private
mediator may be employed as an alternative to the Federal
Mediation and Conciliation Service.
(c) Farm Labor Contractor Requirements.--
(1) Surety bonds.--
(A) Requirement.--Section 101 of the Migrant and Seasonal
Agricultural Worker Protection Act (29 U.S.C. 1811), is
amended by adding at the end the following:
``(e) A farm labor contractor shall maintain a surety bond
in an amount determined by the Secretary to be sufficient for
ensuring the ability of the farm labor contractor to
discharge its financial obligations, including payment of
wages and benefits to employees. Such a bond shall be
available to satisfy any amounts ordered to be paid by the
Secretary or by court order for failure to comply with the
obligations of this Act. The Secretary of Labor shall
annually publish in the Federal Register a schedule of
required bond amounts that are determined by such Secretary
to be sufficient for farm labor contractors to discharge
financial obligations based on the number of workers to be
covered.''.
(B) Registration determinations.--Section 103(a) of the
Migrant and Seasonal Agricultural Worker Protection Act (29
U.S.C. 1813(a)), is amended--
(i) in paragraph (4), by striking ``or'' at the end;
(ii) in paragraph (5)(B), by striking ``or'' at the end;
(iii) in paragraph (6), by striking the period at the end
and inserting ``;'' ; and
(iv) by adding at the end the following:
``(7) has failed to maintain a surety bond in compliance
with section 101(e); or
``(8) has been disqualified by the Secretary of Labor from
importing nonimmigrants described in section
101(a)(15)(H)(ii) of the Immigration and Nationality Act.''.
(2) Successors in interest.--
(A) Declaration.--Section 102 of the Migrant and Seasonal
Agricultural Worker Protection Act (29 U.S.C. 1812), is
amended--
(i) in paragraph (4), by striking ``and'' at the end;
(ii) in paragraph (5), by striking the period at the end
and inserting ``; and''; and
(iii) by adding at the end the following:
``(6) a declaration, subscribed and sworn to by the
applicant, stating whether the applicant has a familial,
contractual, or employment relationship with, or shares
vehicles, facilities, property, or employees with, a person
who has been refused issuance or renewal of a certificate, or
has had a certificate suspended or revoked, pursuant to
section 103.''.
(B) Rebuttable presumption.--Section 103 of the Migrant and
Seasonal Agricultural Worker Protection Act (29 U.S.C. 1813),
as amended by this Act, is further amended by inserting after
subsection (a) the following new subsection (and by
redesignating the subsequent subsections accordingly):
``(b)(1) There shall be a rebuttable presumption that an
applicant for issuance or renewal of a certificate is not the
real party in interest in the application if the applicant--
``(A) is the immediate family member of any person who has
been refused issuance or renewal of a certificate, or has had
a certificate suspended or revoked; and
``(B) identifies a vehicle, facility, or real property
under paragraph (2) or (3) of section 102 that has been
previously listed by a person who has been refused issuance
or renewal of a certificate, or has had a certificate
suspended or revoked.
``(2) An applicant described in paragraph (1) bears the
burden of demonstrating to the Secretary's satisfaction that
the applicant is the real party in interest in the
application.''.
SEC. 205. REPORT ON WAGE PROTECTIONS.
(a) Not later than 3 years after the date of the enactment
of this Act, and every 3 years thereafter, the Secretary of
Labor and Secretary of Agriculture shall prepare and transmit
to the Committees on the Judiciary of the House of
Representatives and Senate, a report that addresses--
(1) whether, and the manner in which, the employment of H-
2A workers in the United States has impacted the wages,
working conditions, or job opportunities of United States
farm workers;
(2) whether, and the manner in which, the adverse effect
wage rate increases or decreases wages on United States
farms, broken down by geographic region and farm size;
(3) whether any potential impact of the adverse effect wage
rate varies based on the percentage of workers in a
geographic region that are H-2A workers;
(4) the degree to which the adverse effect wage rate is
affected by the inclusion in wage surveys of piece rate
compensation, bonus payments, and other pay incentives, and
whether such forms of incentive compensation should be
surveyed and reported separately from hourly base rates;
(5) whether, and the manner in which, other factors may
artificially affect the adverse effect wage rate, including
factors that may be specific to a region, State, or region
within a State;
(6) whether, and the manner in which, the H-2A program
affects the ability of United States farms to compete with
agricultural commodities imported from outside the United
States;
(7) the number and percentage of farmworkers in the United
States whose incomes are below the poverty line;
(8) whether alternative wage standards would be sufficient
to prevent wages in occupations in which H-2A workers are
employed from falling below the wage level that would have
prevailed in the absence of the H-2A program;
(9) whether any changes are warranted in the current
methodologies for calculating the adverse effect wage rate
and the prevailing wage; and
(10) recommendations for future wage protection under this
section.
(b) In preparing the report described in subsection (a),
the Secretary of Labor and Secretary of Agriculture shall
engage with equal numbers of representatives of agricultural
employers and agricultural workers, both locally and
nationally.
SEC. 206. PORTABLE H-2A VISA PILOT PROGRAM.
(a) Establishment of Pilot Program.--
(1) In general.--Not later than 18 months after the date of
the enactment of this Act, the Secretary of Homeland
Security, in consultation with the Secretary of Labor and
Secretary of Agriculture, shall establish through regulation
a 6-year pilot program to facilitate the free movement and
employment of temporary or seasonal H-2A workers to perform
agricultural labor or services for agricultural employers
registered with the Secretary of Agriculture. Notwithstanding
the requirements of section 218 of the Immigration and
Nationality Act, such regulation shall establish the
requirements for the pilot program, consistent with
subsection (b). For purposes of this section, such a worker
shall be referred to as a portable H-2A worker, and status as
such a worker shall be referred to as portable H-2A status.
(2) Online platform.--The Secretary of Homeland Security,
in consultation with the Secretary of Labor and the Secretary
of Agriculture, shall maintain an online electronic platform
to connect portable H-2A workers with registered agricultural
employers seeking workers to perform temporary or seasonal
agricultural labor or services. Employers shall post on the
platform available job opportunities, including a description
of the nature and location of the work to be performed, the
anticipated period or periods of need, and the terms and
conditions of employment. Such platform shall allow portable
H-2A workers to search for available job opportunities using
relevant criteria, including the types of jobs needed to be
filled and the dates and locations of need.
(3) Limitation.--Notwithstanding the issuance of the
regulation described in paragraph (1), the Secretary of State
may not issue a portable H-2A visa and the Secretary of
Homeland Security may not confer portable H-2A status on any
alien until the Secretary of Homeland Security, in
consultation with the Secretary of Labor and Secretary of
Agriculture, has determined that a sufficient number of
employers have been designated as registered agricultural
employers under subsection (b)(1) and that such employers
have sufficient job opportunities to employ a reasonable
number of portable H-2A workers to initiate the pilot
program.
(b) Pilot Program Elements.--The pilot program in
subsection (a) shall contain the following elements:
(1) Registered agricultural employers.--
(A) Designation.--Agricultural employers shall be provided
the ability to seek designation as registered agricultural
employers. Reasonable fees may be assessed commensurate with
the cost of processing applications for designation. A
designation shall be valid for a period of up to 3 years
unless revoked for failure to comply with program
requirements. Registered employers that comply with program
requirements may apply to renew such designation for
additional periods of up to 3 years for the duration of the
pilot program.
(B) Limitations.--Registered agricultural employers may
employ aliens with portable H-2A status without filing a
petition. Such employers
[[Page H10057]]
shall pay such aliens at least the wage required under
section 218(d) of the Immigration and Nationality Act (8
U.S.C. 1188(d)).
(C) Workers' compensation.--If a job opportunity is not
covered by or is exempt from the State workers' compensation
law, a registered agricultural employer shall provide, at no
cost to the worker, insurance covering injury and disease
arising out of, and in the course of, the worker's
employment, which will provide benefits at least equal to
those provided under the State workers' compensation law.
(2) Designated workers.--
(A) In general.--Individuals who have been previously
admitted to the United States in H-2A status, and maintained
such status during the period of admission, shall be provided
the opportunity to apply for portable H-2A status. Portable
H-2A workers shall be subject to the provisions on visa
validity and periods of authorized stay and admission for H-
2A workers described in paragraphs (2) and (3) of section
218(j) of the Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C.
1188(j)(2) and (3)).
(B) Limitations on availability of portable h-2a status.--
(i) Initial offer of employment required.--No alien may be
granted portable H-2A status without an initial valid offer
of employment to perform temporary or agricultural labor or
services from a registered agricultural employer.
(ii) Numerical limitations.--The total number of aliens who
may hold valid portable H-2A status at any one time may not
exceed 10,000. Notwithstanding such limitation, the Secretary
of Homeland Security may further limit the number of aliens
with valid portable H-2A status if the Secretary determines
that there are an insufficient number of registered
agricultural employers or job opportunities to support the
employment of all such portable H-2A workers.
(C) Scope of employment.--During the period of admission, a
portable H-2A worker may perform temporary or seasonal
agricultural labor or services for any employer in the United
States that is designated as a registered agricultural
employer pursuant to paragraph (1). An employment arrangement
under this section may be terminated by either the portable
H-2A worker or the registered agricultural employer at any
time.
(D) Transfer to new employment.--At the cessation of
employment with a registered agricultural employer, a
portable H-2A worker shall have 60 days to secure new
employment with a registered agricultural employer.
(E) Maintenance of status.--A portable H-2A worker who does
not secure new employment with a registered agricultural
employer within 60 days shall be considered to have failed to
maintain such status and shall depart the United States or be
subject to removal under section 237(a)(1)(C)(i) of the
Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1188(a)(1)(C)(i)).
(3) Enforcement.--The Secretary of Labor shall be
responsible for conducting investigations and random audits
of employers to ensure compliance with the employment-related
requirements of this section, consistent with section 218(m)
of the Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1188(m)).
The Secretary of Labor shall have the authority to collect
reasonable civil penalties for violations, which shall be
utilized by the Secretary for the administration and
enforcement of the provisions of this section.
(4) Eligibility for services.--Section 305 of Public Law
99-603 (100 Stat. 3434) is amended by striking ``other
employment rights as provided in the worker's specific
contract under which the nonimmigrant was admitted'' and
inserting ``employment-related rights''.
(c) Report.--Not later than 6 months before the end of the
third fiscal year of the pilot program, the Secretary of
Homeland Security, in consultation with the Secretary of
Labor and the Secretary of Agriculture, shall prepare and
submit to the Committees on the Judiciary of the House of
Representatives and the Senate, a report that provides--
(1) the number of employers designated as registered
agricultural employers, broken down by geographic region,
farm size, and the number of job opportunities offered by
such employers;
(2) the number of employers whose designation as a
registered agricultural employer was revoked;
(3) the number of individuals granted portable H-2A status
in each fiscal year, along with the number of such
individuals who maintained portable H-2A status during all or
a portion of the 3-year period of the pilot program;
(4) an assessment of the impact of the pilot program on the
wages and working conditions of United States farm workers;
(5) the results of a survey of individuals granted portable
H-2A status, detailing their experiences with and feedback on
the pilot program;
(6) the results of a survey of registered agricultural
employers, detailing their experiences with and feedback on
the pilot program;
(7) an assessment as to whether the program should be
continued and if so, any recommendations for improving the
program; and
(8) findings and recommendations regarding effective
recruitment mechanisms, including use of new technology to
match workers with employers and ensure compliance with
applicable labor and employment laws and regulations.
SEC. 207. IMPROVING ACCESS TO PERMANENT RESIDENCE.
(a) Worldwide Level.--Section 201(d)(1)(A) of the
Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1151(d)(1)(A)) is
amended by striking ``140,000'' and inserting ``180,000''.
(b) Visas for Farmworkers.--Section 203(b) of the
Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1153(b)) is
amended--
(1) in paragraph (1) by striking ``28.6 percent of such
worldwide level'' and inserting ``40,040'';
(2) in paragraph (2)(A) by striking ``28.6 percent of such
worldwide level'' and inserting ``40,040'';
(3) in paragraph (3)--
(A) in subparagraph (A)--
(i) in the matter before clause (i), by striking ``28.6
percent of such worldwide level'' and inserting ``80,040'';
and
(ii) by amending clause (iii) to read as follows:
``(iii) Other workers.--Other qualified immigrants who, at
the time of petitioning for classification under this
paragraph--
``(I) are capable of performing unskilled labor, not of a
temporary or seasonal nature, for which qualified workers are
not available in the United States; or
``(II) can demonstrate employment in the United States as
an H-2A nonimmigrant worker for at least 100 days in each of
at least 10 years.'';
(B) by amending subparagraph (B) to read as follows:
``(B) Visas allocated for other workers.--
``(i) In general.--Except as provided in clauses (ii) and
(iii), 50,000 of the visas made available under this
paragraph shall be reserved for qualified immigrants
described in subparagraph (A)(iii).
``(ii) Preference for agricultural workers.--Subject to
clause (iii), not less than four-fifths of the visas
described in clause (i) shall be reserved for--
``(I) qualified immigrants described in subparagraph
(A)(iii)(I) who will be performing agricultural labor or
services in the United States; and
``(II) qualified immigrants described in subparagraph
(A)(iii)(II).
``(iii) Exception.--If because of the application of clause
(ii), the total number of visas available under this
paragraph for a calendar quarter exceeds the number of
qualified immigrants who otherwise may be issued such a visa,
clause (ii) shall not apply to visas under this paragraph
during the remainder of such calendar quarter.
``(iv) No per country limits.--Visas described under clause
(ii) shall be issued without regard to the numerical
limitation under section 202(a)(2).''; and
(C) by amending subparagraph (C) by striking ``An immigrant
visa'' and inserting ``Except for qualified immigrants
petitioning for classification under subparagraph
(A)(iii)(II), an immigrant visa'';
(4) in paragraph (4), by striking ``7.1 percent of such
worldwide level'' and inserting ``9,940''; and
(5) in paragraph (5)(A), in the matter before clause (i),
by striking ``7.1 percent of such worldwide level'' and
inserting ``9,940''.
(c) Petitioning Procedure.--Section 204(a)(1)(E) of the
Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1154(a)(1)(E)) is
amended by inserting ``or 203(b)(3)(A)(iii)(II)'' after
``203(b)(1)(A)''.
(d) Dual Intent.--Section 214(b) of the Immigration and
Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1184(b)) is amended by striking
``section 101(a)(15)(H)(i) except subclause (b1) of such
section'' and inserting ``clause (i), except subclause (b1),
or (ii)(a) of section 101(a)(15)(H)''.
Subtitle B--Preservation and Construction of Farmworker Housing
SEC. 220. SHORT TITLE.
This subtitle may be cited as the ``Strategy and Investment
in Rural Housing Preservation Act of 2019''.
SEC. 221. PERMANENT ESTABLISHMENT OF HOUSING PRESERVATION AND
REVITALIZATION PROGRAM.
Title V of the Housing Act of 1949 (42 U.S.C. 1471 et seq.)
is amended by adding at the end the following new section:
``SEC. 545. HOUSING PRESERVATION AND REVITALIZATION PROGRAM.
``(a) Establishment.--The Secretary shall carry out a
program under this section for the preservation and
revitalization of multifamily rental housing projects
financed under section 515 or both sections 514 and 516.
``(b) Notice of Maturing Loans.--
``(1) To owners.--On an annual basis, the Secretary shall
provide written notice to each owner of a property financed
under section 515 or both sections 514 and 516 that will
mature within the 4-year period beginning upon the provision
of such notice, setting forth the options and financial
incentives that are available to facilitate the extension of
the loan term or the option to decouple a rental assistance
contract pursuant to subsection (f).
``(2) To tenants.--
``(A) In general.--For each property financed under section
515 or both sections 514 and 516, not later than the date
that is 2 years before the date that such loan will mature,
the Secretary shall provide written notice to each household
residing in such property that informs them of the date of
the loan maturity, the possible actions that may happen with
respect to the property upon such maturity, and how to
protect their right to reside in Federally assisted housing
after such maturity.
``(B) Language.--Notice under this paragraph shall be
provided in plain English and shall be translated to other
languages in the case of any property located in an area in
which a significant number of residents speak such other
languages.
``(c) Loan Restructuring.--Under the program under this
section, the Secretary may restructure such existing housing
loans, as the Secretary considers appropriate, for the
purpose of ensuring that such projects have sufficient
resources to preserve the projects to provide safe and
affordable housing for low-income residents and farm
laborers, by--
``(1) reducing or eliminating interest;
``(2) deferring loan payments;
``(3) subordinating, reducing, or reamortizing loan debt;
and
[[Page H10058]]
``(4) providing other financial assistance, including
advances, payments, and incentives (including the ability of
owners to obtain reasonable returns on investment) required
by the Secretary.
``(d) Renewal of Rental Assistance.--When the Secretary
offers to restructure a loan pursuant to subsection (c), the
Secretary shall offer to renew the rental assistance contract
under section 521(a)(2) for a 20-year term that is subject to
annual appropriations, provided that the owner agrees to
bring the property up to such standards that will ensure its
maintenance as decent, safe, and sanitary housing for the
full term of the rental assistance contract.
``(e) Restrictive Use Agreements.--
``(1) Requirement.--As part of the preservation and
revitalization agreement for a project, the Secretary shall
obtain a restrictive use agreement that obligates the owner
to operate the project in accordance with this title.
``(2) Term.--
``(A) No extension of rental assistance contract.--Except
when the Secretary enters into a 20-year extension of the
rental assistance contract for the project, the term of the
restrictive use agreement for the project shall be consistent
with the term of the restructured loan for the project.
``(B) Extension of rental assistance contract.--If the
Secretary enters into a 20-year extension of the rental
assistance contract for a project, the term of the
restrictive use agreement for the project shall be for 20
years.
``(C) Termination.--The Secretary may terminate the 20-year
use restrictive use agreement for a project prior to the end
of its term if the 20-year rental assistance contract for the
project with the owner is terminated at any time for reasons
outside the owner's control.
``(f) Decoupling of Rental Assistance.--
``(1) Renewal of rental assistance contract.--If the
Secretary determines that a maturing loan for a project
cannot reasonably be restructured in accordance with
subsection (c) and the project was operating with rental
assistance under section 521, the Secretary may renew the
rental assistance contract, notwithstanding any provision of
section 521, for a term, subject to annual appropriations, of
at least 10 years but not more than 20 years.
``(2) Rents.--Any agreement to extend the term of the
rental assistance contract under section 521 for a project
shall obligate the owner to continue to maintain the project
as decent, safe and sanitary housing and to operate the
development in accordance with this title, except that rents
shall be based on the lesser of--
``(A) the budget-based needs of the project; or
``(B) the operating cost adjustment factor as a payment
standard as provided under section 524 of the Multifamily
Assisted Housing Reform and Affordability Act of 1997 (42
U.S.C. 1437 note).
``(g) Multifamily Housing Transfer Technical Assistance.--
Under the program under this section, the Secretary may
provide grants to qualified non-profit organizations and
public housing agencies to provide technical assistance,
including financial and legal services, to borrowers under
loans under this title for multifamily housing to facilitate
the acquisition of such multifamily housing properties in
areas where the Secretary determines there is a risk of loss
of affordable housing.
``(h) Transfer of Rental Assistance.--After the loan or
loans for a rental project originally financed under section
515 or both sections 514 and 516 have matured or have been
prepaid and the owner has chosen not to restructure the loan
pursuant to subsection (c), a tenant residing in such project
shall have 18 months prior to loan maturation or prepayment
to transfer the rental assistance assigned to the tenant's
unit to another rental project originally financed under
section 515 or both sections 514 and 516, and the owner of
the initial project may rent the tenant's previous unit to a
new tenant without income restrictions.
``(i) Administrative Expenses.--Of any amounts made
available for the program under this section for any fiscal
year, the Secretary may use not more than $1,000,000 for
administrative expenses for carrying out such program.
``(j) Authorization of Appropriations.--There is authorized
to be appropriated for the program under this section
$200,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2020 through 2024.''.
SEC. 222. ELIGIBILITY FOR RURAL HOUSING VOUCHERS.
Section 542 of the Housing Act of 1949 (42 U.S.C. 1490r) is
amended by adding at the end the following new subsection:
``(c) Eligibility of Households in Sections 514, 515, and
516 Projects.--The Secretary may provide rural housing
vouchers under this section for any low-income household
(including those not receiving rental assistance) residing,
for a term longer than the remaining term of their lease in
effect just prior to prepayment, in a property financed with
a loan made or insured under section 514 or 515 (42 U.S.C.
1484, 1485) which has been prepaid without restrictions
imposed by the Secretary pursuant to section
502(c)(5)(G)(ii)(I) (42 U.S.C. 1472(c)(5)(G)(ii)(I)), has
been foreclosed, or has matured after September 30, 2005, or
residing in a property assisted under section 514 or 516 that
is owned by a nonprofit organization or public agency.''.
SEC. 223. AMOUNT OF VOUCHER ASSISTANCE.
Notwithstanding any other provision of law, in the case of
any rural housing voucher provided pursuant to section 542 of
the Housing Act of 1949 (42 U.S.C. 1490r), the amount of the
monthly assistance payment for the household on whose behalf
such assistance is provided shall be determined as provided
in subsection (a) of such section 542.
SEC. 224. RENTAL ASSISTANCE CONTRACT AUTHORITY.
Subsection (d) of section 521 of the Housing Act of 1949
(42 U.S.C. 1490a(d)) is amended--
(1) in paragraph (1), by inserting after subparagraph (A)
the following new subparagraph (and by redesignating the
subsequent subparagraphs accordingly):
``(B) upon request of an owner of a project financed under
section 514 or 515, the Secretary is authorized to enter into
renewal of such agreements for a period of 20 years or the
term of the loan, whichever is shorter, subject to amounts
made available in appropriations Acts;''; and
(2) by adding at the end the following new paragraph:
``(3) In the case of any rental assistance contract
authority that becomes available because of the termination
of assistance on behalf of an assisted family--
``(A) at the option of the owner of the rental project, the
Secretary shall provide the owner a period of 6 months before
such assistance is made available pursuant to subparagraph
(B) during which the owner may use such assistance authority
to provide assistance of behalf of an eligible unassisted
family that--
``(i) is residing in the same rental project that the
assisted family resided in prior to such termination; or
``(ii) newly occupies a dwelling unit in such rental
project during such period; and
``(B) except for assistance used as provided in
subparagraph (A), the Secretary shall use such remaining
authority to provide such assistance on behalf of eligible
families residing in other rental projects originally
financed under section 515 or both sections 514 and 516 of
this Act.''.
SEC. 225. FUNDING FOR MULTIFAMILY TECHNICAL IMPROVEMENTS.
There is authorized to be appropriated to the Secretary of
Agriculture $50,000,000 for fiscal year 2020 for improving
the technology of the Department of Agriculture used to
process loans for multifamily housing and otherwise managing
such housing. Such improvements shall be made within the 5-
year period beginning upon the appropriation of such amounts
and such amount shall remain available until the expiration
of such 5-year period.
SEC. 226. PLAN FOR PRESERVING AFFORDABILITY OF RENTAL
PROJECTS.
(a) Plan.--The Secretary of Agriculture (in this section
referred to as the ``Secretary'') shall submit a written plan
to the Congress, not later than the expiration of the 6-month
period beginning on the date of the enactment of this Act,
for preserving the affordability for low-income families of
rental projects for which loans were made under section 515
or made to nonprofit or public agencies under section 514 and
avoiding the displacement of tenant households, which shall--
(1) set forth specific performance goals and measures;
(2) set forth the specific actions and mechanisms by which
such goals will be achieved;
(3) set forth specific measurements by which progress
towards achievement of each goal can be measured;
(4) provide for detailed reporting on outcomes; and
(5) include any legislative recommendations to assist in
achievement of the goals under the plan.
(b) Advisory Committee.--
(1) Establishment; purpose.--The Secretary shall establish
an advisory committee whose purpose shall be to assist the
Secretary in preserving section 515 properties and section
514 properties owned by nonprofit or public agencies through
the multifamily housing preservation and revitalization
program under section 545 and in implementing the plan
required under subsection (a).
(2) Member.--The advisory committee shall consist of 16
members, appointed by the Secretary, as follows:
(A) A State Director of Rural Development for the
Department of Agriculture.
(B) The Administrator for Rural Housing Service of the
Department of Agriculture.
(C) Two representatives of for-profit developers or owners
of multifamily rural rental housing.
(D) Two representatives of non-profit developers or owners
of multifamily rural rental housing.
(E) Two representatives of State housing finance agencies.
(F) Two representatives of tenants of multifamily rural
rental housing.
(G) One representative of a community development financial
institution that is involved in preserving the affordability
of housing assisted under sections 514, 515, and 516 of the
Housing Act of 1949.
(H) One representative of a nonprofit organization that
operates nationally and has actively participated in the
preservation of housing assisted by the Rural Housing Service
by conducting research regarding, and providing financing and
technical assistance for, preserving the affordability of
such housing.
(I) One representative of low-income housing tax credit
investors.
(J) One representative of regulated financial institutions
that finance affordable multifamily rural rental housing
developments.
(K) Two representatives from non-profit organizations
representing farmworkers, including one organization
representing farmworker women.
(3) Meetings.--The advisory committee shall meet not less
often than once each calendar quarter.
(4) Functions.--In providing assistance to the Secretary to
carry out its purpose, the advisory committee shall carry out
the following functions:
(A) Assisting the Rural Housing Service of the Department
of Agriculture to improve estimates of the size, scope, and
condition of rental housing portfolio of the Service,
including the time frames for maturity of mortgages and costs
for preserving the portfolio as affordable housing.
[[Page H10059]]
(B) Reviewing current policies and procedures of the Rural
Housing Service regarding preservation of affordable rental
housing financed under sections 514, 515, 516, and 538 of the
Housing Act of 1949, the Multifamily Preservation and
Revitalization Demonstration program (MPR), and the rental
assistance program and making recommendations regarding
improvements and modifications to such policies and
procedures.
(C) Providing ongoing review of Rural Housing Service
program results.
(D) Providing reports to the Congress and the public on
meetings, recommendations, and other findings of the advisory
committee.
(5) Travel costs.--Any amounts made available for
administrative costs of the Department of Agriculture may be
used for costs of travel by members of the advisory committee
to meetings of the committee.
SEC. 227. COVERED HOUSING PROGRAMS.
Paragraph (3) of section 41411(a) of the Violence Against
Women Act of 1994 (34 U.S.C. 12491(a)(3)) is amended--
(1) in subparagraph (I), by striking ``and'' at the end;
(2) by redesignating subparagraph (J) as subparagraph (K);
and
(3) by inserting after subparagraph (I) the following new
subparagraph:
``(J) rural development housing voucher assistance provided
by the Secretary of Agriculture pursuant to section 542 of
the Housing Act of 1949 (42 U.S.C. 1490r), without regard to
subsection (b) of such section, and applicable appropriation
Acts; and''.
SEC. 228. NEW FARMWORKER HOUSING.
Section 513 of the Housing Act of 1949 (42 U.S.C. 1483) is
amended by adding at the end the following new subsection:
``(f) Funding for Farmworker Housing.--
``(1) Section 514 farmworker housing loans.--
``(A) Insurance authority.--The Secretary of Agriculture
may, to the extent approved in appropriation Acts, insure
loans under section 514 (42 U.S.C. 1484) during each of
fiscal years 2020 through 2029 in an aggregate amount not to
exceed $200,000,000.
``(B) Authorization of appropriations for costs.--There is
authorized to be appropriated $75,000,000 for each of fiscal
years 2020 through 2029 for costs (as such term is defined in
section 502 of the Congressional Budget Act of 1974 (2 U.S.C.
661a)) of loans insured pursuant the authority under
subparagraph (A).
``(2) Section 516 grants for farmworker housing.--There is
authorized to be appropriated $30,000,000 for each of fiscal
years 2020 through 2029 for financial assistance under
section 516 (42 U.S.C. 1486).
``(3) Section 521 housing assistance.--There is authorized
to be appropriated $2,700,000,000 for each of fiscal years
2020 through 2029 for rental assistance agreements entered
into or renewed pursuant to section 521(a)(2) (42 U.S.C.
1490a(a)(2)) or agreements entered into in lieu of debt
forgiveness or payments for eligible households as authorized
by section 502(c)(5)(D).''.
SEC. 229. LOAN AND GRANT LIMITATIONS.
Section 514 of the Housing Act of 1949 (42 U.S.C. 1484) is
amended by adding at the end the following:
``(j) Per Project Limitations on Assistance.--If the
Secretary, in making available assistance in any area under
this section or section 516 (42 U.S.C. 1486), establishes a
limitation on the amount of assistance available per project,
the limitation on a grant or loan award per project shall not
be less than $5 million.''.
SEC. 230. OPERATING ASSISTANCE SUBSIDIES.
Subsection (a)(5) of section 521 of the Housing Act of 1949
(42 U.S.C. 1490a(a)(5)) is amended--
(1) in subparagraph (A) by inserting ``or domestic farm
labor legally admitted to the United States and authorized to
work in agriculture'' after ``migrant farmworkers'';
(2) in subparagraph (B)--
(A) by striking ``Amount.--In any fiscal year'' and
inserting ``Amount.--
``(i) Housing for migrant farmworkers.--In any fiscal
year'';
(B) by inserting ``providing housing for migrant
farmworkers'' after ``any project''; and
(C) by inserting at the end the following:
``(ii) Housing for other farm labor.--In any fiscal year,
the assistance provided under this paragraph for any project
providing housing for domestic farm labor legally admitted to
the United States and authorized to work in agriculture shall
not exceed an amount equal to 50 percent of the operating
costs for the project for the year, as determined by the
Secretary. The owner of such project shall not qualify for
operating assistance unless the Secretary certifies that the
project was unoccupied or underutilized before making units
available to such farm labor, and that a grant under this
section will not displace any farm worker who is a United
States worker.''; and
(3) in subparagraph (D), by adding at the end the
following:
``(iii) The term `domestic farm labor' has the same meaning
given such term in section 514(f)(3) (42 U.S.C. 1484(f)(3)),
except that subparagraph (A) of such section shall not apply
for purposes this section.''.
SEC. 231. ELIGIBILITY OF CERTIFIED WORKERS.
Subsection (a) of section 214 of the Housing and Community
Development Act of 1980 (42 U.S.C. 1436a) is amended--
(1) in paragraph (6), by striking ``or'' at the end;
(2) by redesignating paragraph (7) as paragraph (8); and
(3) by inserting after paragraph (6) the following:
``(7) an alien granted certified agricultural worker or
certified agricultural dependent status under title I of the
Farm Workforce Modernization Act of 2019, but solely for
financial assistance made available pursuant to section 521
or 542 of the Housing Act of 1949 (42 U.S.C. 1490a, 1490r);
or''.
Subtitle C--Foreign Labor Recruiter Accountability
SEC. 251. REGISTRATION OF FOREIGN LABOR RECRUITERS.
(a) In General.--Not later than 1 year after the date of
the enactment of this Act, the Secretary of Labor, in
consultation with the Secretary of State and the Secretary of
Homeland Security, shall establish procedures for the
electronic registration of foreign labor recruiters engaged
in the recruitment of nonimmigrant workers described in
section 101(a)(15)(H)(ii)(a) of the Immigration and
Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1101(a)(15)(H)(ii)(a)) to perform
agricultural labor or services in the United States.
(b) Procedural Requirements.--The procedures described in
subsection (a) shall--
(1) require the applicant to submit a sworn declaration--
(A) stating the applicant's permanent place of residence or
principal place of business, as applicable;
(B) describing the foreign labor recruiting activities in
which the applicant is engaged; and
(C) including such other relevant information as the
Secretary of Labor and the Secretary of State may require;
(2) include an expeditious means to update and renew
registrations;
(3) include a process, which shall include the placement of
personnel at each United States diplomatic mission in
accordance with subsection (g)(2), to receive information
from the public regarding foreign labor recruiters who have
allegedly engaged in a foreign labor recruiting activity that
is prohibited under this subtitle;
(4) include procedures for the receipt and processing of
complaints against foreign labor recruiters and for remedies,
including the revocation of a registration or the assessment
of fines upon a determination by the Secretary of Labor that
the foreign labor recruiter has violated the requirements of
this subtitle;
(5) require the applicant to post a bond in an amount
sufficient to ensure the ability of the applicant to
discharge its responsibilities and ensure protection of
workers, including payment of wages; and
(6) allow the Secretary of Labor and the Secretary of State
to consult with other appropriate Federal agencies to
determine whether any reason exists to deny registration to a
foreign labor recruiter or revoke such registration.
(c) Attestations.--Foreign labor recruiters registering
under this subtitle shall attest and agree to abide by the
following requirements:
(1) Prohibited fees.--The foreign labor recruiter,
including any agent or employee of such foreign labor
recruiter, shall not assess any recruitment fees on a worker
for any foreign labor recruiting activity.
(2) Prohibition on false and misleading information.--The
foreign labor recruiter shall not knowingly provide
materially false or misleading information to any worker
concerning any matter required to be disclosed under this
subtitle.
(3) Required disclosures.--The foreign labor recruiter
shall ascertain and disclose to the worker in writing in
English and in the primary language of the worker at the time
of the worker's recruitment, the following information:
(A) The identity and address of the employer and the
identity and address of the person conducting the recruiting
on behalf of the employer, including each subcontractor or
agent involved in such recruiting.
(B) A copy of the approved job order or work contract under
section 218 of the Immigration and Nationality Act, including
all assurances and terms and conditions of employment.
(C) A statement, in a form specified by the Secretary--
(i) describing the general terms and conditions associated
with obtaining an H-2A visa and maintaining H-2A status;
(ii) affirming the prohibition on the assessment of fees
described in paragraph (1), and explaining that such fees, if
paid by the employer, may not be passed on to the worker;
(iii) describing the protections afforded the worker under
this subtitle, including procedures for reporting violations
to the Secretary of State, filing a complaint with the
Secretary of Labor, or filing a civil action; and
(iv) describing the protections afforded the worker by
section 202 of the William Wilberforce Trafficking Victims
Protection Reauthorization Act of 2008 (8 U.S.C. 1375b),
including the telephone number for the national human
trafficking resource center hotline number.
(4) Bond.--The foreign labor recruiter shall agree to
maintain a bond sufficient to ensure the ability of the
foreign labor recruiter to discharge its responsibilities and
ensure protection of workers, and to forfeit such bond in an
amount determined by the Secretary under subsections
(b)(1)(C)(ii) or (c)(2)(C) of section 252 for failure to
comply with the provisions of this subtitle.
(5) Cooperation in investigation.--The foreign labor
recruiter shall agree to cooperate in any investigation under
section 252 of this subtitle by the Secretary or other
appropriate authorities.
(6) No retaliation.--The foreign labor recruiter shall
agree to refrain from intimidating, threatening, restraining,
coercing, discharging, blacklisting or in any other manner
discriminating or retaliating against any worker or their
family members (including a former worker or an applicant for
employment) because such worker disclosed information to any
person based on a reason to believe that the foreign labor
recruiter, or any agent or subcontractee of such foreign
labor recruiter, is engaging or has engaged in a foreign
labor recruiting activity that does not comply with this
subtitle.
[[Page H10060]]
(7) Employees, agents, and subcontractees.--The foreign
labor recruiter shall consent to be liable for the conduct of
any agents or subcontractees of any level in relation to the
foreign labor recruiting activity of the agent or
subcontractee to the same extent as if the foreign labor
recruiter had engaged in such conduct.
(8) Enforcement.--If the foreign labor recruiter is
conducting foreign labor recruiting activity wholly outside
the United States, such foreign labor recruiter shall
establish a registered agent in the United States who is
authorized to accept service of process on behalf of the
foreign labor recruiter for the purpose of any administrative
proceeding under this title or any Federal court civil
action, if such service is made in accordance with the
appropriate Federal rules for service of process.
(d) Term of Registration.--Unless suspended or revoked, a
registration under this section shall be valid for 2 years.
(e) Application Fee.--The Secretary shall require a foreign
labor recruiter that submits an application for registration
under this section to pay a reasonable fee, sufficient to
cover the full costs of carrying out the registration
activities under this subtitle.
(f) Notification.--
(1) Employer notification.--
(A) In general.--Not less frequently than once every year,
an employer of H-2A workers shall provide the Secretary with
the names and addresses of all foreign labor recruiters
engaged to perform foreign labor recruiting activity on
behalf of the employer, whether the foreign labor recruiter
is to receive any economic compensation for such services,
and, if so, the identity of the person or entity who is
paying for the services.
(B) Agreement to cooperate.--In addition to the
requirements of subparagraph (A), the employer shall--
(i) provide to the Secretary the identity of any foreign
labor recruiter whom the employer has reason to believe is
engaging in foreign labor recruiting activities that do not
comply with this subtitle; and
(ii) promptly respond to any request by the Secretary for
information regarding the identity of a foreign labor
recruiter with whom the employer has a contract or other
agreement.
(2) Foreign labor recruiter notification.--A registered
foreign labor recruiter shall notify the Secretary, not less
frequently than once every year, of the identity of any
subcontractee, agent, or foreign labor recruiter employee
involved in any foreign labor recruiting activity for, or on
behalf of, the foreign labor recruiter.
(g) Additional Responsibilities of the Secretary of
State.--
(1) Lists.--The Secretary of State, in consultation with
the Secretary of Labor shall maintain and make publicly
available in written form and on the websites of United
States embassies in the official language of that country,
and on websites maintained by the Secretary of Labor,
regularly updated lists--
(A) of foreign labor recruiters who hold valid
registrations under this section, including--
(i) the name and address of the foreign labor recruiter;
(ii) the countries in which such recruiters conduct
recruitment;
(iii) the employers for whom recruiting is conducted;
(iv) the occupations that are the subject of recruitment;
(v) the States where recruited workers are employed; and
(vi) the name and address of the registered agent in the
United States who is authorized to accept service of process
on behalf of the foreign labor recruiter; and
(B) of foreign labor recruiters whose registration the
Secretary has revoked.
(2) Personnel.--The Secretary of State shall ensure that
each United States diplomatic mission is staffed with a
person who shall be responsible for receiving information
from members of the public regarding potential violations of
the requirements applicable to registered foreign labor
recruiters and ensuring that such information is conveyed to
the Secretary of Labor for evaluation and initiation of an
enforcement action, if appropriate.
(3) Visa application procedures.--The Secretary shall
ensure that consular officers issuing visas to nonimmigrants
under section 101(a)(1)(H)(ii)(a) of the Immigration and
Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 11001(a)(1)(H)(ii)(a))--
(A) provide to and review with the applicant, in the
applicant's language (or a language the applicant
understands), a copy of the information and resources
pamphlet required by section 202 of the William Wilberforce
Trafficking Victims Protection Reauthorization Act of 2008 (8
U.S.C. 1375b);
(B) ensure that the applicant has a copy of the approved
job offer or work contract;
(C) note in the visa application file whether the foreign
labor recruiter has a valid registration under this section;
and
(D) if the foreign labor recruiter holds a valid
registration, review and include in the visa application
file, the foreign labor recruiter's disclosures required by
subsection (c)(3).
(4) Data.--The Secretary of State shall make publicly
available online, on an annual basis, data disclosing the
gender, country of origin (and State, county, or province, if
available), age, wage, level of training, and occupational
classification, disaggregated by State, of nonimmigrant
workers described in section 101(a)(15)(H)(ii)(a) of the
Immigration and Nationality Act.
SEC. 252. ENFORCEMENT.
(a) Denial or Revocation of Registration.--
(1) Grounds for denial or revocation.--The Secretary shall
deny an application for registration, or revoke a
registration, if the Secretary determines that the foreign
labor recruiter, or any agent or subcontractee of such
foreign labor recruiter--
(A) knowingly made a material misrepresentation in the
registration application;
(B) materially failed to comply with one or more of the
attestations provided under section 251(c); or
(C) is not the real party in interest.
(2) Notice.--Prior to denying an application for
registration or revoking a registration under this
subsection, the Secretary shall provide written notice of the
intent to deny or revoke the registration to the foreign
labor recruiter. Such notice shall--
(A) articulate with specificity all grounds for denial or
revocation; and
(B) provide the foreign labor recruiter with not less than
60 days to respond.
(3) Re-registration.--A foreign labor recruiter whose
registration was revoked under subsection (a) may re-register
if the foreign labor recruiter demonstrates to the
Secretary's satisfaction that the foreign labor recruiter has
not violated this subtitle in the 5 years preceding the date
an application for registration is filed and has taken
sufficient steps to prevent future violations of this
subtitle.
(b) Administrative Enforcement.--
(1) Complaint process.--
(A) Filing.--A complaint may be filed with the Secretary of
Labor, in accordance with the procedures established under
section 251(b)(4) not later than 2 years after the earlier
of--
(i) the date of the last action which constituted the
conduct that is the subject of the complaint took place; or
(ii) the date on which the aggrieved party had actual
knowledge of such conduct.
(B) Decision and penalties.--If the Secretary of Labor
finds, after notice and an opportunity for a hearing, that a
foreign labor recruiter failed to comply with any of the
requirements of this subtitle, the Secretary of Labor may--
(i) levy a fine against the foreign labor recruiter in an
amount not more than--
(I) $10,000 per violation; and
(II) $25,000 per violation, upon the third violation;
(ii) order the forfeiture (or partial forfeiture) of the
bond and release of as much of the bond as the Secretary
determines is necessary for the worker to recover prohibited
recruitment fees;
(iii) refuse to issue or renew a registration, or revoke a
registration; or
(iv) disqualify the foreign labor recruiter from
registration for a period of up to 5 years, or in the case of
a subsequent finding involving willful or multiple material
violations, permanently disqualify the foreign labor
recruiter from registration.
(2) Authority to ensure compliance.--The Secretary of Labor
is authorized to take other such actions, including issuing
subpoenas and seeking appropriate injunctive relief, as may
be necessary to assure compliance with the terms and
conditions of this subtitle.
(3) Statutory construction.--Nothing in this subsection may
be construed as limiting the authority of the Secretary of
Labor to conduct an investigation--
(A) under any other law, including any law affecting
migrant and seasonal agricultural workers; or
(B) in the absence of a complaint.
(c) Civil Action.--
(1) In general.--The Secretary of Labor or any person
aggrieved by a violation of this subtitle may bring a civil
action against any foreign labor recruiter, or any employer
that does not meet the requirements under subsection (d)(1),
in any court of competent jurisdiction--
(A) to seek remedial action, including injunctive relief;
and
(B) for damages in accordance with the provisions of this
subsection.
(2) Award for civil action filed by an individual.--
(A) In general.--If the court finds in a civil action filed
by an individual under this section that the defendant has
violated any provision of this subtitle, the court may
award--
(i) damages, up to and including an amount equal to the
amount of actual damages, and statutory damages of up to
$1,000 per plaintiff per violation, or other equitable
relief, except that with respect to statutory damages--
(I) multiple infractions of a single provision of this
subtitle (or of a regulation under this subtitle) shall
constitute only 1 violation for purposes of this subsection
to determine the amount of statutory damages due a plaintiff;
and
(II) if such complaint is certified as a class action the
court may award--
(aa) damages up to an amount equal to the amount of actual
damages; and
(bb) statutory damages of not more than the lesser of up to
$1,000 per class member per violation, or up to $500,000; and
other equitable relief;
(ii) reasonable attorneys' fees and costs; and
(iii) such other and further relief as necessary to
effectuate the purposes of this subtitle.
(B) Criteria.--In determining the amount of statutory
damages to be awarded under subparagraph (A), the court is
authorized to consider whether an attempt was made to resolve
the issues in dispute before the resort to litigation.
(C) Bond.--To satisfy the damages, fees, and costs found
owing under this paragraph, the Secretary shall release as
much of the bond held pursuant to section 251(c)(4) as
necessary.
(3) Sums recovered in actions by the secretary of labor.--
(A) Establishment of account.--There is established in the
general fund of the Treasury a separate account, which shall
be known as the ``H-2A Foreign Labor Recruiter Compensation
[[Page H10061]]
Account''. Notwithstanding any other provisions of law, there
shall be deposited as offsetting receipts into the account,
all sums recovered in an action by the Secretary of Labor
under this subsection.
(B) Use of funds.--Amounts deposited into the H-2A Foreign
Labor Recruiter Compensation Account and shall be paid
directly to each worker affected. Any such sums not paid to a
worker because of inability to do so within a period of 5
years following the date such funds are deposited into the
account shall remain available to the Secretary until
expended. The Secretary may transfer all or a portion of such
remaining sums to appropriate agencies to support the
enforcement of the laws prohibiting the trafficking and
exploitation of persons or programs that aid trafficking
victims.
(d) Employer Safe Harbor.--
(1) In general.--An employer that hires workers referred by
a foreign labor recruiter with a valid registration at the
time of hiring shall not be held jointly liable for a
violation committed solely by a foreign labor recruiter under
this subtitle--
(A) in any administrative action initiated by the Secretary
concerning such violation; or
(B) in any Federal or State civil court action filed
against the foreign labor recruiter by or on behalf of such
workers or other aggrieved party under this subtitle.
(2) Clarification.--Nothing in this subtitle shall be
construed to prohibit an aggrieved party or parties from
bringing a civil action for violations of this subtitle or
any other Federal or State law against any employer who hired
workers referred by a foreign labor recruiter--
(A) without a valid registration at the time of hire; or
(B) with a valid registration if the employer knew or
learned of the violation and failed to report such violation
to the Secretary.
(e) Parole to Pursue Relief.--If other immigration relief
is not available, the Secretary of Homeland Security may
grant parole to permit an individual to remain legally in the
United States for time sufficient to fully and effectively
participate in all legal proceedings related to any action
taken pursuant to subsection (b) or (c).
(f) Waiver of Rights.--Agreements by employees purporting
to waive or to modify their rights under this subtitle shall
be void as contrary to public policy.
(g) Liability for Agents.--Foreign labor recruiters shall
be subject to the provisions of this section for violations
committed by the foreign labor recruiter's agents or
subcontractees of any level in relation to their foreign
labor recruiting activity to the same extent as if the
foreign labor recruiter had committed the violation.
SEC. 253. APPROPRIATIONS.
There is authorized to be appropriated such sums as may be
necessary for the Secretary of Labor and Secretary of State
to carry out the provisions of this subtitle.
SEC. 254. DEFINITIONS.
For purposes of this subtitle:
(1) Foreign labor recruiter.--The term ``foreign labor
recruiter'' means any person who performs foreign labor
recruiting activity in exchange for money or other valuable
consideration paid or promised to be paid, to recruit
individuals to work as nonimmigrant workers described in
section 101(a)(15)(H)(ii)(a) of the Immigration and
Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1101(a)(15)(H)(ii)(a)), including
any person who performs foreign labor recruiting activity
wholly outside of the United States. Such term does not
include any entity of the United States Government or an
employer, or employee of an employer, who engages in foreign
labor recruiting activity solely to find employees for that
employer's own use, and without the participation of any
other foreign labor recruiter.
(2) Foreign labor recruiting activity.--The term ``foreign
labor recruiting activity'' means recruiting, soliciting, or
related activities with respect to an individual who resides
outside of the United States in furtherance of employment in
the United States, including when such activity occurs wholly
outside of the United States.
(3) Recruitment fees.--The term ``recruitment fees'' has
the meaning given to such term under section 22.1702 of title
22 of the Code of Federal Regulations, as in effect on the
date of enactment of this Act.
(4) Person.--The term ``person'' means any natural person
or any corporation, company, firm, partnership, joint stock
company or association or other organization or entity
(whether organized under law or not), including municipal
corporations.
TITLE III--ELECTRONIC VERIFICATION OF EMPLOYMENT ELIGIBILITY
SEC. 301. ELECTRONIC EMPLOYMENT ELIGIBILITY VERIFICATION
SYSTEM.
(a) In General.--Chapter 8 of title II of the Immigration
and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1321 et seq.) is amended by
inserting after section 274D the following:
``SEC. 274E. REQUIREMENTS FOR THE ELECTRONIC VERIFICATION OF
EMPLOYMENT ELIGIBILITY.
``(a) Employment Eligibility Verification System.--
``(1) In general.--The Secretary of Homeland Security
(referred to in this section as the `Secretary') shall
establish and administer an electronic verification system
(referred to in this section as the `System'), patterned on
the E-Verify Program described in section 403(a) of the
Illegal Immigration Reform and Immigrant Responsibility Act
of 1996 (8 U.S.C. 1324a note) (as in effect on the day before
the effective date described in section 303(a)(4) of the Farm
Workforce Modernization Act of 2019), and using the
employment eligibility confirmation system established under
section 404 of such Act (8 U.S.C. 1324a note) (as so in
effect) as a foundation, through which the Secretary shall--
``(A) respond to inquiries made by persons or entities
seeking to verify the identity and employment authorization
of individuals that such persons or entities seek to hire, or
to recruit or refer for a fee, for employment in the United
States; and
``(B) maintain records of the inquiries that were made, and
of verifications provided (or not provided) to such persons
or entities as evidence of compliance with the requirements
of this section.
``(2) Initial response deadline.--The System shall provide
confirmation or a tentative nonconfirmation of an
individual's identity and employment authorization as soon as
practicable, but not later than 3 calendar days after the
initial inquiry.
``(3) General design and operation of system.--The
Secretary shall design and operate the System--
``(A) using responsive web design and other technologies to
maximize its ease of use and accessibility for users on a
variety of electronic devices and screen sizes, and in remote
locations;
``(B) to maximize the accuracy of responses to inquiries
submitted by persons or entities;
``(C) to maximize the reliability of the System and to
register each instance when the System is unable to receive
inquiries;
``(D) to protect the privacy and security of the personally
identifiable information maintained by or submitted to the
System;
``(E) to provide direct notification of an inquiry to an
individual with respect to whom the inquiry is made,
including the results of such inquiry, and information
related to the process for challenging the results, in cases
in which the individual has established a user account as
described in paragraph (4)(B) or an electronic mail address
for the individual is submitted by the person or entity at
the time the inquiry is made; and
``(F) to maintain appropriate administrative, technical,
and physical safeguards to prevent misuse of the System and
unfair immigration-related employment practices.
``(4) Measures to prevent identity theft and other forms of
fraud.--To prevent identity theft and other forms of fraud,
the Secretary shall design and operate the System with the
following attributes:
``(A) Photo matching tool.--The System shall display the
digital photograph of the individual, if any, that
corresponds to the document presented by an individual to
establish identity and employment authorization so that the
person or entity that makes an inquiry can compare the
photograph displayed by the System to the photograph on the
document presented by the individual.
``(B) Individual monitoring and suspension of identifying
information.--The System shall enable individuals to
establish user accounts, after authentication of an
individual's identity, that would allow an individual to--
``(i) confirm the individual's own employment
authorization;
``(ii) receive electronic notification when the
individual's social security account number or other
personally identifying information has been submitted to the
System;
``(iii) monitor the use history of the individual's
personally identifying information in the System, including
the identities of all persons or entities that have submitted
such identifying information to the System, the date of each
query run, and the System response for each query run;
``(iv) suspend or limit the use of the individual's social
security account number or other personally identifying
information for purposes of the System; and
``(v) provide notice to the Department of Homeland Security
of any suspected identity fraud or other improper use of
personally identifying information.
``(C) Blocking misused social security account numbers.--
``(i) In general.--The Secretary, in consultation with the
Commissioner of Social Security (referred to in this section
as the `Commissioner'), shall develop, after publication in
the Federal Register and an opportunity for public comment, a
process in which social security account numbers that have
been identified to be subject to unusual multiple use in the
System or that are otherwise suspected or determined to have
been compromised by identity fraud or other misuse, shall be
blocked from use in the System unless the individual using
such number is able to establish, through secure and fair
procedures, that the individual is the legitimate holder of
the number.
``(ii) Notice.--If the Secretary blocks or suspends a
social security account number under this subparagraph, the
Secretary shall provide notice to the persons or entities
that have made inquiries to the System using such account
number that the identity and employment authorization of the
individual who provided such account number must be re-
verified.
``(D) Additional identity authentication tool.--The
Secretary shall develop, after publication in the Federal
Register and an opportunity for public comment, additional
security measures to adequately verify the identity of an
individual whose identity may not be verified using the photo
tool described in subparagraph (A). Such additional security
measures--
``(i) shall be kept up-to-date with technological advances;
and
``(ii) shall be designed to provide a high level of
certainty with respect to identity authentication.
``(E) Child-lock pilot program.--The Secretary, in
consultation with the Commissioner, shall establish a
reliable, secure program through which parents or legal
guardians may suspend or limit the use of the social security
account number or other personally identifying
[[Page H10062]]
information of a minor under their care for purposes of the
System. The Secretary may implement the program on a limited
pilot basis before making it fully available to all
individuals.
``(5) Responsibilities of the commissioner of social
security.--The Commissioner, in consultation with the
Secretary, shall establish a reliable, secure method, which,
within the time periods specified in paragraph (2) and
subsection (b)(4)(D)(i)(II), compares the name and social
security account number provided in an inquiry against such
information maintained by the Commissioner in order to
validate (or not validate) the information provided by the
person or entity with respect to an individual whose identity
and employment authorization the person or entity seeks to
confirm, the correspondence of the name and number, and
whether the individual has presented a social security
account number that is not valid for employment. The
Commissioner shall not disclose or release social security
information (other than such confirmation or nonconfirmation)
under the System except as provided under this section.
``(6) Responsibilities of the secretary of homeland
security.--
``(A) In general.--The Secretary of Homeland Security shall
establish a reliable, secure method, which, within the time
periods specified in paragraph (2) and subsection
(b)(4)(D)(i)(II), compares the name and identification or
other authorization number (or any other information
determined relevant by the Secretary) which are provided in
an inquiry against such information maintained or accessed by
the Secretary in order to validate (or not validate) the
information provided, the correspondence of the name and
number, and whether the individual is authorized to be
employed in the United States.
``(B) Training.--The Secretary shall provide and regularly
update training materials on the use of the System for
persons and entities making inquiries.
``(C) Audit.--The Secretary shall provide for periodic
auditing of the System to detect and prevent misuse,
discrimination, fraud, and identity theft, to protect privacy
and assess System accuracy, and to preserve the integrity and
security of the information in the System.
``(D) Notice of system changes.--The Secretary shall
provide appropriate notification to persons and entities
registered in the System of any change made by the Secretary
or the Commissioner related to permitted and prohibited
documents, and use of the System.
``(7) Responsibilities of the secretary of state.--As part
of the System, the Secretary of State shall provide to the
Secretary of Homeland Security access to passport and visa
information as needed to confirm that a passport or passport
card presented under subsection (b)(3)(A)(i) confirms the
employment authorization and identity of the individual
presenting such document, and that a passport, passport card,
or visa photograph matches the Secretary of State's records,
and shall provide such assistance as the Secretary of
Homeland Security may request in order to resolve tentative
nonconfirmations or final nonconfirmations relating to such
information.
``(8) Updating information.--The Commissioner, the
Secretary of Homeland Security, and the Secretary of State
shall update records in their custody in a manner that
promotes maximum accuracy of the System and shall provide a
process for the prompt correction of erroneous information,
including instances in which it is brought to their attention
through the tentative nonconfirmation review process under
subsection (b)(4)(D).
``(9) Mandatory and voluntary system uses.--
``(A) Mandatory users.--Except as otherwise provided under
Federal or State law, such as sections 302 and 303 of the
Farm Workforce Modernization Act of 2019, nothing in this
section shall be construed as requiring the use of the System
by any person or entity hiring, recruiting, or referring for
a fee, an individual for employment in the United States.
``(B) Voluntary users.--Beginning after the date that is 30
days after the date on which final rules are published under
section 309(a) of the Farm Workforce Modernization Act of
2019, a person or entity may use the System on a voluntary
basis to seek verification of the identity and employment
authorization of individuals the person or entity is hiring,
recruiting, or referring for a fee for employment in the
United States
``(C) Process for non-users.--The employment verification
process for any person or entity hiring, recruiting, or
referring for a fee, an individual for employment in the
United States shall be governed by section 274A(b) unless the
person or entity--
``(i) is required by Federal or State law to use the
System; or
``(ii) has opted to use the System voluntarily in
accordance with subparagraph (B).
``(10) No fee for use.--The Secretary may not charge a fee
to an individual, person, or entity related to the use of the
System.
``(b) New Hires, Recruitment, and Referral.--
Notwithstanding section 274A(b), the requirements referred to
in paragraphs (1)(B) and (3) of section 274A(a) are, in the
case of a person or entity that uses the System for the
hiring, recruiting, or referring for a fee, an individual for
employment in the United States, the following:
``(1) Individual attestation of employment authorization.--
During the period beginning on the date on which an offer of
employment is accepted and ending on the date of hire, the
individual shall attest, under penalty of perjury on a form
designated by the Secretary, that the individual is
authorized to be employed in the United States by providing
on such form--
``(A) the individual's name and date of birth;
``(B) the individual's social security account number
(unless the individual has applied for and not yet been
issued such a number);
``(C) whether the individual is--
``(i) a citizen or national of the United States;
``(ii) an alien lawfully admitted for permanent residence;
or
``(iii) an alien who is otherwise authorized by the
Secretary to be hired, recruited, or referred for employment
in the United States; and
``(D) if the individual does not attest to United States
citizenship or nationality, such identification or other
authorization number established by the Department of
Homeland Security for the alien as the Secretary may specify.
``(2) Employer attestation after examination of
documents.--Not later than 3 business days after the date of
hire, the person or entity shall attest, under penalty of
perjury on the form designated by the Secretary for purposes
of paragraph (1), that it has verified that the individual is
not an unauthorized alien by--
``(A) obtaining from the individual the information
described in paragraph (1) and recording such information on
the form;
``(B) examining--
``(i) a document described in paragraph (3)(A); or
``(ii) a document described in paragraph (3)(B) and a
document described in paragraph (3)(C); and
``(C) attesting that the information recorded on the form
is consistent with the documents examined.
``(3) Acceptable documents.--
``(A) Documents establishing employment authorization and
identity.--A document described in this subparagraph is an
individual's--
``(i) United States passport or passport card;
``(ii) permanent resident card that contains a photograph;
``(iii) foreign passport containing temporary evidence of
lawful permanent residence in the form of an official I-551
(or successor) stamp from the Department of Homeland Security
or a printed notation on a machine-readable immigrant visa;
``(iv) unexpired employment authorization card that
contains a photograph;
``(v) in the case of a nonimmigrant alien authorized to
engage in employment for a specific employer incident to
status, a foreign passport with Form I-94, Form I-94A, or
other documentation as designated by the Secretary specifying
the alien's nonimmigrant status as long as such status has
not yet expired and the proposed employment is not in
conflict with any restrictions or limitations identified in
the documentation;
``(vi) passport from the Federated States of Micronesia or
the Republic of the Marshall Islands with Form I-94, Form I-
94A, or other documentation as designated by the Secretary,
indicating nonimmigrant admission under the Compact of Free
Association Between the United States and the Federated
States of Micronesia or the Republic of the Marshall Islands;
or
``(vii) other document designated by the Secretary, by
notice published in the Federal Register, if the document--
``(I) contains a photograph of the individual, biometric
identification data, and other personal identifying
information relating to the individual;
``(II) is evidence of authorization for employment in the
United States; and
``(III) contains security features to make it resistant to
tampering, counterfeiting, and fraudulent use.
``(B) Documents establishing employment authorization.--A
document described in this subparagraph is--
``(i) an individual's social security account number card
(other than such a card which specifies on the face that the
issuance of the card does not authorize employment in the
United States); or
``(ii) a document establishing employment authorization
that the Secretary determines, by notice published in the
Federal Register, to be acceptable for purposes of this
subparagraph, provided that such documentation contains
security features to make it resistant to tampering,
counterfeiting, and fraudulent use.
``(C) Documents establishing identity.--A document
described in this subparagraph is--
``(i) an individual's driver's license or identification
card if it was issued by a State or one of the outlying
possessions of the United States and contains a photograph
and personal identifying information relating to the
individual;
``(ii) an individual's unexpired United States military
identification card;
``(iii) an individual's unexpired Native American tribal
identification document issued by a tribal entity recognized
by the Bureau of Indian Affairs;
``(iv) in the case of an individual under 18 years of age,
a parent or legal guardian's attestation under penalty of law
as to the identity and age of the individual; or
``(v) a document establishing identity that the Secretary
determines, by notice published in the Federal Register, to
be acceptable for purposes of this subparagraph, if such
documentation contains a photograph of the individual,
biometric identification data, and other personal identifying
information relating to the individual, and security features
to make it resistant to tampering, counterfeiting, and
fraudulent use.
``(D) Authority to prohibit use of certain documents.--If
the Secretary finds that any document or class of documents
described in subparagraph (A), (B), or (C) does not reliably
establish identity or employment authorization or is being
used fraudulently to an unacceptable degree, the Secretary
may, by notice published in the Federal Register, prohibit or
place conditions on the use of such document or class of
documents for purposes of this section.
``(4) Use of the system to screen identity and employment
authorization.--
``(A) In general.--In the case of a person or entity that
uses the System for the hiring, recruiting, or referring for
a fee an individual for
[[Page H10063]]
employment in the United States, during the period described
in subparagraph (B), the person or entity shall submit an
inquiry through the System described in subsection (a) to
seek verification of the identity and employment
authorization of the individual.
``(B) Verification period.--
``(i) In general.--Except as provided in clause (ii), and
subject to subsection (d), the verification period shall
begin on the date of hire and end on the date that is 3
business days after the date of hire, or such other
reasonable period as the Secretary may prescribe.
``(ii) Special rule.--In the case of an alien who is
authorized to be employed in the United States and who
provides evidence from the Social Security Administration
that the alien has applied for a social security account
number, the verification period shall end 3 business days
after the alien receives the social security account number.
``(C) Confirmation.--If a person or entity receives
confirmation of an individual's identity and employment
authorization, the person or entity shall record such
confirmation on the form designated by the Secretary for
purposes of paragraph (1).
``(D) Tentative nonconfirmation.--
``(i) In general.--In cases of tentative nonconfirmation,
the Secretary shall provide, in consultation with the
Commissioner, a process for--
``(I) an individual to contest the tentative
nonconfirmation not later than 10 business days after the
date of the receipt of the notice described in clause (ii);
and
``(II) the Secretary to issue a confirmation or final
nonconfirmation of an individual's identity and employment
authorization not later than 30 calendar days after the
Secretary receives notice from the individual contesting a
tentative nonconfirmation.
``(ii) Notice.--If a person or entity receives a tentative
nonconfirmation of an individual's identity or employment
authorization, the person or entity shall, not later than 3
business days after receipt, notify such individual in
writing in a language understood by the individual and on a
form designated by the Secretary, that shall include a
description of the individual's right to contest the
tentative nonconfirmation. The person or entity shall attest,
under penalty of perjury, that the person or entity provided
(or attempted to provide) such notice to the individual, and
the individual shall acknowledge receipt of such notice in a
manner specified by the Secretary.
``(iii) No contest.--
``(I) In general.--A tentative nonconfirmation shall become
final if, upon receiving the notice described in clause (ii),
the individual--
``(aa) refuses to acknowledge receipt of such notice;
``(bb) acknowledges in writing, in a manner specified by
the Secretary, that the individual will not contest the
tentative nonconfirmation; or
``(cc) fails to contest the tentative nonconfirmation
within the 10-business-day period beginning on the date the
individual received such notice.
``(II) Record of no contest.--The person or entity shall
indicate in the System that the individual did not contest
the tentative nonconfirmation and shall specify the reason
the tentative nonconfirmation became final under subclause
(I).
``(III) Effect of failure to contest.--An individual's
failure to contest a tentative nonconfirmation shall not be
considered an admission of any fact with respect to any
violation of this Act or any other provision of law.
``(iv) Contest.--
``(I) In general.--An individual may contest a tentative
nonconfirmation by using the tentative nonconfirmation review
process under clause (i), not later than 10 business days
after receiving the notice described in clause (ii). Except
as provided in clause (iii), the nonconfirmation shall remain
tentative until a confirmation or final nonconfirmation is
provided by the System.
``(II) Prohibition on termination.--In no case shall a
person or entity terminate employment or take any adverse
employment action against an individual for failure to obtain
confirmation of the individual's identity and employment
authorization until the person or entity receives a notice of
final nonconfirmation from the System. Nothing in this
subclause shall prohibit an employer from terminating the
employment of the individual for any other lawful reason.
``(III) Confirmation or final nonconfirmation.--The
Secretary, in consultation with the Commissioner, shall issue
notice of a confirmation or final nonconfirmation of the
individual's identity and employment authorization not later
than 30 calendar days after the date the Secretary receives
notice from the individual contesting the tentative
nonconfirmation.
``(E) Final nonconfirmation.--
``(i) Notice.--If a person or entity receives a final
nonconfirmation of an individual's identity or employment
authorization, the person or entity shall, not later than 3
business days after receipt, notify such individual of the
final nonconfirmation in writing, on a form designated by the
Secretary, which shall include information regarding the
individual's right to appeal the final nonconfirmation as
provided under subparagraph (F). The person or entity shall
attest, under penalty of perjury, that the person or entity
provided (or attempted to provide) the notice to the
individual, and the individual shall acknowledge receipt of
such notice in a manner designated by the Secretary.
``(ii) Termination or notification of continued
employment.--If a person or entity receives a final
nonconfirmation regarding an individual, the person or entity
may terminate employment of the individual. If the person or
entity does not terminate such employment pending appeal of
the final nonconfirmation, the person or entity shall notify
the Secretary of such fact through the System. Failure to
notify the Secretary in accordance with this clause shall be
deemed a violation of section 274A(a)(1)(A).
``(iii) Presumption of violation for continued
employment.--If a person or entity continues to employ an
individual after receipt of a final nonconfirmation, there
shall be a rebuttable presumption that the person or entity
has violated paragraphs (1)(A) and (a)(2) of section 274A(a).
``(F) Appeal of final nonconfirmation.--
``(i) Administrative appeal.--The Secretary, in
consultation with the Commissioner, shall develop a process
by which an individual may seek administrative review of a
final nonconfirmation. Such process shall--
``(I) permit the individual to submit additional evidence
establishing identity or employment authorization;
``(II) ensure prompt resolution of an appeal (but in no
event shall there be a failure to respond to an appeal within
30 days); and
``(III) permit the Secretary to impose a civil money
penalty (not to exceed $500) on an individual upon finding
that an appeal was frivolous or filed for purposes of delay.
``(ii) Compensation for lost wages resulting from
government error or omission.--
``(I) In general.--If, upon consideration of an appeal of a
final nonconfirmation, the Secretary determines that the
final nonconfirmation was issued in error, the Secretary
shall further determine whether the final nonconfirmation was
the result of government error or omission. If the Secretary
determines that the final nonconfirmation was solely the
result of government error or omission and the individual was
terminated from employment, the Secretary shall compensate
the individual for lost wages.
``(II) Calculation of lost wages.--Lost wages shall be
calculated based on the wage rate and work schedule that were
in effect prior to the individual's termination. The
individual shall be compensated for lost wages beginning on
the first scheduled work day after employment was terminated
and ending 90 days after completion of the administrative
review process described in this subparagraph or the day the
individual is reinstated or obtains other employment,
whichever occurs first.
``(III) Limitation on compensation.--No compensation for
lost wages shall be awarded for any period during which the
individual was not authorized for employment in the United
States.
``(IV) Source of funds.--There is established in the
general fund of the Treasury, a separate account which shall
be known as the `Electronic Verification Compensation
Account'. Fees collected under subsections (f) and (g) shall
be deposited in the Electronic Verification Compensation
Account and shall remain available for purposes of providing
compensation for lost wages under this subclause.
``(iii) Judicial review.--Not later than 30 days after the
dismissal of an appeal under this subparagraph, an individual
may seek judicial review of such dismissal in the United
States District Court in the jurisdiction in which the
employer resides or conducts business.
``(5) Retention of verification records.--
``(A) In general.--After completing the form designated by
the Secretary in accordance with paragraphs (1) and (2), the
person or entity shall retain the form in paper, microfiche,
microfilm, electronic, or other format deemed acceptable by
the Secretary, and make it available for inspection by
officers of the Department of Homeland Security, the
Department of Justice, or the Department of Labor during the
period beginning on the date the verification is completed
and ending on the later of--
``(i) the date that is 3 years after the date of hire; or
``(ii) the date that is 1 year after the date on which the
individual's employment is terminated.
``(B) Copying of documentation permitted.--Notwithstanding
any other provision of law, a person or entity may copy a
document presented by an individual pursuant to this section
and may retain the copy, but only for the purpose of
complying with the requirements of this section.
``(c) Reverification of Previously Hired Individuals.--
``(1) Mandatory reverification.--In the case of a person or
entity that uses the System for the hiring, recruiting, or
referring for a fee an individual for employment in the
United States, the person or entity shall submit an inquiry
using the System to verify the identity and employment
authorization of--
``(A) an individual with a limited period of employment
authorization, within 3 business days before the date on
which such employment authorization expires; and
``(B) an individual, not later than 10 days after receiving
a notification from the Secretary requiring the verification
of such individual pursuant to subsection (a)(4)(C).
``(2) Reverification procedures.--The verification
procedures under subsection (b) shall apply to
reverifications under this subsection, except that employers
shall--
``(A) use a form designated by the Secretary for purposes
of this paragraph; and
``(B) retain the form in paper, microfiche, microfilm,
electronic, or other format deemed acceptable by the
Secretary, and make it available for inspection by officers
of the Department of Homeland Security, the Department of
Justice, or the Department of Labor during the period
beginning on the date the reverification commences and ending
on the later of--
``(i) the date that is 3 years after the date of
reverification; or
``(ii) the date that is 1 year after the date on which the
individual's employment is terminated.
[[Page H10064]]
``(3) Limitation on reverification.--Except as provided in
paragraph (1), a person or entity may not otherwise reverify
the identity and employment authorization of a current
employee, including an employee continuing in employment.
``(d) Good Faith Compliance.--
``(1) In general.--Except as otherwise provided in this
subsection, a person or entity that uses the System is
considered to have complied with the requirements of this
section notwithstanding a technical failure of the System, or
other technical or procedural failure to meet such
requirement if there was a good faith attempt to comply with
the requirement.
``(2) Exception for failure to correct after notice.--
Paragraph (1) shall not apply if--
``(A) the failure is not de minimis;
``(B) the Secretary has provided notice to the person or
entity of the failure, including an explanation as to why it
is not de minimis;
``(C) the person or entity has been provided a period of
not less than 30 days (beginning after the date of the
notice) to correct the failure; and
``(D) the person or entity has not corrected the failure
voluntarily within such period.
``(3) Exception for pattern or practice violators.--
Paragraph (1) shall not apply to a person or entity that has
engaged or is engaging in a pattern or practice of violations
of paragraph (1)(A) or (2) of section 274A(a).
``(4) Defense.--In the case of a person or entity that uses
the System for the hiring, recruiting, or referring for a fee
an individual for employment in the United States, the person
or entity shall not be liable to a job applicant, an
employee, the Federal Government, or a State or local
government, under Federal, State, or local criminal or civil
law, for any employment-related action taken with respect to
an employee in good-faith reliance on information provided by
the System. Such person or entity shall be deemed to have
established compliance with its obligations under this
section, absent a showing by the Secretary, by clear and
convincing evidence, that the employer had knowledge that an
employee is an unauthorized alien.
``(e) Limitations.--
``(1) No national identification card.--Nothing in this
section shall be construed to authorize, directly or
indirectly, the issuance or use of national identification
cards or the establishment of a national identification card.
``(2) Use of records.--Notwithstanding any other provision
of law, nothing in this section shall be construed to permit
or allow any department, bureau, or other agency of the
United States Government to utilize any information,
database, or other records assembled under this section for
any purpose other than the verification of identity and
employment authorization of an individual or to ensure the
secure, appropriate, and non-discriminatory use of the
System.
``(f) Penalties.--
``(1) In general.--Except as provided in this subsection,
the provisions of subsections (e) through (g) of section 274A
shall apply with respect to compliance with the provisions of
this section and penalties for non-compliance for persons or
entitles that use the System.
``(2) Cease and desist order with civil money penalties for
hiring, recruiting, and referral violations.--Notwithstanding
the civil money penalties set forth in section 274A(e)(4),
with respect to a violation of paragraph (1)(A) or (2) of
section 274A(a) by a person or entity that has hired,
recruited, or referred for a fee, an individual for
employment in the United States, a cease and desist order--
``(A) shall require the person or entity to pay a civil
penalty in an amount, subject to subsection (d), of--
``(i) not less than $2,500 and not more than $5,000 for
each unauthorized alien with respect to whom a violation of
either such subsection occurred;
``(ii) not less than $5,000 and not more than $10,000 for
each such alien in the case of a person or entity previously
subject to one order under this paragraph; or
``(iii) not less than $10,000 and not more than $25,000 for
each such alien in the case of a person or entity previously
subject to more than one order under this paragraph; and
``(B) may require the person or entity to take such other
remedial action as appropriate.
``(3) Order for civil money penalty for violations.--With
respect to a violation of section 274A(a)(1)(B), the order
under this paragraph shall require the person or entity to
pay a civil penalty in an amount, subject to paragraphs (4),
(5), and (6), of not less than $1,000 and not more than
$25,000 for each individual with respect to whom such
violation occurred. Failure by a person or entity to utilize
the System as required by law or providing information to the
System that the person or entity knows or reasonably believes
to be false, shall be treated as a violation of section
274A(a)(1)(A).
``(4) Exemption from penalty for good faith violation.--
``(A) In general.--A person or entity that uses the System
is presumed to have acted with knowledge for purposes of
paragraphs (1)(A) and (2) of section 274A(a) if the person or
entity fails to make an inquiry to verify the identity and
employment authorization of the individual through the
System.
``(B) Good faith exemption.--In the case of imposition of a
civil penalty under paragraph (2)(A) with respect to a
violation of paragraph (1)(A) or (2) of section 274A(a) for
hiring or continuation of employment or recruitment or
referral by a person or entity, and in the case of imposition
of a civil penalty under paragraph (3) for a violation of
section 274A(a)(1)(B) for hiring or recruitment or referral
by a person or entity, the penalty otherwise imposed may be
waived or reduced if the person or entity establishes that
the person or entity acted in good faith.
``(5) Mitigation elements.--For purposes of paragraphs
(2)(A) and (3), when assessing the level of civil money
penalties, in addition to the good faith of the person or
entity being charged, due consideration shall be given to the
size of the business, the seriousness of the violation,
whether or not the individual was an unauthorized alien, and
the history of previous violations.
``(6) Criminal penalty.--Notwithstanding section 274A(f)(1)
and the provisions of any other Federal law relating to fine
levels, any person or entity that is required to comply with
the provisions of this section and that engages in a pattern
or practice of violations of paragraph (1) or (2) of section
274A(a), shall be fined not more than $5,000 for each
unauthorized alien with respect to whom such a violation
occurs, imprisoned for not more than 18 months, or both.
``(7) Electronic verification compensation account.--Civil
money penalties collected under this subsection shall be
deposited in the Electronic Verification Compensation Account
for the purpose of compensating individuals for lost wages as
a result of a final nonconfirmation issued by the System that
was based on government error or omission, as set forth in
subsection (b)(4)(F)(ii)(IV).
``(8) Debarment.--
``(A) In general.--If a person or entity is determined by
the Secretary to be a repeat violator of paragraph (1)(A) or
(2) of section 274A(a) or is convicted of a crime under
section 274A, such person or entity may be considered for
debarment from the receipt of Federal contracts, grants, or
cooperative agreements in accordance with the debarment
standards and pursuant to the debarment procedures set forth
in the Federal Acquisition Regulation.
``(B) No contract, grant, agreement.--If the Secretary or
the Attorney General wishes to have a person or entity
considered for debarment in accordance with this paragraph,
and such a person or entity does not hold a Federal contract,
grant or cooperative agreement, the Secretary or Attorney
General shall refer the matter to the Administrator of
General Services to determine whether to list the person or
entity on the List of Parties Excluded from Federal
Procurement, and if so, for what duration and under what
scope.
``(C) Contract, grant, agreement.--If the Secretary or the
Attorney General wishes to have a person or entity considered
for debarment in accordance with this paragraph, and such
person or entity holds a Federal contract, grant, or
cooperative agreement, the Secretary or Attorney General
shall advise all agencies or departments holding a contract,
grant, or cooperative agreement with the person or entity of
the Government's interest in having the person or entity
considered for debarment, and after soliciting and
considering the views of all such agencies and departments,
the Secretary or Attorney General may refer the matter to the
appropriate lead agency to determine whether to list the
person or entity on the List of Parties Excluded from Federal
Procurement, and if so, for what duration and under what
scope.
``(D) Review.--Any decision to debar a person or entity in
accordance with this subsection shall be reviewable pursuant
to part 9.4 of the Federal Acquisition Regulation.
``(9) Preemption.--The provisions of this section preempt
any State or local law, ordinance, policy, or rule, including
any criminal or civil fine or penalty structure, relating to
the hiring, continued employment, or status verification for
employment eligibility purposes, of unauthorized aliens,
except that a State, locality, municipality, or political
subdivision may exercise its authority over business
licensing and similar laws as a penalty for failure to use
the System as required under this section.
``(g) Unfair Immigration-related Employment Practices and
the System.--
``(1) In general.--In addition to the prohibitions on
discrimination set forth in section 274B, it is an unfair
immigration-related employment practice for a person or
entity, in the course of utilizing the System--
``(A) to use the System for screening an applicant prior to
the date of hire;
``(B) to terminate the employment of an individual or take
any adverse employment action with respect to that individual
due to a tentative nonconfirmation issued by the System;
``(C) to use the System to screen any individual for any
purpose other than confirmation of identity and employment
authorization as provided in this section;
``(D) to use the System to verify the identity and
employment authorization of a current employee, including an
employee continuing in employment, other than reverification
authorized under subsection (c);
``(E) to use the System to discriminate based on national
origin or citizenship status;
``(F) to willfully fail to provide an individual with any
notice required under this title;
``(G) to require an individual to make an inquiry under the
self-verification procedures described in subsection
(a)(4)(B) or to provide the results of such an inquiry as a
condition of employment, or hiring, recruiting, or referring;
or
``(H) to terminate the employment of an individual or take
any adverse employment action with respect to that individual
based upon the need to verify the identity and employment
authorization of the individual as required by subsection
(b).
``(2) Preemployment screening and background check.--
Nothing in paragraph (1)(A) shall be construed to preclude a
preemployment screening or background check that is required
or permitted under any other provision of law.
``(3) Civil money penalties for discriminatory conduct.--
Notwithstanding section 274B(g)(2)(B)(iv), the penalties that
may be imposed by an administrative law judge with respect to
a finding that a person or entity has
[[Page H10065]]
engaged in an unfair immigration-related employment practice
described in paragraph (1) are--
``(A) not less than $1,000 and not more than $4,000 for
each individual discriminated against;
``(B) in the case of a person or entity previously subject
to a single order under this paragraph, not less than $4,000
and not more than $10,000 for each individual discriminated
against; and
``(C) in the case of a person or entity previously subject
to more than one order under this paragraph, not less than
$6,000 and not more than $20,000 for each individual
discriminated against.
``(4) Electronic verification compensation account.--Civil
money penalties collected under this subsection shall be
deposited in the Electronic Verification Compensation Account
for the purpose of compensating individuals for lost wages as
a result of a final nonconfirmation issued by the System that
was based on government error or omission, as set forth in
subsection (b)(4)(F)(ii)(IV).
``(h) Clarification.--All rights and remedies provided
under any Federal, State, or local law relating to workplace
rights, including but not limited to back pay, are available
to an employee despite--
``(1) the employee's status as an unauthorized alien during
or after the period of employment; or
``(2) the employer's or employee's failure to comply with
the requirements of this section.
``(i) Definition.--In this section, the term `date of hire'
means the date on which employment for pay or other
remuneration commences.''.
(b) Conforming Amendment.--The table of contents for the
Immigration and Nationality Act is amended by inserting after
the item relating to section 274D the following:
``Sec. 274E. Requirements for the electronic verification of employment
eligibility.''.
SEC. 302. MANDATORY ELECTRONIC VERIFICATION FOR THE
AGRICULTURAL INDUSTRY.
(a) In General.--The requirements for the electronic
verification of identity and employment authorization
described in section 274E of the Immigration and Nationality
Act, as inserted by section 301 of this Act, shall apply to a
person or entity hiring, recruiting, or referring for a fee
an individual for agricultural employment in the United
States in accordance with the effective dates set forth in
subsection (b).
(b) Effective Dates.--
(1) Hiring.--Subsection (a) shall apply to a person or
entity hiring an individual for agricultural employment in
the United States as follows:
(A) With respect to employers having 500 or more employees
in the United States on the date of the enactment of this
Act, on the date that is 6 months after completion of the
application period described in section 101(c).
(B) With respect to employers having 100 or more employees
in the United States (but less than 500 such employees) on
the date of the enactment of this Act, on the date that is 9
months after completion of the application period described
in section 101(c).
(C) With respect to employers having 20 or more employees
in the United States (but less than 100 such employees) on
the date of the enactment of this Act, on the date that is 12
months after completion of the application period described
in section 101(c).
(D) With respect to employers having 1 or more employees in
the United States, (but less than 20 such employees) on the
date of the enactment of this Act, on the date that is 15
months after completion of the application period described
in section 101(c).
(2) Recruiting and referring for a fee.--Subsection (a)
shall apply to a person or entity recruiting or referring for
a fee an individual for agricultural employment in the United
States on the date that is 12 months after completion of the
application period described in section 101(c).
(3) Transition rule.--Except as required under subtitle A
of title IV of the Illegal Immigration Reform and Immigrant
Responsibility Act of 1996 (8 U.S.C. 1324a note) (as in
effect on the day before the effective date described in
section 303(a)(4)), Executive Order 13465 (8 U.S.C. 1324a
note; relating to Government procurement), or any State law
requiring persons or entities to use the E-Verify Program
described in section 403(a) of the Illegal Immigration Reform
and Immigrant Responsibility Act of 1996 (8 U.S.C. 1324a
note) (as in effect on the day before the effective date
described in section 303(a)(4)), sections 274A and 274B of
the Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1324a and
1324b) shall apply to a person or entity hiring, recruiting,
or referring an individual for employment in the United
States until the applicable effective date under this
subsection.
(4) E-Verify voluntary users and others desiring early
compliance.--Nothing in this subsection shall be construed to
prohibit persons or entities, including persons or entities
that have voluntarily elected to participate in the E-Verify
Program described in section 403(a) of the Illegal
Immigration Reform and Immigrant Responsibility Act of 1996
(8 U.S.C. 1324a note) (as in effect on the day before the
effective date described in section 303(a)(4)), from seeking
early compliance on a voluntary basis.
(c) Rural Access to Assistance for Tentative
Nonconfirmation Review Process.--
(1) In general.--The Secretary of Homeland Security shall
coordinate with the Secretary of Agriculture, in consultation
with the Commissioner of Social Security, to create a process
for individuals to seek assistance in contesting a tentative
nonconfirmation as described in section 274E(b)(4)(D) of the
Immigration and Nationality Act, as inserted by section 301
of this Act, at local offices or service centers of the U.S.
Department of Agriculture.
(2) Staffing and resources.--The Secretary of Homeland
Security and Secretary of Agriculture shall ensure that local
offices and service centers of the U.S. Department of
Agriculture are staffed appropriately and have the resources
necessary to provide information and support to individuals
seeking the assistance described in paragraph (1), including
by facilitating communication between such individuals and
the Department of Homeland Security or the Social Security
Administration.
(3) Clarification.--Nothing in this subsection shall be
construed to delegate authority or transfer responsibility
for reviewing and resolving tentative nonconfirmations from
the Secretary of Homeland Security and the Commissioner of
Social Security to the Secretary of Agriculture.
(d) Document Establishing Employment Authorization and
Identity.--In accordance with section 274E(b)(3)(A)(vii) of
the Immigration and Nationality Act, as inserted by section
301 of this Act, and not later than 12 months after the
completion of the application period described in section
101(c) of this Act, the Secretary of Homeland Security shall
recognize documentary evidence of certified agricultural
worker status described in section 102(a)(2) of this Act as
valid proof of employment authorization and identity for
purposes of section 274E(b)(3)(A) of the Immigration and
Nationality Act, as inserted by section 301 of this Act.
(e) Agricultural Employment.--For purposes of this section,
the term ``agricultural employment'' means agricultural labor
or services, as defined by section 101(a)(15)(H)(ii) of the
Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C.
1101(a)(15)(H)(ii)), as amended by this Act.
SEC. 303. COORDINATION WITH E-VERIFY PROGRAM.
(a) Repeal.--
(1) In general.--Subtitle A of title IV of the Illegal
Immigration Reform and Immigrant Responsibility Act of 1996
(8 U.S.C. 1324a note) is repealed.
(2) Clerical amendment.--The table of sections, in section
1(d) of the Illegal Immigration Reform and Immigrant
Responsibility Act of 1996, is amended by striking the items
relating to subtitle A of title IV.
(3) References.--Any reference in any Federal, State, or
local law, Executive order, rule, regulation, or delegation
of authority, or any document of, or pertaining to, the
Department of Homeland Security, Department of Justice, or
the Social Security Administration, to the E-Verify Program
described in section 403(a) of the Illegal Immigration Reform
and Immigrant Responsibility Act of 1996 (8 U.S.C. 1324a
note), or to the employment eligibility confirmation system
established under section 404 of the Illegal Immigration
Reform and Immigrant Responsibility Act of 1996 (8 U.S.C.
1324a note), is deemed to refer to the employment eligibility
confirmation system established under section 274E of the
Immigration and Nationality Act, as inserted by section 301
of this Act.
(4) Effective date.--This subsection, and the amendments
made by this subsection, shall take effect on the date that
is 30 days after the date on which final rules are published
under section 309(a).
(b) Former E-Verify Mandatory Users, Including Federal
Contractors.--Beginning on the effective date in subsection
(a)(4), the Secretary of Homeland Security shall require
employers required to participate in the E-Verify Program
described in section 403(a) of the Illegal Immigration Reform
and Immigrant Responsibility Act of 1996 (8 U.S.C. 1324a
note) by reason of any Federal, State, or local law,
Executive order, rule, regulation, or delegation of
authority, including employers required to participate in
such program by reason of Federal acquisition laws (and
regulations promulgated under those laws, including the
Federal Acquisition Regulation), to comply with the
requirements of section 274E of the Immigration and
Nationality Act, as inserted by section 301 of this Act (and
any additional requirements of such Federal acquisition laws
and regulation) in lieu of any requirement to participate in
the E-Verify Program.
(c) Former E-Verify Voluntary Users.--Beginning on the
effective date in subsection (a)(4), the Secretary of
Homeland Security shall provide for the voluntary compliance
with the requirements of section 274E of the Immigration and
Nationality Act, as inserted by section 301 of this Act, by
employers voluntarily electing to participate in the E-Verify
Program described in section 403(a) of the Illegal
Immigration Reform and Immigrant Responsibility Act of 1996
(8 U.S.C. 1324a note) before such date.
SEC. 304. FRAUD AND MISUSE OF DOCUMENTS.
Section 1546(b) of title 18, United States Code, is
amended--
(1) in paragraph (1), by striking ``identification
document,'' and inserting ``identification document or
document meant to establish employment authorization,'';
(2) in paragraph (2), by striking ``identification
document'' and inserting ``identification document or
document meant to establish employment authorization,''; and
(3) in the matter following paragraph (3) by inserting ``or
section 274E(b)'' after ``section 274A(b)''.
SEC. 305. TECHNICAL AND CONFORMING AMENDMENTS.
(a) Unlawful Employment of Aliens.--Section 274A of the
Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1324a) is amended--
(1) in paragraph (1)(B)(ii) of subsection (a), by striking
``subsection (b).'' and inserting ``section 274B.''; and
(2) in the matter preceding paragraph (1) of subsection
(b), by striking ``The requirements referred'' and inserting
``Except as provided in section 274E, the requirements
referred''.
[[Page H10066]]
(b) Unfair Immigration-related Employment Practices.--
Section 274B(a)(1) of the Immigration and Nationality Act (8
U.S.C. 1324b(a)(1)) is amended in the matter preceding
subparagraph (A), by inserting ``including misuse of the
verification system as described in section 274E(g)'' after
``referral for a fee,''.
SEC. 306. PROTECTION OF SOCIAL SECURITY ADMINISTRATION
PROGRAMS.
(a) Funding Under Agreement.--Effective for fiscal years
beginning on or after October 1, 2019, the Commissioner and
the Secretary shall ensure that an agreement is in place
which shall--
(1) provide funds to the Commissioner for the full costs of
the responsibilities of the Commissioner with respect to
employment eligibility verification, including under this
title and the amendments made by this title, and including--
(A) acquiring, installing, and maintaining technological
equipment and systems necessary for the fulfillment of such
responsibilities, but only that portion of such costs that
are attributable exclusively to such responsibilities; and
(B) responding to individuals who contest a tentative
nonconfirmation or administratively appeal a final
nonconfirmation provided with respect to employment
eligibility verification;
(2) provide such funds annually in advance of the
applicable quarter based on an estimating methodology agreed
to by the Commissioner and the Secretary (except in such
instances where the delayed enactment of an annual
appropriation may preclude such quarterly payments); and
(3) require an annual accounting and reconciliation of the
actual costs incurred and the funds provided under the
agreement, which shall be reviewed by the Inspectors General
of the Social Security Administration and the Department of
Homeland Security.
(b) Continuation of Employment Verification in Absence of
Timely Agreement.--In any case in which the agreement
required under subsection (a) for any fiscal year beginning
on or after October 1, 2019, has not been reached as of
October 1 of such fiscal year, the latest agreement described
in such subsection shall be deemed in effect on an interim
basis for such fiscal year until such time as an agreement
required under subsection (a) is subsequently reached, except
that the terms of such interim agreement shall be modified to
adjust for inflation and any increase or decrease in the
volume of requests under the employment eligibility
verification system. In any case in which an interim
agreement applies for any fiscal year under this subsection,
the Commissioner and the Secretary shall, not later than
October 1 of such fiscal year, notify the Committee on Ways
and Means, the Committee on the Judiciary, and the Committee
on Appropriations of the House of Representatives and the
Committee on Finance, the Committee on the Judiciary, and the
Committee on Appropriations of the Senate of the failure to
reach the agreement required under subsection (a) for such
fiscal year. Until such time as the agreement required under
subsection (a) has been reached for such fiscal year, the
Commissioner and the Secretary shall, not later than the end
of each 90-day period after October 1 of such fiscal year,
notify such Committees of the status of negotiations between
the Commissioner and the Secretary in order to reach such an
agreement.
SEC. 307. REPORT ON THE IMPLEMENTATION OF THE ELECTRONIC
EMPLOYMENT VERIFICATION SYSTEM.
Not later than 24 months after the date on which final
rules are published under section 309(a), and annually
thereafter, the Secretary shall submit to Congress a report
that includes the following:
(1) An assessment of the accuracy rates of the responses of
the electronic employment verification system established
under section 274E of the Immigration and Nationality Act, as
inserted by section 301 of this Act (referred to in this
section as the ``System''), including tentative and final
nonconfirmation notices issued to employment-authorized
individuals and confirmation notices issued to individuals
who are not employment-authorized.
(2) An assessment of any challenges faced by persons or
entities (including small employers) in utilizing the System.
(3) An assessment of any challenges faced by employment-
authorized individuals who are issued tentative or final
nonconfirmation notices.
(4) An assessment of the incidence of unfair immigration-
related employment practices, as described in section 274E(g)
of the Immigration and Nationality Act, as inserted by
section 301 of this Act, related to the use of the System.
(5) An assessment of the photo matching and other identity
authentication tools, as described in section 274E(a)(4) of
the Immigration and Nationality Act, as inserted by section
301 of this Act, including--
(A) an assessment of the accuracy rates of such tools;
(B) an assessment of the effectiveness of such tools at
preventing identity fraud and other misuse of identifying
information;
(C) an assessment of any challenges faced by persons,
entities, or individuals utilizing such tools; and
(D) an assessment of operation and maintenance costs
associated with such tools.
(6) A summary of the activities and findings of the U.S.
Citizenship and Immigrations Services E-Verify Monitoring and
Compliance Branch, or any successor office, including--
(A) the number, types and outcomes of audits,
investigations, and other compliance activities initiated by
the Branch in the previous year;
(B) the capacity of the Branch to detect and prevent
violations of section 274E(g) of the Immigration and
Nationality Act, as inserted by this Act; and
(C) an assessment of the degree to which persons and
entities misuse the System, including--
(i) use of the System before an individual's date of hire;
(ii) failure to provide required notifications to
individuals;
(iii) use of the System to interfere with or otherwise
impede individuals' assertions of their rights under other
laws; and
(iv) use of the System for unauthorized purposes; and
(7) An assessment of the impact of implementation of the
System in the agricultural industry and the use of the
verification system in agricultural industry hiring and
business practices.
SEC. 308. MODERNIZING AND STREAMLINING THE EMPLOYMENT
ELIGIBILITY VERIFICATION PROCESS.
Not later than 12 months after the date of the enactment of
this Act, the Secretary, in consultation with the
Commissioner, shall submit to Congress a plan to modernize
and streamline the employment eligibility verification
process that shall include--
(1) procedures to allow persons and entities to verify the
identity and employment authorization of newly hired
individuals where the in-person, physical examination of
identity and employment authorization documents is not
practicable;
(2) a proposal to create a simplified employment
verification process that allows employers that utilize the
employment eligibility verification system established under
section 274E of the Immigration and Nationality Act, as
inserted by section 301 of this Act, to verify the identity
and employment authorization of individuals without also
having to complete and retain Form I-9, Employment
Eligibility Verification, or any subsequent replacement form;
and
(3) any other proposal that the Secretary determines would
simplify the employment eligibility verification process
without compromising the integrity or security of the system.
SEC. 309. RULEMAKING AND PAPERWORK REDUCTION ACT.
(a) In General.--Not later than 180 days prior to the end
of the application period defined in section 101(c) of this
Act, the Secretary shall publish in the Federal Register
proposed rules implementing this title and the amendments
made by this title. The Secretary shall finalize such rules
not later than 180 days after the date of publication.
(b) Paperwork Reduction Act.--
(1) In general.--The requirements under chapter 35 of title
44, United States Code, (commonly known as the ``Paperwork
Reduction Act'') shall apply to any action to implement this
title or the amendments made by this title.
(2) Electronic forms.--All forms designated or established
by the Secretary that are necessary to implement this title
and the amendments made by this title shall be made available
in paper and electronic formats, and shall be designed in
such a manner to facilitate electronic completion, storage,
and transmittal.
(3) Limitation on use of forms.--All forms designated or
established by the Secretary that are necessary to implement
this title, and the amendments made by this title, and any
information contained in or appended to such forms, may not
be used for purposes other than for enforcement of this Act
and any other provision of Federal criminal law.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. The bill, as amended, shall be debatable for
1 hour equally divided and controlled by the chair and ranking minority
member of the Committee on the Judiciary.
The gentleman from New York (Mr. Nadler) and the gentleman from
Colorado (Mr. Buck) each will control 30 minutes.
The Chair recognizes the gentleman from New York.
General Leave
Mr. NADLER. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may
have 5 legislative days in which to revise and extend their remarks and
insert extraneous material on H.R. 5038.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the
gentleman from New York?
There was no objection.
Mr. NADLER. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself 3 minutes.
Mr. Speaker, H.R. 5038, the Farm Workforce Modernization Act, is
vital legislation that will address an issue of critical national
importance: the growing labor challenges damaging the American
agricultural sector.
Solving this issue is crucial not only from an economic standpoint,
but, also, it is a matter of national security. The less we grow our
own food, the more dependent we become on food imports and the more
vulnerable we become to food contamination, epidemics, fluctuating
market prices, and increased national debt.
Today, food imports account for approximately 32 percent of the fresh
vegetables and 55 percent of the fresh fruit that we consume.
{time} 1445
Systemic labor challenges are one of the main reasons for this
increase in agricultural imports.
The United States has seen a continuing decline in the number of
family farmworkers and fewer U.S. workers
[[Page H10067]]
are turning to farm work as their chosen pursuit. As a result, most of
today's hired farm laborers are foreign-born.
Unfortunately, our immigration laws have not been updated to reflect
the needs of our 21st century economy. Due in large part to these
outdated laws, undocumented workers now comprise about half of the farm
workforce, but they are living and working in a state of uncertainty
and fear, which contributes to the destabilization of farms across the
Nation.
H.R. 5038 addresses these challenges head-on. The bill provides
temporary status to current farmworkers with an optional path to a
green card for those who continue to work in agriculture. The bill also
addresses the Nation's future labor needs by modernizing the H-2A
temporary visa program while ensuring fair wages and workplace
conditions for all farmworkers.
We have seen many attempts to solve this issue through legislation
while I have been in Congress. I am pleased that today, we finally have
a bipartisan, balanced solution, one that we should all be able to
support.
This bill is a victory for farmers who have struggled with persistent
labor challenges for decades. It is also a victory for farmworkers, who
have worked tirelessly to grow and harvest food for our Nation without
proper labor protections or any guarantee that they can remain in this
country. No acceptable solution can fail to deal with this reality.
That is why H.R. 5038 is the right solution. I hope my colleagues
will find the courage to vote today in favor of providing a seat at
America's table for those who are responsible for providing the food
that we serve on all our tables.
I thank the gentlewoman from California (Ms. Lofgren), my friend and
colleague, and the chair of the Immigration Subcommittee, for her
leadership and steadfast commitment to the bipartisan process that led
to today's vote on the Farm Workforce Modernization Act, and I urge all
of my colleagues to do what is right and to support this bill.
Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
House of Representatives,
Committee on Ways and Means,
Washington, DC, December 9, 2019.
Hon. Jerrold Nadler,
Chairman, Committee on the Judiciary,
Washington, DC.
Dear Chairman Nadler: In recognition of the desire to
expedite consideration of H.R. 5038, the ``Farm Workforce
Modernization Act of 2019,'' the Committee on Ways and Means
agrees to waive formal consideration of the bill as to
provisions that fall within the rule X jurisdiction of the
Committee on Ways and Means.
The Committee on Ways and Means takes this action with the
mutual understanding that we do not waive any jurisdiction
over the subject matter contained in this or similar
legislation, and the Committee will be appropriately
consulted and involved as the bill or similar legislation
moves forward so that we may address any remaining issues
within our jurisdiction. The Committee also reserves the
right to seek appointment of an appropriate number of
conferees to any House-Senate conference involving this or
similar legislation.
Finally, I would appreciate your response to this letter
confirming this understanding and would ask that a copy of
our exchange of letter on this matter be included in the
Congressional Record during floor consideration of H.R. 5038.
Sincerely,
Richard E. Neal,
Chairman.
____
House of Representatives,
Committee on the Judiciary,
Washington, DC, December 10, 2019.
Hon. Richard Neal,
Chairman, Committee on Ways and Means,
House of Representatives, Washington, DC.
Dear Chairman Neal: I am writing to acknowledge your letter
dated December 9, 2019 responding to our request to your
Committee that it waive any jurisdictional claims over the
matters contained in H.R. 5038, the ``Farm Workforce
Modernization Act of 2019,'' that fall within your
Committee's Rule X jurisdiction. The Committee on the
Judiciary confirms our mutual understanding that your
Committee does not waive any jurisdiction over the subject
matter contained in this or similar legislation, and your
Committee will be appropriately consulted and involved as the
bill or similar legislation moves forward so that we may
address any remaining issues within your Committee's
jurisdiction.
I will ensure that this exchange of letters is included in
the Congressional Record during floor consideration of the
bill. I appreciate your cooperation regarding this
legislation and look forward to continuing to work with you
as this measure moves through the legislative process.
Sincerely,
Jerrold Nadler,
Chairman.
____
House of Representatives,
Committee on Financial Services,
Washington, DC, December 9, 2019.
Hon. Jerrold Nadler,
Chairman, Committee on the Judiciary,
Washington, DC.
Dear Mr. Chairman: I am writing concerning H.R. 5038, the
``Farm Workforce Modernization Act of 2019.'' After reviewing
the provisions in H.R. 5038 that fall within the Committee's
jurisdiction, I agree to forgo formal consideration of the
bill so that it may proceed expeditiously to the House Floor.
The Committee on Financial Services takes this action to
forego formal consideration of H.R. 5038 with our mutual
understanding that, by foregoing formal consideration of H.R.
5038 at this time, the Committee does not waive any
jurisdiction over the subject matter contained in this or
similar legislation, and that our Committee will be
appropriately consulted and involved as this, or similar,
legislation moves forward. Our Committee also reserves the
right to seek appointment of an appropriate number of
conferees to any House-Senate conference involving this, or
similar, legislation and request your support for any such
request.
I would appreciate your response to this letter confirming
this understanding, and, I would also ask that a copy of our
exchange of letters on this matter be included in the
Congressional Record during Floor consideration of H.R. 5038.
Sincerely,
Maxine Waters,
Chairwoman.
____
House of Representatives,
Committee on the Judiciary,
Washington, DC, December 10, 2019.
Hon. Maxine Waters,
Chairwoman, Committee on Financial Services,
House of Representatives, Washington, DC.
Dear Chairwoman Waters: I am writing to acknowledge your
letter dated December 9, 2019 responding to our request to
your Committee that it waive any jurisdictional claims over
the matters contained in H.R. 5038, the ``Farm Workforce
Modernization Act of 2019,'' that fall within your
Committee's Rule X jurisdiction. The Committee on the
Judiciary confirms our mutual understanding that your
Committee does not waive any jurisdiction over the subject
matter contained in this or similar legislation, and your
Committee will be appropriately consulted and involved as the
bill or similar legislation moves forward so that we may
address any remaining issues within your Committee's
jurisdiction.
I will ensure that this exchange of letters is included in
the Congressional Record during floor consideration of the
bill. I appreciate your cooperation regarding this
legislation and look forward to continuing to work with you
as this measure moves through the legislative process.
Sincerely,
Jerrold Nadler,
Chairman.
Mr. NADLER. Mr. Speaker, I ask for unanimous consent that the
gentlewoman from California (Ms. Lofgren) control the remainder of the
time on the majority side.
The SPEAKER pro tempore (Mr. Costa). Is there objection to the
request of the gentleman from New York?
There was no objection.
Mr. BUCK. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
I rise to discuss the Farm Workforce Modernization Act this
afternoon.
As I said during last month's Committee on the Judiciary markup, this
is an issue that is of great importance to me and to my district in
eastern Colorado. Colorado is home to one of the largest agricultural
economies in the country. I like to remind my colleagues, we have some
of the best melons in the world in southeast Colorado, and no one
bypasses a good Colorado steak, but to get this food to the table, our
farmers and ranchers need help.
I have heard countless times how our farmers struggle to find
reliable workers to plant and harvest crops. As we said during our
committee markup, my Republican colleagues and I are committed to
crafting a solution that ensures our Nation's agricultural employers
have a stable labor supply.
I appreciate my friends' work to solve a clear problem, especially
Chairperson Lofgren, Representative Newhouse, Representative Panetta,
Representative LaMalfa, and many other Members. I appreciate their
efforts to craft a solution that gives our agricultural employers the
labor, supply, and resources they need to keep America the world's
breadbasket. But this bill before us today is not the answer.
My colleagues will tell you how they have taken our concerns to heart
and
[[Page H10068]]
have worked to make the bill better, but this bill is still the same
fundamentally flawed bill that came before us in the Committee on the
Judiciary a few weeks ago. What is worse is that House leadership put
this bill on the floor under a closed rule without an amendment
process. There are a number of problems with the bill that a rigorous
debate and thoughtful amendments could address, but that will not be
happening today.
Most notably, we don't have the slightest idea of how many
individuals this bill will put on a pathway to citizenship. And while I
would like to think that all of our agricultural workers are
trustworthy, good people, we don't have any way to verify that before
granting certified agricultural work status.
The chairperson will assert that aliens seeking status under the bill
will need to have a clean record in order to be put on a pathway to
citizenship, but this simply is not true. H.R. 5038 allows an illegal
alien to receive certified agricultural worker status and get on a
pathway to citizenship even if they have been convicted of two crimes
involving moral turpitude, controlled substance violations, or if they
were involved in prostitution or trafficking. The bill also permits an
individual to receive status after being convicted of two misdemeanors
with a third conviction pending.
We saw the Democrats vote down an amendment from Representative
Chabot that would have made an alien ineligible for amnesty if they are
charged with two DUI's or one DUI with an injury. You can't tell me
that you are serious about ensuring only people with clean records take
advantage of this system if you reject amendments that bar criminals
from taking advantage of our system.
Additionally, H.R. 5038 allows individuals to apply for legal status
and a work permit, which is not limited to agricultural industries,
with little more than an affidavit claiming that the individual worked
unlawfully in this country for 1,035 hours or 180 workdays over the
past 2 years. This means applicants will have worked less than 6 hours
per day for less than 4 months over a 2-year period.
I appreciate that my colleagues heard my concerns and changed the
overall standard for petitioning to a higher standard preponderance of
evidence; however, the underlying provisions haven't changed. The bill
still allows an individual petitioning for status to meet that
preponderance burden by providing documents, including their own
affidavit of work history as long as those documents meet a just and
reasonable inference standard.
Let me remind everyone here that existing case law finds that just
and reasonable inference standard essentially requires adjudicators to
accept a petition based on nothing more than an individual's word. This
is the same evidentiary standard unsuccessfully used in the 1986
special agricultural worker legalization bill, which led to widespread
fraud, and even amnesty, for one of the World Trade Center bombers. He
wasn't an agricultural worker at all, but a taxi driver in New York
City.
Unfortunately, while I appreciate the chairperson's effort to work
with me here, this change won't solve these problems. My friends on the
other side of the aisle also rejected Representative Armstrong's
amendment that would specify that certified agricultural workers would
only be eligible to work in agriculture. While the individual may
receive status as an agricultural worker, there is no guarantee that
they won't immediately find a job in another industry as soon as
possible.
Additionally, the bill does nothing to stop potential Social Security
fraud. Individuals who have been fraudulently using a valid Social
Security number, sometimes for many years, to obtain a work status and
benefits, will get off without even so much as a slap on the wrist.
Furthermore, this bill fails our adjudicators at USCIS by preventing
them from accessing the most comprehensive background check databases
when determining whether an applicant for certified agricultural worker
status poses a public safety risk. We need to ensure our investigators
have all the information they need to ensure that we are not allowing
felons and violent individuals to remain in the country.
The bill also provides a handout to the trial attorneys and presents
an increased risk of litigation for agricultural employers by giving H-
2A workers a Federal private right of action. This provision ignores
the current H-2A program's existing administrative process to address
employment claims and fails to provide employers the opportunity to
cure violations before a suit may go forward. This is fundamentally
unfair to the hardworking farmers, growers, and ranchers who care about
their employees.
I ask my colleagues: Would you prefer having the problem fixed or you
just want to give trial attorneys another opportunity to sue?
Finally, the bill fails to achieve the desired results on a number of
provisions that have the potential to truly help our agricultural
employers. The authors promised to streamline the application process,
address wage problems, and provide year-round industries a lasting
labor solution. The bill streamlines data entry for H-2A applications
but does nothing to encourage concurrent agency review of H-2A
applications. This essentially speeds up data entry but keeps the
adjudication process exactly the same.
I appreciate that my colleagues codified H-2A procedures and included
a pool of 20,000 visas for year-round industries, including dairy
farmers and sheep and goat herders, but this falls far short of
industry's needs and fails to fix the problematic version of existing
law.
Once again, I am glad that my colleagues are trying to solve this
problem. I truly want to support the farmers, growers, dairymen, and
ranchers in my district and throughout the country. We need to find a
solution that ensures our agricultural employers have a reliable labor
pool. My colleagues and I want to strike an Ag labor agreement;
unfortunately, this bill is fatally flawed, and I must oppose it in its
current form.
Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
Ms. LOFGREN. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself 3 minutes.
Mr. Speaker, I rise in strong support of this bill today. I am proud
of the bipartisan work that was done to get us to this point.
Representatives Newhouse, Simpson, LaMalfa, Diaz-Balart, Upton--so many
others on the Republican side--here: Panetta, Peterson, Carbajal, Cox,
Harder, Correa, Costa, Escobar--I better stop because there are more
people who toiled on this legislation for almost a year.
Now, it is not always easy to find common ground even when you have a
common goal, but if you listen to each other, if you work hard, you can
get it done. We have been several decades in failing to accomplish
anything in this arena. This is a chance to solve a problem for America
that needs a solution.
It is the product of bipartisan negotiation, and I will say, also
amongst stakeholders. We have the United Farm Workers Union meeting and
discussing points of concern with growers and farmers all across the
United States.
You know, I grew up in a union household, and I was taught to respect
collective bargaining. And when it comes to wages, hours, and working
conditions, the union and all those employers had a robust discussion,
and our bipartisan group decided to respect the work that they put into
it.
This bill is a compromise. It is not exactly what I would have
written, but it does stabilize the workforce. We have farmworkers who
have been here for a very long time without their papers, living in
fear, and in some cases, being arrested and deported. We need to allow
them to get an agricultural worker visa that is temporary and renewable
so they can do the work we need them to do and that their employers
need them to do.
We also need to stabilize the H-2A program, which this bill does. It
simplifies and it also stabilizes wages. It is a good solution and one
of the things we have always said--those of us who think the
immigration laws ought to be reformed--is when you have a workable
system, you ought to be willing to enforce that system.
And so what we have in this bill is when these agricultural reforms
are implemented, we will institute the E-Verify program on the
agricultural sector. And I think that is the right thing to do.
Now, the ranking member of the subcommittee has raised a couple of
[[Page H10069]]
issues, and I want to deal with them just briefly. You know, we have
robust protections against criminality in this bill. And I would like
to note, that the bars that we have put into this bill are
substantially more than was in the bill proposed by Representative
Goodlatte that most Republicans voted for in the last Congress. He
didn't have anything additional. We do. We have security bars; we have
criminal bars that are additional.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. The time of the gentlewoman has expired.
Ms. LOFGREN. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself an additional 15 seconds.
Mr. Speaker, any felony conviction, any aggravated felony conviction,
more than two misdemeanors of any kind, we have the ability in the
Department of Homeland Security to simply deny the visa if there is any
concern about the conduct of the applicant.
Mr. Speaker, this is a good bill. We should support it, and I reserve
the balance of my time.
Mr. BUCK. Mr. Speaker, I yield 3 minutes to the gentleman from
California (Mr. McClintock), my friend.
Mr. McCLINTOCK. Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentleman for yielding.
Mr. Speaker, history warns us that nations which either cannot or
will not secure their borders simply aren't around very long. And if we
will not enforce our immigration laws, our borders mean nothing.
America ceases to become a unique nation and simply becomes a vast
international territory between Canada and Mexico.
Now, I understand agriculture's need for labor, especially in so
tight a labor market as our blossoming Trump economy has created. Years
ago, the Bracero program provided a means for seasonal laborers to come
to America, be protected under our laws, and provided with a powerful
incentive to return in the form of a significant financial deposit when
the season ended, but that program can only work when our immigration
laws are being uniformly enforced.
Instead, this bill ignores enforcement and rewards anyone who has
illegally crossed our borders, both with amnesty and a special path to
citizenship, as long as they claim to have worked part-time in the
agriculture sector for the last 2 years.
{time} 1500
It then rewards them with a pathway to citizenship, allowing them to
cut in line in front of every legal immigrant who has obeyed our laws,
waited patiently in line, and done everything our country has asked.
As a practical matter, we can expect claimants will have very little
or even no scrutiny to the veracity of their claims. We can expect
that, once achieving amnesty, they will then leave the fields for
higher-paid employment in direct competition with American workers. And
we can expect a new wave of illegal immigrants coming here to take
their places with the full expectation that they too will ultimately be
rewarded with amnesty and citizenship.
There is a much better way to resolve this issue. Secure our borders,
uniformly enforce our immigration laws, and provide foreign seasonal
labor with the opportunity to work and the incentive to return to their
countries when that work is done. And if they wish to become American
citizens, we ask that they follow the law, as millions of legal
immigrants have done throughout our history.
Ms. LOFGREN. Mr. Speaker, I would just note that we write the laws,
and we get to decide who can come and who can't come, and that is what
this bill does.
I yield 1 minute to the gentlewoman from Texas (Ms. Jackson Lee), a
member of the Judiciary Committee.
Ms. JACKSON LEE. Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentlewoman for her
leadership. And having been the ranking member of the Immigration and
Citizenship Subcommittee over the years, I understand the momentous
task and the excellent work that has been done.
This bill does what Republicans have always asked: For immigrants to
work, for people to seek status; it provides status to hardworking
agricultural workers. It provides them a certified agricultural worker
status.
They undergo background checks and pass strict criminal and national
security bars. They have the opportunity to access the line to
citizenship. They don't get in front of others. They are protected from
reckless deportation.
The industry is protected, the farm industry, the production of food
is protected.
I am delighted that my amendment regarding temporary protected status
that impacts Hondurans, Haitians, and others--and also, as I attempt to
work on TPS for our Guatemalan friends, this bill ensures the fair way
to deal with farmworkers.
It stops the outrage of deportation. It stops the outrage of threat,
and it does what Cesar Chavez says, that we cannot have achievement and
forget our progress and prosperity for our community. It honors their
work.
I ask my colleagues to support H.R. 5038.
Mr. Speaker, I rise in strong support of H.R. 5038, the Agricultural
Worker Program Act.
This legislation will stabilize the agricultural sector and preserve
our rural heritage by ensuring that farmers can meet their labor needs
well into the future.
First, the bill establishes a program for agricultural workers in the
United States (and their spouses and minor children) to earn legal
status through continued agricultural employment.
Specifically, the bill creates a process for farm workers to seek
Certified Agricultural Worker status--a temporary status for those who
have worked at least 180 days in agriculture over the prior 2-year
period.
Certified Agricultural Worker status can be renewed indefinitely with
continued farm work (at least 100 days per year).
Applicants must undergo background checks and pass strict criminal
and national security bars.
Dependent status is available for spouses and minor children.
The bill does not require workers to do or apply for anything else in
order to stay and work in the United States.
But long-term workers who want to stay have the option of earning a
path to lawful permanent residence by paying a $1,000 fine and engaging
additional agricultural work, as follows:
Workers with 10 years of agricultural work prior to the date of
enactment must complete 4 additional years of such work.
Workers with less than 10 years of agricultural work prior to the
date of enactment must complete 8 additional years of such work.
The Farmworkers movement in this country was started and led by a
great leader, Cesar Chavez who said, ``We cannot seek achievement for
ourselves and forget about progress and prosperity for our community.
Our ambitions must be broad enough to include the aspirations and needs
of others, for their sakes and for our own.''
The Texas Farm Workers Union (``TFWU'') was established by Antonio
Orendain and farmworker leaders of the Rio Grande Valley active with
the United Farm Workers after a disagreement with UFW leadership over
direction of a melon strike in south McAllen, TX in 1975.
In August 1975, nearly ten years after he began organizing farm
workers for the United Farm Workers in the Rio Grande Valley of South
Texas.
Orendain worked for Cesar Chavez in the Chicago UFW national grape
and lettuce boycott office.
Farmworkers undertake some of the toughest jobs in America.
They have earned the opportunity to build their lives without the
fear of being uprooted from their families and their communities.
The bipartisan Farm Workforce Modernization Act empowers the economic
and physical well-being of immigrant families while providing much-
needed labor security for our nation's farms.
The agricultural industry relies on the labor of 2.4 million
farmworkers--about half of whom are undocumented.
This bill would protect thousands of families from deportation.
With over 60 Democratic and Republican cosponsors, the bill has
garnered significant bipartisan support.
This is a big step in making our immigration system more humane and
more efficient.
I know the farming and agricultural communities in the state of Texas
farm and my district borders communities that farm.
What we are doing here is the right thing and attempting to reinforce
the breadbasket that the United States happens to be to the world.
I have heard the clamoring of farm workers for a very long time but I
have also heard the need for fairness and the improvement of conditions
that they are working in with adequate compensation.
This bill regularizes people who want to be regularized and who want
to contribute to helping the agricultural industry in this great
nation.
My amendment which I believe is a positive addition to this
legislation, to ensure that individuals with Temporary Protected Status
[[Page H10070]]
(TPS) & Deferred Enforced Departure (DED) who are farmworkers are
eligible to qualify for Certified Agricultural Worker status, and the
path to legalization and citizenship that is created by the bill.
AMENDMENT TO THE AMENDMENT IN THE NATURE OF A SUBSTITUTE TO H.R. 5038
OFFERED BY MS. JACKSON LEE OF TEXAS
Page 3, strike lines 19 through 21 and insert the
following:
(B) on the date of the introduction of this Act--
(i) is inadmissible or deportable from the United States;
or
(ii) is under a grant of deferred enforced departure or has
temporary protected status under section 244 of the
Immigration and Nationality Act.
I would like to thank Congresswoman Lofgren and her team for working
with our office to insure that this would be a positive way of making
the point that individuals who are around farming areas can continue to
do great work.
I would like to thank the organizations involved in the assisting in
crafting this amendment, the United Farm Workers, UFW Foundation and
Farmworker Justice.
My amendment, and this bill, are about doing the right thing. One
important goal of this legislation is to recognize the contributions of
farmworkers to our nation's agricultural success.
Individuals with TPS, from Haitian workers in Florida to Honduran
workers in California, and those with DED, including UFW members in
Washington, are a key part of our nation's farmworkers.
We must afford those individuals with TPS and DED the same
opportunity to earn a more secure temporary status and lawful permanent
residency as will be given to many of our nation's other farmworkers.
Many of these individuals have been living in the U.S. for years and
have U.S. citizen children.
All they wanted to do was to get a pathway to citizenship in a myriad
of directions but in particular, to do it legally.
Ensuring that farmworkers who have TPS and DED are eligible to
participate in the Farm Workforce Modernization Act's legalization
program is important to provide needed stability to this workforce.
Moreover, it necessary to further the legislation's intent to
stabilize the current agricultural labor supply and to ensure that
farmworkers are able to join more fully the society that they are
helping to feed.
I would like to thank the Judiciary Committee, my colleagues, both
Republican and Democrat, and in particular, Chairman Nadler and Ms.
Lofgren, who emphasized a very important point that this has been a
year of working together.
I am reminded of our tenure here on the Judiciary Committee and I
think we have attempted to be fair and bipartisan on immigration reform
for at least 2 decades.
I am also reminded of the legislation that came from the Senate, led
by the late Senator John McCain that was a bipartisan bill that
attempted to respond to the issues of undocumented persons.
United Farm Workers Support for the Farm Workforce Modernization Act
(H.R. 5038--Lofgren)
The United Farm Workers of America supports the bipartisan
Farm Workforce Modernization Act (H.R. 5038). We were proud
to join the bipartisan group of members of Congress and the
major grower associations to develop and support H.R. 5038.
It is cruelly ironic that the people who feed the United
States live in a deep, all-encompassing fear that they
themselves cannot provide food for their families. The human
cost and stress for farm workers and their families as they
live in fear of deportation and harassment due to our broken
immigration system threatens our nation's food supply and is
a source of great shame for our nation. The compromise
legislation authored by Representatives Lofgren, cosponsored
by a bipartisan, diverse group of over 50 members of the
House, and endorsed by the Congressional Hispanic Caucus will
go a long way towards improving the lives of farm workers
today and in the future, and our broken immigration system.
We support H.R. 5038 for a simple reason--it will make the
lives of all farm workers better. H.R. 5038 meets the
following basic principles:
1. Equality of Treatment--the new agricultural visa program
will allow farm workers and their families to have the same
rights and protections as current U.S. farm workers.
2. No Discrimination--the program does not create major
incentives to discriminate against U.S. workers (including
newly legalized workers).
3. Fairness in pay--the pay rates protect U.S. workers and
supports predictable pay increases.
4. Eligibility to earn permanent residence--no one that
works to feed our country should be condemned to permanent
second class status. H.R. 5038 changes our current immoral
system.
You have the ability to pass H.R. 5038. If H.R. 5038
becomes law, agricultural workers will have stability for
themselves, and their families and the agricultural industry.
Please vote YES on H.R. 5038.
Mr. BUCK. Mr. Speaker, I yield 3 minutes to the gentleman from
Washington (Mr. Newhouse).
Mr. NEWHOUSE. Mr. Speaker, I want to thank my good friend from
Colorado for yielding me time.
Mr. Speaker, if you talk to any farmer in this country, one of the
biggest issues that they will raise and something they are concerned
with, is their labor force, a secure and legal labor force. And that is
what brought together a bipartisan group of Members of Congress,
representatives from agricultural groups around the country, as well as
agricultural labor groups around the country, to come up with a bill to
deal with the labor situation that we have in this country, to provide
a certain legal labor force; something that is simple in saying that,
but very, very complex in order to get to the solution.
So this has three titles. Number one deals with the current
workforce. We have come up with something that the President has asked
for, a merit-based system to provide legality to our current workforce
that requires a history of ag labor; it requires fines because people
broke the law to get here; and it requires people to stay engaged in
the agricultural industry.
Title two simply is to reform the H-2A program, something that we
desperately need. It makes it more responsive, more efficient. It will
cap the ever-skyrocketing wage growth in this country of the AEWR to
3.25 percent per year. Some States next year are facing a 9\1/2\
percent increase.
On top of that, it will allow full-time employers, like dairies, to
be able to take advantage and utilize the H-2A program.
And third, it will require a phase-in of the E-Verify system,
something that Republicans have wanted for a long time, and something
that I think will remove an incentive for people to illegally cross the
border and will do a lot to improve the security of our country.
This bill provides certainty for farmers and farmworkers.
Mr. Speaker, I include in the Record some letters of support from the
National Association of Counties, the Chamber of Commerce of the United
States of America, the Americans for Prosperity, the National
Association of State Departments of Agriculture, the Committee on
Migration, and included in a letter to leadership, a list of over 300
agricultural organizations across this great country in support of this
legislation.
November 18, 2019.
Hon. Nancy Pelosi,
Speaker, House of Representatives,
Washington, DC.
Hon. Kevin McCarthy,
Minority Leader, House of Representatives,
Washington, DC.
Dear Speaker Pelosi and Minority Leader McCarthy: The
undersigned groups, representing a broad cross-section of
agriculture and its allies, urge you to advance the Farm
Workforce Modernization Act (H.R. 5038) through the House to
address the labor crisis facing American agriculture. A
stable, legal workforce is needed to ensure farmers and
ranchers have the ability to continue producing an abundant,
safe, and affordable food supply.
The effects of agriculture's critical shortage of labor
reach far beyond the farm gate, negatively impacting our
economic competitiveness, local economies, and jobs.
Economists have found that every farm worker engaged in high-
value, labor-intensive crop and livestock production sustains
two to three off-farm jobs. As foreign producers take
advantage of our labor shortage and gain market share,
America will export not only our food production but also
thousands of these farm-dependent jobs. Securing a reliable
and skilled workforce is essential, not only for the
agricultural industry but for the U.S. economy as a whole.
The House must pass legislation that preserves
agriculture's experienced workforce by allowing current farm
workers to earn legal status. For future needs, legislation
must include an agricultural worker visa program that
provides access to a legal and reliable workforce moving
forward. This visa program needs to be more accessible,
predictable, and flexible to meet the needs of producers,
including those with year-round labor needs, such as dairy
and livestock which currently do not have meaningful access
to any program.
While the bill does include a few provisions that raise
significant concerns for the agricultural community, we are
committed to working together throughout the legislative
process to fully address these issues. It is vital to move
the Farm Workforce Modernization Act (H.R. 5038) through the
House as a significant step in working to meet the
[[Page H10071]]
labor needs of agriculture, both now and in the future.
Sincerely,
African-American Farmers of California; AgCountry Farm
Credit Services; AgriBank FCB; Agribusiness Henderson County
(AgHC); Agricultural Council of California; Agri-Mark, Inc.;
Alabama Farmers Cooperative; Alabama Nursery & Landscape
Association; Almond Alliance of California; Amalgamated Sugar
Company LLC; American AgCredit; American Agri-Women; American
Beekeeping Federation; American Mushroom Institute; American
Pistachio Growers; American Seed Trade Association;
AmericanHort; Arizona Cattle Feeders' Association; Arizona
Landscape Contractors Association; Arizona Nursery
Association.
Arkansas Rice Growers Association; Associated Milk
Producers Inc.; Association of Virginia Potato and Vegetable
Growers; Aurora Organic Dairy; AZ Farm & Ranch Group;
Battlefield Farms, Inc.; Bipartisan Policy Center Action;
Bongards' Creameries; Butte County Farm Bureau; California Ag
Irrigation Association; California Alfalfa and Forage
Association; California Apple Commission; California Avocado
Commission; California Bean Shippers Association; California
Blueberry Commission; California Canning Peach Association;
California Cherry Growers and Industry Association;
California Citrus Mutual; California Dairies, Inc.;
California Farm Bureau Federation.
California Fig Advisory Board; California Fresh Fruit
Association; California Grain and Feed Association;
California League of Food Producers; California Pear Growers;
California Prune Board; California Seed Association;
California State Beekeepers Association; California State
Floral Association; California Sweet Potato Council;
California Tomato Growers Association; California Walnut
Commission; California Warehouse Association; California
Wheat Growers Association; California Women for Agriculture;
Cayuga Milk Ingredients; Central Valley Ag; Cherry Marketing
Institute; Chobani; Clif Bar & Company.
CoBank; Colorado Dairy Farmers; Colorado Nursery &
Greenhouse Association; Colorado Potato Legislative
Association; Compeer Financial; Cooperative Milk Producers
Association; Cooperative Network; Dairy Farmers of America,
Inc.; Dairy Producers of New Mexico; Dairy Producers of Utah;
Del Mar Food Products, Corp.; Driscoll's; Edge Dairy Farmer
Cooperative; Ellsworth Cooperative Creamery; Empire State
Potato Growers; Far West Agribusiness Association; Farm
Credit East; Farm Credit Illinois; Farm Credit Services of
America; Farm Credit West; FarmFirst Dairy Cooperative.
First District Association; Florida Agri-Women; Florida
Blueberry Growers Association; Florida Citrus Mutual; Florida
Fruit & Vegetable Association; Florida Nursery, Growers, and
Landscape Association; Florida Strawberry Growers
Association; Florida Tomato Exchange; Food Northwest; Food
Producers of Idaho; Foremost Farms USA; Fresno County Farm
Bureau; Frontier Farm Credit; Fruit Growers Marketing
Association; Fruit Growers Supply; Georgia Green Industry
Association; Glanbia Nutritionals; Grapeman Farms; GreenStone
Farm Credit Services; Grower-Shipper Association of Central
California.
GROWMARK; Gulf Citrus Growers Association; Hop Growers of
Washington; Idaho Alfalfa & Clover Seed Commission; Idaho
Alfalfa & Clover Seed Growers Association; Idaho Apple
Commission; Idaho Association of Commerce and Industry; Idaho
Association of Highway Districts; Idaho Association of Soil
Conservation Districts; Idaho Bankers Association; Idaho
Cattleman's Association; Idaho Chamber Alliance; Idaho
Dairymen's Association; Idaho Eastern Oregon Seed
Association; Idaho Grain Producers Association; Idaho Grower
Shipper Association; Idaho Hop Growers; Idaho Milk Products;
Idaho Mint Growers Association; Idaho Noxious Weed Control
Association.
Idaho Nursery & Landscape Association; Idaho Onion Growers
Association; Idaho Potato Commission; Idaho State Grange;
Idaho Sugarbeet Growers Association; Idaho Water Users
Association; Idaho Wool Growers; Idahoan Foods LLC; Idaho-
Oregon Fruit and Vegetable Association; Illinois Green
Industry Association; International Dairy Food Association;
Iowa Institute for Cooperatives; Iowa State Dairy
Association; J.R. Simplot Company; Kansas Cooperative
Council; Kansas Dairy Association; Kanza Cooperative
Associaton; Kings County Farm Bureau; Land O'Lakes, Inc.;
Lone Star Milk Producers.
Madera County Farm Bureau; Maine Landscape and Nursery
Association; Maine Potato Board; Maryland & Virginia Milk
Producers Cooperative Association; Maryland Nursery,
Landscape, & Greenhouse Association; Massachusetts Nursery
and Landscape Association, Inc.; MBG Marketing; Mendocino
County Farm Bureau; Merced County Farm Bureau; Michigan Agri-
Business Association; Michigan Apple Association; Michigan
Asparagus Advisory Board; Michigan Bean Shippers; Michigan
Cider Association; Michigan Greenhouse Grower Council;
Michigan Milk Producers Association; Michigan Nursery &
Landscape Association; Michigan State Horticultural Society;
Midwest Dairy Coalition; Mid-West Dairymen's Company; Milk
Producers Council.
Milk Producers of Idaho; Minnesota Area II Potato Council;
Minnesota Milk Producers Association; Minnesota Nursery &
Landscape Association; Missouri Rice Research and
Merchandising Council; Montana Nursery & Landscape
Association; Monterey County (CA) Farm Bureau; Mount Joy
Farmers Cooperative Association; Napa County Farm Bureau;
National All-Jersey; National Association of Produce Market
Managers; National Council of Agricultural Employers;
National Council of Farmer Cooperatives; National Farmers
Union; National Grange; National Immigration Forum; National
Milk Producers Federation; National Onion Association;
National Potato Council; National Watermelon Association;
Nebraska State Dairy Association.
New American Economy; New England Apple Council; New
England Farmers Union; New York Apple Association; New York
Farm Bureau Federation; New York State Berry Growers
Association; New York State Flower Industries; New York State
Vegetable Growers Association; Nezperce Prairie Grass Growers
Association; Nisei Farmers League; North American Blueberry
Council; North Carolina Nursery & Landscape Association;
North Carolina Potato Association; Northeast Dairy Farmers
Cooperatives; Northeast Dairy Foods Association, Inc.;
Northeast Dairy Producers Association; Northern Plains Potato
Growers Association; Northern Virginia Nursery & Landscape
Association; Northwest Ag Co-op Council; Northwest Dairy
Association/Darigold; Northwest Farm Credit Services;
Northwest Horticultural Council.
Ohio Apple Marketing Program; Ohio Dairy Producers
Association; Ohio Nursery & Landscape Association; Olive
Growers Council of California; Oneida-Madison Milk Producers
Cooperative Association; Orange County Farm Bureau; Oregon
Association of Nurseries; Oregon Dairy Farmers Association;
Oregon Potato Commission; Pacific Coast Producers; Pacific
Egg and Poultry Association; Pacific Seed Association;
Pennsylvania Co-operative Potato Growers; Pennsylvania
Landscape & Nursery Association; Plant California Alliance;
POM Wonderful; Porterville Citrus; Potato Growers of America;
Potato Growers of Idaho; Potato Growers of Michigan; Prairie
Farms Dairy, Inc.
Premier Milk Inc.; Produce Marketing Association;
Professional Dairy Managers of Pennsylvania; RBI Packing LLC;
Reiter Affiliated Companies; Richard Bagdasarian, Inc.;
Riverside County Farm Bureau; Rocky Mountain Farmers Union;
San Diego County Farm Bureau; San Mateo County Farm Bureau;
Santa Clara County Farm Bureau; Santa Cruz County Farm
Bureau; Scioto Cooperative Milk Producers' Association;
Select Milk Producers, Inc.; Seneca Foods Corporation; Sierra
Citrus Association; Snake River Sugar Company; Solano County
Farm Bureau; Sonoma County Farm Bureau; South Dakota
Association of Cooperatives.
South Dakota Dairy Producers; South East Dairy Farmers
Association; Southeast Milk Inc.; Southern States
Cooperative; St. Albans Cooperative Creamery, Inc.;
Stanislaus County Farm Bureau; State Horticultural
Association of Pennsylvania; Summer Prize Frozen Foods;
Sunkist Growers; Sun-Maid Growers of California; Sunsweet
Growers, Inc.; Tennessee Nursery & Landscape Association;
Texas Agricultural Cooperative Council; Texas Association of
Dairymen; Texas Citrus Mutual; Texas International Produce
Association; Texas Nursery & Landscape Association; The
National Association of State Departments of Agriculture; The
SF Market and San Francisco Produce Association; Tillamook
County Creamery Association; Tree Top, Inc.
Tulare County Farm Bureau; U.S. Apple Association; U.S.
Rice Producers Association; United Ag; United Dairymen of
Arizona; United Egg Producers; United Fresh Produce
Association; United Onions, USA; United Potato Growers of
America; Upstate Niagara Cooperative, Inc.; Utah Farmers
Union; Utah Horticulture Society; Valley Fig Growers; Ventura
County Agricultural Association; Ventura Pacific; Vermont
Dairy Producers Alliance; Virginia Apple Growers Association;
Virginia Nursery & Landscape Association; Virginia State
Dairymen's Association; Visalia Citrus Packing Group, Inc.
WA Wine Institute; Washington Growers League; Washington
State Dairy Federation; Washington State Nursery & Landscape
Association; Washington State Potato Commission; Washington
State Tree Fruit Association; Wawona Frozen Foods; West
Virginia Nursery & Landscape Association; Western Growers
Association; Western States Dairy Producers Association;
Western United Dairies; Wine Institute; WineAmerica;
Wisconsin Dairy Business Association; Wisconsin Potato &
Vegetable Growers Association; Wonderful Citrus; Wonderful
Orchards; Yuma Fresh Vegetable Association.
____
National Association of Counties,
December 11, 2019.
Hon. Nancy Pelosi,
Speaker, House of Representatives,
Washington, DC.
Hon. Kevin McCarthy,
Minority Leader, House of Representatives,
Washington, DC.
Dear Speaker Pelosi and Minority Leader McCarthy: On behalf
of the National Association of Counties and the 3,069 county
governments we represent, we are writing in support of the
Farm Workforce Modernization Act (H.R. 5038). This bill would
preserve, expand and improve on the processes and resources
aimed at helping counties bolster our local agricultural
economy.
County governments across the country face many challenges
to providing quality
[[Page H10072]]
and affordable housing options for rural families and farm
laborers. Unfortunately, federal regulations often are
inflexible and too restrictive to address the unique needs of
our rural communities. Much of our nation's existing farm
labor housing has also aged past its useful life with severe
physical problems, including inadequate heating, plumbing and
space.
Additionally, we are encouraged by efforts in this bill to
modernize and simplify the H-2A process and ensure that a
reliable and capable workforce is available for the nation's
farmers and ranchers. This bill would provide stability and
consistency in our farm labor force and create a realistic
path for migrant and seasonal farm workers to contribute to
the national economy.
We ask that you join us in support of the Farm Work
Modernization Act and help strengthen our nation's local
agricultural economies. Thank you for your time and
consideration on this important matter.
Sincerely,
Hon. Mary Ann Borgeson,
Commissioner, Douglas County, Nebraska, President, National
Association of Counties.
Hon. Melissa McKinlay,
Commissioner, Palm Beach County, Florida, Chair, NACo's
Agriculture and Rural Affairs Steering Committee.
____
Chamber of Commerce of the
United States of America,
October 30, 2019.
Washington, DC,
To the Members of the House of Representatives: The U.S.
Chamber of Commerce supports the Farm Workforce Modernization
Act, which would take important steps to address the growing
struggle of agricultural employers to meet their workforce
needs.
The inability of American farmers to effectively meet their
workforce needs does not affect the agricultural industry in
a vacuum. When crops rot in a field because farmers do not
have enough workers for the harvest, this does not only harm
the interests of that farmer. These situations also
negatively affect the shipping company that would have
transported those products, and the retailers that would have
sold them.
Furthermore, the uncertainty caused by the insufficient
quantity of agricultural workers in the U.S. has enabled
foreign agricultural producers to take advantage of this
situation and gain market share. American agricultural
producers will only become less competitive in the global
marketplace if these workforce problems persist.
The Farm Workforce Modernization Act seeks to provide
workforce stability for agricultural workers by allowing
unauthorized farm workers to earn legal status in the U.S.
This legislation also would address future agricultural
workforce needs by updating the temporary agricultural worker
program, most notably providing eligibility to employers who
have year-round labor needs, which is critical for dairy and
livestock. Furthermore, the bill would enhance domestic
security by making the use of E-Verify mandatory for
employers seeking to hire temporary agricultural workers.
This bill could benefit from further refinement. The
proposed prevailing wage levels for temporary agricultural
workers, as well as the new annual visa quotas for year-round
agricultural employment, should be more responsive to market
needs. In addition, the transition period for agricultural
employers to utilize the E-Verify system should be extended
in order for employers to better adjust to the new compliance
burdens being foisted upon them. We are committed to working
with members of both parties to address these and other
issues to improve the bill as it proceeds through the
legislative process.
Sincerely,
Neil L. Bradley,
Executive Vice President and Chief Policy Officer.
____
Americans for Prosperity,
The Libre Initiative,
November 19, 2019.
Dear Representative: On behalf of our organizations and the
millions of activists we represent, we applaud the bipartisan
efforts from lawmakers in the House of Representatives on the
Farm Workforce Modernization Act of 2019. This bill
represents a step in the right direction by modernizing
components of our guest worker program and legal immigration
system. It will also help our country better meet the needs
of employers and guest workers in the agricultural sector.
We are encouraged by lawmakers' efforts to streamline
components of the H-2A program aimed at reducing some of the
burdens imposed on employers and workers, in addition to
considerable reforms that create new legal channels which
currently are not available.
While the legislation is not perfect, the bill represents
an important step forward to improve the way we issue
temporary visas for guest workers and green cards for
aspiring immigrants. We look forward to working with members
to improve this bill by further reducing unnecessary barriers
that impede upon the ability for employers and employees to
freely contract in a mutually beneficial manner.
With only a few legislative days remaining, we urge
lawmakers to continue working together to modernize and
improve our guest worker program and stand ready to partner
with lawmakers to accomplish this goal.
Sincerely,
Brent Gardner,
Chief Government Affairs Officer, Americans for Prosperity.
Daniel Garza,
President, The LIBRE Initiative.
____
National Association of State
Departments of Agriculture,
Arlington, VA, October 25, 2019.
Hon. Zoe Lofgren,
Chairwoman, Subcommittee on Immigration and Citizenship,
House Committee on the Judiciary, House of
Representatives, Washington, DC.
Hon. Dan Newhouse,
House of Representatives, Washington, DC.
Re Support for the Farm Workforce Modernization Act.
Dear Chairwoman Lofgren and Congressman Newhouse: The Farm
Workforce Modernization Act (FWMA) is a crucial step forward
towards solving agriculture's need for labor. NASDA thanks
you for your hard work negotiating and finding compromises on
a bipartisan bill that will successfully increase access to
farm labor across the country. Foreign-born workers are an
essential part of the U.S. agriculture workforce and an
estimated half of U.S. farm workers are currently foreign
born. For years, the agriculture industry has struggled to
access sufficient labor in sectors ranging from produce to
animal handling. This is only compounded by the current low
unemployment in the United States. These factors are why the
National Association of State Departments of Agriculture
urges Congress to pass the FWMA.
NASDA represents the Commissioners, Secretaries, and
Directors of the state departments of agriculture in all
fifty states and four U.S. territories. NASDA members
represent all agriculture in their states and finding
practical solutions for the agriculture labor shortage is a
top priority for NASDA members.
Agriculture labor reform is crucial for ensuring that U.S.
farmers and ranchers have a reliable and skilled workforce.
This bill will, for the first time, make year-round visas
available. This is crucial for the dairy industry and other
industries that rely on temporary labor. Further, NASDA
supports the bill maintaining the H-2A program while also
creating a new, certified agricultural worker status. This
status and its renewable visas will increase certainty for
farmers, ranchers and the farm workers who we rely upon for
the safe harvesting and handling of crops and livestock.
NASDA acknowledges that a multi-faceted effort is needed to
fix the challenges with agriculture labor, so any progress
made on this front is a step in the right direction. We look
forward to advancing solutions to agriculture's labor
shortage with Congress.
Sincerely,
Doug Goehring,
NASDA President,
North Dakota Agriculture Commissioner.
____
Committee on Migration, Committee on Domestic Justice and
Human Development,
November 12, 2019, Washington, DC,
House of Representatives,
Washington, DC.
Dear Representative: On behalf of the Committee on
Migration and the Committee on Domestic Justice and Human
Development for the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops, we
write to urge you to support H.R. 5038, the Farm Workforce
Modernization Act. This bipartisan legislation, introduced on
October 30, 2019, by Representative Zoe Lofgren (D-CA) and
several Republican and Democratic sponsors, would create an
earned legal status program for agricultural workers and
would improve the existing H-2A system.
Recognizing the dignity of work of farmworkers and their
families is a central concern of the Catholic Church. In his
1981 encyclical, Laborem Exercems, Pope John Paul II spoke of
the importance of agricultural workers and the need to
protect those working in the fields. Farmworkers produce the
food that we eat and contribute to the care of our community.
Regarding immigrant farmworkers, the bishops in the U.S. have
long advocated for reforms of the existing system, including
a ``legalization program that would help stabilize the
workforce, protect migrant workers, and their families from
discrimination and exploitation and ensure that these workers
are able to continue to make contributions to society.''
H.R. 5038 proposes a meaningful way for migrant
agricultural workers to earn legal status through continued
agricultural employment and contributions to the U.S.
agricultural economy. It also improves labor protections
while producing employment flexibility that is needed to aid
our agricultural industries. H.R. 5038 creates more
accessible and predictable worker programs while ensuring
more worker protections, such as improving the availability
of farmworker housing and providing better health
protections.
As currently written, H.R. 5038 is a step in the right
direction and reflects genuine bipartisan engagement. We
encourage you to
[[Page H10073]]
consider co-sponsoring this current version of the bill and
to move it forward to help ensure a more stable workforce for
our farming economy, as well as a tailored earned
legalization program and greater worker protections.
Sincerely,
Most Reverend Joe Vasquez,
Bishop of Austin, Chairman, USCCB Committee on Migration.
Most Reverend Frank J. Dewane,
Bishop of Venice, Chairman, USCCB Committee on Domestic
Justice and Human Development.
Mr. NEWHOUSE. Mr. Speaker, I urge my colleagues to take the step and
do what we can to improve the labor situation for farmers and ranchers
across this country.
Ms. LOFGREN. Mr. Speaker, I yield 1 minute to the gentleman from
California (Mr. Costa), who has worked so very hard on this bill and
represents an area where agriculture is king.
Mr. COSTA. Mr. Speaker, today is a monumental and historical day.
This bipartisan Farm Workforce Modernization Act of 2019 will truly
help people throughout the country.
I want to thank Chairperson Zoe Lofgren and Dan Newhouse for their
hard work over the last 9 months in bringing all the parties to the
table.
Earlier this year, in September, Chairperson Lofgren, with
Congressmen Panetta, Cox, and myself, held a workshop where all the
organizations from farm country, as well as the UFW, and others,
presented what needed to be done. And, lo and behold, it has happened.
My colleagues ask, Why do we need to have the urgency of this bill?
Well, last month I visited with United Farmworkers in Madera,
California, and told them the promise of this legislation. I saw in
their eyes, and their children who were there, I saw hope; a hope to
become free of fear and the fear of deportation; hope for the American
Dream, and all that that entails, that all immigrants past and present
have shared, in this legislation.
Mr. Speaker, I urge my colleagues to pass this bill today. The Senate
must pass it, and the President should sign it into law. This is the
right thing to do.
Mr. BUCK. Mr. Speaker, I yield 3 minutes to the gentleman from
Florida (Mr. Yoho).
Mr. YOHO. Mr. Speaker, I would like to commend my colleagues, Mr.
Buck and Ms. Lofgren, for attempting to do something to solve a problem
that has gone on for a long time that has not been solved.
Unfortunately, this bill will not solve that problem.
This bill will create the same situation we have had since 1986,
because this bill focuses on amnesty, not on a guest worker program
that our producers need.
I appreciate their efforts, but, again, I have worked around
agriculture since I was 15, picking vegetables, loading vegetables,
talking to farmers. And as a veterinarian, working for 30 years in that
profession, I know the dairy situation.
I have talked to the migrant, and I have talked producer. This bill
will not fulfill that need.
This bill will allow people to get amnesty. They will leave
agriculture and they will go into another industry. Therefore, they are
not going to solve the labor shortage of this country.
That is why there are alternatives out there. We have got a bill that
we worked on in a bipartisan manner, that we have got strong support in
industry, and it solves this problem. It creates a dedicated workforce
for agriculture.
As you go through this bill, you see amnesty after amnesty. And,
again, it does not solve the problem.
Our bill allows people to enter the country legally. They are
automatically enrolled in the E-Verify system. This bill promises to
put the E-Verify system in place once it is implemented. We have heard
that rhetoric out of Washington before. Once it is implemented, we will
fix it.
This is the wrong way to go because this bill, again, will not create
a predictable, certain, and reliable workforce for our agricultural
producers. And I hear over and over again, the biggest challenge to our
producers is a labor shortage.
We are getting to a point in this country where the next generation
will not farm because of the unpredictability that this body has
created, and this bill will not solve that.
And we are getting to a point where either we are going to import our
labor, or we are going to import our produce. A nation that imports its
produce is not a secure nation. This bill will not fix it. This will
make it worse.
Ms. LOFGREN. Mr. Speaker, Representative Sylvia Garcia, a member of
the Judiciary Committee, and a former cotton picker, will submit a
statement in support of this bill.
And I would just note, for the prior speaker, that the Florida Agri-
Women, the Florida Blueberry Growers Association, the Florida Citrus
Mutual, Florida Fruit & Vegetable Association, Florida Nursery, Florida
Strawberry, and Florida Tomato Exchange think this bill will work.
Mr. Speaker, I yield 1 minute to the gentleman from Texas (Mr.
Castro).
Mr. CASTRO of Texas. Mr. Speaker, I rise today in support of H.R.
5038, the Farm Workforce Modernization Act of 2019.
I am very proud to support Congresswoman Lofgren, members of the
Hispanic Caucus, and my colleagues on both sides of the aisle who
helped make this bill possible today.
There are, in the United States, four or five major industries that
would not exist the way they do but for immigrant labor, documented,
and undocumented. One of those industries is the agriculture industry.
This bill would recognize the important work that undocumented
workers do in our agriculture industry. It would recognize that their
work deserves respect; that it is dignified; that it has a place in our
country; and that they have a place in our country. It would do so by
allowing for a path to legal status for these workers.
For 2 million folks, it would mean that they would no longer face the
threat of deportation; that they and their families could rest assured
that in the middle of the night they would not be taken away from their
children.
This legislation is important to our country, and I hope that all of
my colleagues, Republican and Democrat, will support it today.
Mr. BUCK. Mr. Speaker, I yield 2\1/2\ minutes to the gentleman from
Michigan (Mr. Upton).
Mr. UPTON. Mr. Speaker, earlier this year, the President, speaking at
the National Farm Bureau Convention, called for legislation regarding
agriculture immigration. And he acknowledged that the ag community, in
his words, ``needs people to help with the farms.'' That is what this
bill does.
As much as most of us would like to wave a magic wand and fix a very
broken system, you know, what? We have failed. But it is not for the
lack of trying. We simply haven't had the votes; whether it is more or
less border security; whether it is too comprehensive or too less. We
can't even fix the Dreamer issue. Come on.
This ag bill is going to pass, thank goodness. And I want to thank
Jimmy Panetta, Dan Newhouse and other members of the bipartisan
Problem Solvers Caucus, particularly Chair Lofgren, who helped deliver
legislation here to the House floor this afternoon.
Would I like to do more? You bet. But, you know, at the moment, this
is the only step that we can do on a bipartisan basis this year. Let's
just face it.
If we can't pass a narrow bill, when is it going to happen? This is
the first step, so let's get it done.
This bill is going to provide a long overdue and desperately needed
overhaul to the H-2A program, and it builds on the July 2019 DOL's
proposal for H-2A reforms.
Key provisions include a freeze on the Adverse Effect Wage, which has
led directly to dozens of farm closures in my district in Michigan; a
streamlined and modernized application process to encourage more
widespread adoption; creating a year-round H-2A visa program, allowing
all of agriculture to utilize the program.
Now is the time, finally, to at least boldly act to pass a real ag
labor reform to ensure that our ag community has the workforce that it
needs to remain the envy of the world. I would urge all of my
colleagues to support this.
[[Page H10074]]
Ms. LOFGREN. Mr. Speaker, it is really a great honor to yield 1
minute to the gentlewoman from Washington (Ms. Schrier), a freshman
Member, but a person who has worked very hard behind the scenes to help
advance this bill.
{time} 1515
Ms. SCHRIER. Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentlewoman for yielding.
I thank my colleagues, Representative Lofgren and Representative
Newhouse, for their very hard work on this bipartisan bill.
The critical needs of our farmers and farmworkers have gone too long
without being addressed by Congress. As the sole Member in the entire
Northwest on the House Agriculture Committee, I am proud to represent
the apple capital of the world, Wenatchee, as well as farmers and
growers on both sides of the Cascades, and I can say that they are
hurting.
What I hear from the farmers and orchardists across my State is that
a stable workforce is critical to their ability to put food on our
tables. As the domestic workforce is dwindling, more and more growers
have been forced to turn to the burdensome and bureaucratic H-2A
program for the workers they need to grow and harvest their crops.
Farmworkers are critical. If the cherries ripen and there is no one
to pick them, our farms and our farmers will fail. Crops don't wait,
and millions of dollars and futures are at stake.
This important bill will provide a stable workforce for our farmers
and a path to legal status for farmworkers and their families. This is
the kind of winning bipartisan legislation that is exactly what our
country needs. I encourage my colleagues to vote ``yes.''
Mr. BUCK. Mr. Speaker, I yield 3 minutes to the gentleman from Idaho
(Mr. Simpson).
Mr. SIMPSON. Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentleman for yielding.
I rise today in favor of H.R. 5038, the Farm Workforce Modernization
Act, and I thank Chairwoman Lofgren, her staff, the committee staff,
and the personal staff of all the Members who have been working on this
bill for, I don't know, 8 or 9 months.
We all want the same thing, and we are here today addressing
agriculture's number one issue, and that is their labor force.
We will hear a lot during this debate, and we already have, about how
this is amnesty and indentured servitude. It is neither of those
things. In fact, those are contradictory terms, so the argument at best
is insincere.
Let me say what this bill does. It legalizes the current workforce so
long as workers get right with the law, have a clean criminal record,
and can demonstrate the same work experiences our former colleague Bob
Goodlatte said they must have to qualify. If they want to access
further legal status, they work 4 to 8 more years in agriculture and
then pay a fine and get in line while they continue to work in
agriculture. That doesn't sound like amnesty to me.
For my farmers back home who desperately need this, the bill
streamlines the H-2A program to make it more affordable. It doesn't do
everything we want, but it makes it better than what we have today, in
fact, much better than what we have today.
It brings wages under control by freezing them for 1 year and then
capping future growth. There will be a single online portal for farmers
to access workers. It will also set up a year-round program for our
dairymen, which they don't currently have.
Some people have said this is a great bill for dairymen, but not the
rest of agriculture. That is not true. This streamlines the H-2A
program for all of agriculture, so it is a good bill for all of
agriculture.
Finally, and again to my friends on my side of the aisle, almost all
of us support E-Verify, and here it is. We have E-Verify in this bill.
Agriculture is the backbone of Idaho's economy. Without this bill,
how can we pretend to say that we care about rural America?
This bill has the support of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, Americans
for Prosperity, Cato Institute, and over 300 agricultural groups, which
have already been entered into the Record.
This is the voice of rural America saying they need this. I urge a
``yes'' vote on this bill, and I look forward to working with all of my
colleagues to keep moving this bill forward so that it can ultimately
be signed into law and solve a critical problem in America.
Ms. LOFGREN. Madam Speaker, I yield 1 minute to the gentleman from
Oregon (Mr. Schrader), someone who has done a great deal of work and
helped us get here today.
Mr. SCHRADER. Madam Speaker, I thank the gentlewoman for yielding.
I rise today in strong support of H.R. 5038, the Farm Workforce
Modernization Act. This compromise bill represents the kind of
legislation this body can put together and pass with broad bipartisan
support when Members put aside ideological differences and choose to
work together to solve a very serious and difficult issue.
With this legislation, we will finally begin to address the labor
crisis that has been plaguing American agriculture by providing a
stable and legal workforce so they can continue to grow the best food
and fiber in the world.
In my home State of Oregon, we are a specialty crop State. We rely on
manual labor for nearly every crop we grow. The labor shortage is the
number one issue my farmers face. In many of our ag industries, like
nursery crops or the dairy industry we just heard referenced, the labor
is needed year-round.
H.R. 5038 is a critical step forward in not only providing workforce
stability for our farmers but also in providing a path to lawful
permanent residency for hardworking farmworkers and their family
members.
I am also very proud of the work that PCUN in Oregon has done to help
make this legislation a reality.
I hope our colleagues in the Senate are paying close attention and
move this bill in short order. I urge all Members to support this bill
today.
Mr. BUCK. Madam Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the gentleman from
Florida (Mr. Diaz-Balart).
Mr. DIAZ-BALART. Madam Speaker, I thank the gentleman from Colorado
for yielding. I rise today to strongly support this bipartisan bill.
You have heard today that, for decades, Congress has been talking
about the broken H-2A system, the system that our farmers use to get
the workforce that they need to grow our food. We have been talking
about it for decades.
It is broken and not only creates an economic issue for our farmers
and for the country, but it also creates a national security issue.
Imagine if we were forced to start having to import our food.
Isn't it time to kind of just stop talking and start working to bring
forward real bipartisan solutions? That is what this bill does. Is it
perfect? No, but that is what this bill does. This bill helps our
farmers, finally brings help to our farmers. It also regularizes our
farming workforce, which helps our farmers, helps our communities,
helps our economy, and helps our national security.
Again, this is crucial for those folks who work hard every single day
and who are tired of hearing from Congress just words of how broken the
system is. We finally have a bipartisan bill that does what we have
been talking about for so many years. That is why I am proud to support
this bill.
Ms. LOFGREN. Madam Speaker, I yield 1 minute to the gentleman from
Colorado (Mr. Crow), a freshman Member who has worked behind the scenes
to help bring us here today.
Mr. CROW. Madam Speaker, I thank the gentlewoman for yielding.
I am proud to stand here with my colleagues to support the Farm
Workforce Modernization Act on behalf of farmers and farmworkers in
Colorado. Colorado farms are doing all they can to move forward,
despite the administration's trade war, which has led to a 15 percent
reduction in Colorado agricultural exports in 2019. It has also stifled
the migrant seasonal farmworker program when farmers need it the most.
Throughout this year, I have met with farmers in my district,
including Robert Sakata of Sakata Farms in Brighton, Colorado, which
was started in 1945 by his father. To Robert and other Western growers,
modernizing the guest worker program is crucial to their success as a
family farm and their contribution to our local economy.
[[Page H10075]]
This important piece of bipartisan legislation will do just that. The
bill will establish a program for Colorado farmworkers to earn legal
status, improve the H-2A program by ensuring critical protections for
workers, and establish a mandatory nationwide E-Verify system for all
farmworkers.
I thank my colleague Representative Lofgren and all those who have
worked across the aisle to get this very important bill done.
Mr. BUCK. Madam Speaker, I yield 3 minutes to the gentleman from
California (Mr. LaMalfa).
Mr. LaMALFA. Madam Speaker, I thank the gentleman for yielding.
Something needs to be underlined here. In this area here of a divided
Congress, a divided country, this has been a unique opportunity to have
a true bipartisan solution to a longtime, decades-old problem. I am
proud of the work. Many of us have been able to get in the room as
Members and as staff over many months and come to an agreement that is
a pretty darn good solution for an ongoing problem.
This isn't a border bill. This isn't a DACA bill. It is not a fence
bill or an amnesty bill. This is a narrow bill having to do with having
a stable workforce for agriculture in this country.
I come from California, and many of the crops are very labor
intensive. I am farmer myself, but I don't benefit from this bill. I
don't need that kind of labor, but just so it is disclosed.
But so many crops that come from California and others like the truck
crops, the intensely labor needful crops, would disappear. We will end
up importing them from somewhere else if we don't have this workforce
continue.
This bill makes for a legal workforce, a documented workforce. Why
wouldn't we want that?
But heaven knows, you say the word ``amnesty,'' people go running for
the hills, running for cover. This is not an amnesty bill. How could it
be when it has benchmarks for the certified ag workers to come in to be
vetted before they get that certification and to have benchmarks to
become a legal permanent resident? Yes, at the very far end, there is
an opportunity for citizenship. The way the process works, it would
probably take 18 to 20 years to accomplish.
For those who are really concerned about it being a handout for
citizenship or whatever, it still is a steep hill. Also, by and large,
most American people would look at these ag workers as pretty good
people. They are not perfect. There are issues here and there. But they
are providing a needed service that I don't see a lot of Americans
willing to do, not in this age of Xbox and all these other things where
nobody is willing to go outside.
I have worked a lot of years myself in the heat and the Sun, and it
is not even as tough as some of the other crops. But for what we are
talking about, we really need to move forward.
This will help our dairies, which need year-round labor. We are
losing our dairies in California. We are going to lose dairies in our
country.
Let's talk about the workers themselves for a moment. How humane is
it, the process by which they have to come across the border, pay these
people horrendous amounts of money, with the issues that they are
subject to in coming across? No, we don't want that.
We don't want them coming across illegally. We want them coming
across with a certificate that they have been vetted.
This bill has E-Verify in it. How big of a thing is that for
Republicans, for conservatives, for people across the country? When
this is phased in, we will have a very good process for verifying who
it is that is coming in to do this work. We desperately need the labor.
It has been a long process. It will be a long process to continue to
bring the labor force in.
I think if we want to be here 10 years from now still dealing with
this, then let's vote ``no'' on this bill. But if we want to make a
solution, this is one that we can get right now in this atmosphere in
D.C.
Ms. LOFGREN. Madam Speaker, I yield 1 minute to the gentlewoman from
California (Ms. Pelosi), the Speaker of the House.
Ms. PELOSI. Madam Speaker, I thank the gentlewoman for yielding.
I commend Congresswoman Lofgren for her tremendous leadership on this
important legislation, the Farm Workforce Modernization Act.
I join with Mr. LaMalfa, my friend, my Italian America colleague from
California, in his strong remarks for this bill.
It is bipartisan, and it is important for us to pass it.
I proudly join all of my colleagues on both sides of the aisle to
support this bill, a historic victory for farmworkers and for growers,
which ensures that America can continue to feed the world.
I salute, again, Chair Zoe Lofgren for her months of tough,
relentless leadership without which this bill would not be possible.
I commend the leadership of the United Farm Workers. Arturo Rodriguez
has been working on this bill for almost a generation, 17 years. Arturo
Rodriguez and Teresa Romero have sent a statement of support for the
legislation, which very clearly points out the need and the answer that
this bill is about.
I submit for the Record the United Farm Workers statement of support
for the Farm Workforce Modernization Act.
United Farm Workers Support for the Farm Workforce Modernization Act
(H.R. 5038--Lofgren)
The United Farm Workers of America supports the bipartisan
Farm Workforce Modernization Act (H.R. 5038). We were proud
to join the bipartisan group of members of Congress and the
major grower associations to develop and support H.R. 5038.
It is cruelly ironic that the people who feed the United
States live in a deep, all-encompassing fear that they
themselves cannot provide food for their families. The human
cost and stress for farm workers and their families as they
live in fear of deportation and harassment due to our broken
immigration system threatens our nation's food supply and is
a source of great shame for our nation. The compromise
legislation authored by Representatives Lofgren, cosponsored
by a bipartisan, diverse group of over 50 members of the
House, and endorsed by the Congressional Hispanic Caucus will
go a long way towards improving the lives of farm workers
today and in the future, and our broken immigration system.
We support H.R. 5038 for a simple reason--it will make the
lives of all farm workers better. H.R. 5038 meets the
following basic principles:
1. Equality of Treatment--the new agricultural visa program
will allow farm workers and their families to have the same
rights and protections as current U.S. farm workers.
2. No Discrimination--the program does not create major
incentives to discriminate against U.S. workers (including
newly legalized workers).
3. Fairness in pay--the pay rates protect U.S. workers and
supports predictable pay increases.
4. Eligibility to earn permanent residence--no one that
works to feed our country should be condemned to permanent
second class status. H.R. 5038 changes our current immoral
system.
You have the ability to pass H.R. 5038. If H.R. 5038
becomes law, agricultural workers will have stability for
themselves, and their families and the agricultural industry.
Please vote YES on H.R. 5038.
Teresa Romero,
President, United Farm Workers.
Arturo S. Rodriguez,
President Emeritus and former Board Chair, United Farm
Workers and UFW Foundation.
Ms. PELOSI. So many Members brought their vision, their voices, their
values to this process. I thank all of you for strengthening the bill
we have on the floor today. I thank our friends from the groups for
doing the outside organizing that makes our inside maneuvering
successful. We have all been inspired by the immortal words of our
beloved Dolores Huerta: ``Si, se puede.''
This legislation honors workers' dignity and supports the farm
economy with strong, smart reforms. The bill provides a path for
legalization, as Mr. LaMalfa referenced, for currently undocumented
farmworkers. No one who works to feed our country should be condemned
to permanent second-class status.
The bill secures the agricultural workforce of the future by
updating, expanding, and strengthening the H-2A initiative to ensure
that farms have stable, secure workforces.
Critically, it demands fair, humane treatment for farmworkers,
following the lead of legislation in California by securing fairness in
pay, improving access to quality housing, and ensuring robust safety
and heat illness protections.
{time} 1530
Many in this Chamber, particularly, I know firsthand, from
California, have
[[Page H10076]]
helped lead the fight for farmworkers for decades.
This fight is not only about ensuring fair wages and fair treatment,
but about honoring the spark of divinity within each person, which
makes us all worthy of dignity and respect.
This bill honors the 2 million farmworkers who are the backbone of
our economy and country, powering our farm economy, and producing the
food on our tables, even as they persevere through harsh working
conditions and low wages.
As the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops wrote last month
in support of this bill: ``The dignity of work of farmworkers and their
families is a central concern. . . . Farmworkers produce the food that
we eat and contribute to the care of our community.''
This legislation is a critical step forward for workers, for growers,
and for the farm economy, but our work is not done. Led by Chair Zoe
Lofgren and Members from every corner of the country, we will continue
to work to stabilize the farm economy, protect workers and their
families, and maintain America's proud agricultural preeminence in the
world.
As we do so, remember the words of the late Cesar Chavez. He said
this: ``To make a great dream come true, the first requirement is a
great capacity to dream; the second is persistence.''
Madam Speaker, I thank Chair Lofgren for her persistence, and I thank
Mr. Rodriguez for his help.
I am pleased with the bipartisanship of this bill. I thank our
Members for their persistence on this legislation, for which I urge a
strong bipartisan vote.
Madam Speaker, I thank Mr. Buck for his leadership on this as well.
Mr. BUCK. Madam Speaker, I yield 3 minutes to the gentleman from
Arizona (Mr. Biggs), my friend, who was a leader in Arizona in the
legislature on these issues and others and is known throughout our
caucus for his common sense and leadership, and I anxiously await his
remarks.
Mr. BIGGS. Madam Speaker, I thank the gentleman for yielding time to
me.
Many of us have heard from farmers and agricultural suppliers around
the country about their need for labor to ensure their products can be
harvested, processed, and sold. I have heard time and time again from
business owners who prioritize hiring American workers but repeatedly
find themselves without the labor necessary.
This problem is worthy of a broader conversation in Congress,
including how we address the root of the problem and any relation to
the welfare state that we have created here.
My main concerns today, however, go beyond addressing true labor
shortages and, instead, focus on the rewards this legislation provides
to employers who have chosen to use illegal labor and to aliens who
have chosen to work illegally in the United States.
This bill creates a new pathway to legal status for illegal aliens
who have been working in the agricultural industry in the United
States. Any alien who merely applies for legal status under the
program, whether truly eligible, immediately receives work
authorization, protection from removal, and the ability to travel
outside the United States. Those who meet the requirements will be
rewarded with a pathway to lawful, permanent resident status and,
ultimately, citizenship.
Foreign nationals around the world wait years and spend thousands of
dollars to receive those same benefits. This legislation is an
unacceptable slap in the face to all those who follow our immigration
laws.
Worse still, this legislation does little to root out fraud, instead,
blatantly incentivizing it.
The ability to receive work authorization and other benefits upon
application will likely lead many individuals to submit applications
even if they are not eligible, but they will have no fear of doing so
because there are no penalties attached. Aliens can withdraw their
fraudulent application without prejudice to any further application.
This legislation also condones and turns a blind eye to instances of
immigration fraud by waiving inadmissibility for aliens who previously
tried to fraudulently gain legal status or falsely claimed to be U.S.
citizens.
There are several other concerning provisions with this legislation:
It creates a new grant program to assist eligible applicants--illegal
aliens--in applying for this newly created immigration status.
It prohibits use of E-Verify to check a new hire's employment
eligibility until that person is actually hired and requires use of the
program in a way that demonstrates a fundamental misunderstanding of
the mechanics of the E-Verify system.
It allows aliens to prove work history with only a sworn affidavit
from someone who ostensibly has direct knowledge of their work history.
It fails to impose any real penalty for months and years of illegal
work, and it fails to impose any real penalty on employers who
knowingly violated U.S. law for their own benefit.
At a time when our immigration system is rampant with illegality,
when we have little control over our southern border and there are
crisis levels of individuals trying to illegally immigrate, we should
not be promoting legislation that rewards years of illegal behavior.
Madam Speaker, for these reasons, I oppose this legislation and urge
my colleagues to do the same.
Ms. LOFGREN. Madam Speaker, I yield 1 minute to the gentlewoman from
Ohio (Ms. Kaptur), someone who has been through a lot. She is a senior
Member of the House and the most senior woman in the House, has served
the most time.
Ms. KAPTUR. Madam Speaker, I thank so very much Madam Chair for
yielding to me and for her distinguished leadership on behalf of the
American producers and farmworkers who are the subject of this
important bill. I have a sense of how long she has worked on this.
For too long, I have borne painful witness to the plight of our
continent's migrant farmworkers, as well as the problems our growers
are having. These hardworking migrant workers endure harsh working
conditions at jobs that the American people simply are not interested
in and won't do. These workers endure very harsh conditions to make
sure that food gets to our tables, from farm to table. We could not
feed this country without these workers.
Many of these workers leave their families and journey to the United
States in hopes of finding decent work at a respectable wage, yet far
too often are subjugated to exploitative serfdom. That is why I stand
heartened that the Farm Workforce Modernization Act has been brought
forth to this House floor.
This bill has strengths, as others have talked about: It regularizes
the workforce; it addresses very serious issues.
The SPEAKER pro tempore (Ms. DeGette). The time of the gentlewoman
has expired.
Ms. LOFGREN. Madam Speaker, I yield the gentlewoman from Ohio an
additional 15 seconds.
Ms. KAPTUR. Madam Speaker, this bill regularizes the workforce,
addresses the very serious issues of heat illness prevention and decent
lodging, and also has other necessary provisions that demand our
support.
We must address the conditions of these workers. They cannot be
preyed upon. I look forward to continuing to work with my colleagues to
improve conditions not addressed in this bill.
Madam Speaker, I want to thank the chairwoman for her fantastic work,
speaking up for some of America's most forgotten workers.
Mr. BUCK. Madam Speaker, I have no further witnesses and am prepared
to close.
I reserve the balance of my time.
Ms. LOFGREN. Madam Speaker, may I inquire how much time remains on
each side.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. The gentlewoman from California has 15\1/4\
minutes remaining. The gentleman from Colorado has 4\1/2\ minutes
remaining.
Ms. LOFGREN. Madam Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may
consume.
Madam Speaker, I would like to first make a comment in lieu of the
testimony that was going to be given by Representative Clay from
Missouri. Unfortunately--or fortunately; I don't know what they are
voting on--the Financial Services Committee is meeting, and he has been
detained there voting in that committee.
[[Page H10077]]
Mr. Clay was here to talk about an important thing that the Financial
Services Committee helped us with in the drafting of this bill, and
that is the improvement in the availability of farmworker housing while
lowering employer costs as it relates to housing, and that is a win. We
need to make sure that H-2A workers who come to the United States have
a decent place to live while they are here working.
Now, preserving the existing housing stock, including by adopting
H.R. 3620, the Strategy and Investment in Rural Housing Preservation
Act, which authorizes $1 billion to rehabilitate housing that is aging
out of the USDA incentives program, is included in this bill.
Incentivizing new housing by tripling funding for USDA section 514
and 516 rural housing loan and grant programs and doubling funding for
section 512 rental assistance programs, increasing the USDA per project
loan limitation, and granting operating subsidies to 514, 516 property
owners who house H-2A workers is going to be a real important boost to
rural America. Not only will it increase the amount of housing and the
quality of housing, but it will also inject new economic activity in
rural America. And we all know that, economically, rural America is
suffering in terms of jobs more than other parts of the country.
So this is a win-win-win. It is a win for farmers by lowering their
costs; it is a win for H-2A migrant workers so they can have a decent
place to live; and it is a win for people who live in rural America who
are going to be building these facilities, who will see an injection of
funds to improve their economy.
So Mr. Clay could not be here to talk about his bill, but I am
talking about it on his behalf.
Madam Speaker, I yield 3 minutes to the gentleman from California
(Mr. Panetta), the Representative for Salinas Valley, someone who has
worked on this bill for a huge amount of time--not only he, but his
staff.
Mr. PANETTA. Madam Speaker, I thank Chairwoman Lofgren for her
amazing leadership on this bill. It is an honor to have her as a
colleague. It is an honor to have her as my direct neighbor to the
north in California.
Madam Speaker, let me also take this time to thank Representative
Dan Newhouse for his courage, his willingness to be bold on this bill
was phenomenal.
Let me thank both of their staffs for the amazing amount of work that
they did on this bill.
Madam Speaker, let me thank all of my colleagues on both sides of the
aisle who have worked on this bill, especially Fred Upton and the
Problem Solvers Caucus, who are supporting this bill.
This bill, the Farm Workforce Modernization Act, is a step in the
right direction for our agriculture, for immigration reform, and, yes,
even this Congress.
This bill would protect our existing ag workers, and it promotes an
enduring ag workforce. This bill does that by allowing those who have
worked in ag to stay working in ag and the opportunity to earn a
pathway here in this country.
It does that by modernizing an outdated system for temporary workers
and adding 3-year visas for year-round workers. It does that by
ensuring a number of visas, fair wages, a supply of housing, and safe
working conditions.
By passing this bill, finally, farmers will have access to a
dependable and experienced workforce, and farmworkers will not get just
the legality, but the dignity that they deserve.
I am not only proud of the product in this bill, but all of us here
in the House of Representatives should be extremely proud of the
process behind the formulation of this bill.
For the past 9 months out of this year, farmers and farmworkers,
Democrats and Republicans, came to the table, sat at the table, and
stayed at the table to grind out the details in this bill.
Now, yes, it is not a perfect bill, but it really is a darn good
bill, a bill which is the result of a compromise. That is why this bill
is a huge step in the right direction for farmers, for farmworkers, for
our agricultural communities, for our country, for Democrats and
Republicans in this Congress, and for who we are as a democracy, built
on a nation of immigrants.
Mr. BUCK. Madam Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
Madam Speaker, I include in the Record Ranking Member Collins'
statement.
Once again, I appreciate my colleagues' desire to fix this problem
and provide our farmers and ranchers with a long-term solution to the
labor supply problems in this country; however, this bill only masks
the existing problems and creates a whole host of new issues that we
will have to revisit in a few years, and it polarizes Americans
further.
My colleagues and I can agree that we need to fix this problem.
Potentially allowing criminals a pathway to citizenship isn't the way.
Allowing possible Social Security fraud isn't the way. Preventing our
employers from curing problems and giving trial attorneys a handout
isn't the way.
Madam Speaker, I truly want to help all of our farmers and ranchers,
but this bill is wrong, and I cannot support it. I urge my colleagues
to vote against the bill.
Madam Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.
Ms. LOFGREN. Madam Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may
consume.
Madam Speaker, this is the time to act. For many years, under the
leadership of different Speakers with different majorities, we have
talked about dealing with this issue, and that is all we did: we
talked.
You know, there is never a perfect piece of legislation, but as Mr.
Panetta said, this is a darn good piece of legislation.
{time} 1545
It was the one that was crafted together, and a lot of people across
America might be surprised that Republicans and Democrats sat down in a
room, along with stakeholders who often don't agree with each other,
and we worked things out. We came up with a plan that will work.
We know it will work because we have a list of close to 300
agricultural entities, farmers all across the United States, who are
asking us to please pass this bill. They know it will work.
Madam Speaker, I include in the Record that list.
November 18, 2019.
Hon. Nancy Pelosi,
Speaker, House of Representatives,
Washington, DC.
Hon. Kevin McCarthy,
Minority Leader, House of Representatives,
Washington, DC.
Dear Speaker Pelosi and Minority Leader McCarthy: The
undersigned groups, representing a broad cross-section of
agriculture and its allies, urge you to advance the Farm
Workforce Modernization Act (H.R. 5038) through the House to
address the labor crisis facing American agriculture. A
stable, legal workforce is needed to ensure farmers and
ranchers have the ability to continue producing an abundant,
safe, and affordable food supply.
The effects of agriculture's critical shortage of labor
reach far beyond the farm gate, negatively impacting our
economic competitiveness, local economies, and jobs.
Economists have found that every farm worker engaged in high-
value, labor-intensive crop and livestock production sustains
two to three off-farm jobs. As foreign producers take
advantage of our labor shortage and gain market share,
America will export not only our food production but also
thousands of these farm-dependent jobs. Securing a reliable
and skilled workforce is essential, not only for the
agricultural industry but for the U.S. economy as a whole.
The House must pass legislation that preserves
agriculture's experienced workforce by allowing current farm
workers to earn legal status. For future needs, legislation
must include an agricultural worker visa program that
provides access to a legal and reliable workforce moving
forward. This visa program needs to be more accessible,
predictable, and flexible to meet the needs of producers,
including those with year-round labor needs, such as dairy
and livestock which currently do not have meaningful access
to any program.
While the bill does include a few provisions that raise
significant concerns for the agricultural community, we are
committed to working together throughout the legislative
process to fully address these issues. It is vital to move
the Farm Workforce Modernization Act (H.R. 5038) through the
House as a significant step in working to meet the labor
needs of agriculture, both now and in the future.
Sincerely,
African-American Farmers of California; AgCountry Farm
Credit Services; AgriBank FCB; Agribusiness Henderson County
(AgHC); Agricultural Council of California Agri-Mark, Inc.;
Alabama Farmers Cooperative; Alabama Nursery & Landscape
Association; Almond Alliance of California; Amalgamated Sugar
Company LLC; American
[[Page H10078]]
AgCredit; American Agri-Women; American Beekeeping
Federation; American Mushroom Institute; American Pistachio
Growers; American Seed Trade Association AmericanHort.
Arizona Cattle Feeders' Association; Arizona Landscape
Contractors Association; Arizona Nursery Association;
Arkansas Rice Growers Association; Associated Milk Producers
Inc.; Association of Virginia Potato and Vegetable Growers;
Aurora Organic Dairy; AZ Farm & Ranch Group; Battlefield
Farms, Inc.; Bipartisan Policy Center Action; Bongards'
Creameries; Butte County Farm Bureau; California Ag
Irrigation Association; California Alfalfa and Forage
Association; California Apple Commission.
California Avocado Commission; California Bean Shippers
Association; California Blueberry Commission; California
Canning Peach Association; California Cherry Growers and
Industry Association; California Citrus Mutual California
Dairies, Inc.; California Farm Bureau Federation; California
Fig Advisory Board; California Fresh Fruit Association;
California Grain and Feed Association; California League of
Food Producers; California Pear Growers; California Prune
Board; California Seed Association; California State
Beekeepers Association.
California State Floral Association; California Sweet
Potato Council; California Tomato Growers Association;
California Walnut Commission; California Warehouse
Association; California Wheat Growers Association; California
Women for Agriculture; Cayuga Milk Ingredients; Central
Valley Ag; Cherry Marketing Institute; Chobani; Clif Bar &
Company; CoBank; Colorado Dairy Farmers; Colorado Nursery &
Greenhouse Association.
Colorado Potato Legislative Association; Compeer Financial;
Cooperative Milk Producers Association; Cooperative Network
Dairy Farmers of America, Inc.; Dairy Producers of New
Mexico; Dairy Producers of Utah; Del Mar Food Products,
Corp.; Driscoll's; Edge Dairy Farmer Cooperative; Ellsworth
Cooperative Creamery; Empire State Potato Growers; Far West
Agribusiness Association; Farm Credit East; Farm Credit
Illinois; Farm Credit Services of America; Farm Credit West.
FarmFirst Dairy Cooperative; First District Association;
Florida Agri-Women; Florida Blueberry Growers Association;
Florida Citrus Mutual; Florida Fruit & Vegetable Association;
Florida Nursery, Growers, and Landscape Association; Florida
Strawberry Growers Association; Florida Tomato Exchange; Food
Northwest; Food Producers of Idaho; Foremost Farms USA;
Fresno County Farm Bureau; Frontier Farm Credit; Fruit
Growers Marketing Association.
Fruit Growers Supply; Georgia Green Industry Association;
Glanbia Nutritionals; Grapeman Farms; GreenStone Farm Credit
Services; Grower-Shipper Association of Central California;
GROWMARK; Gulf Citrus Growers Association; Hop Growers of
Washington; Idaho Alfalfa & Clover Seed Commission; Idaho
Alfalfa & Clover Seed Growers Association; Idaho Apple
Commission; Idaho Association of Commerce and Industry; Idaho
Association of Highway Districts; Idaho Association of Soil
Conservation Districts.
Idaho Bankers Association; Idaho Cattleman's Association;
Idaho Chamber Alliance; Idaho Dairymen's Association; Idaho
Eastern Oregon Seed Association; Idaho Grain Producers
Association; Idaho Grower Shipper Association; Idaho Hop
Growers; Idaho Milk Products; Idaho Mint Growers Association;
Idaho Noxious Weed Control Association; Idaho Nursery &
Landscape Association; Idaho Onion Growers Association; Idaho
Potato Commission; Idaho State Grange; Idaho Sugarbeet
Growers Association; Idaho Water Users Association; Idaho
Wool Growers.
Idahoan Foods LLC; Idaho-Oregon Fruit and Vegetable
Association; Illinois Green Industry Association;
International Dairy Food Association; Iowa Institute for
Cooperatives; Iowa State Dairy Association; J.R. Simplot
Company; Kansas Cooperative Council; Kansas Dairy
Association; Kanza Cooperative Associaton; Kings County Farm
Bureau; Land O'Lakes, Inc.; Lone Star Milk Producers; Madera
County Farm Bureau; Maine Landscape and Nursery Association.
Maine Potato Board; Maryland & Virginia Milk Producers
Cooperative Association; Maryland Nursery, Landscape, &
Greenhouse Association; Massachusetts Nursery and Landscape
Association, Inc.; MBG Marketing; Mendocino County Farm
Bureau; Merced County Farm Bureau; Michigan Agri-Business
Association; Michigan Apple Association; Michigan Asparagus
Advisory Board; Michigan Bean Shippers; Michigan Cider
Association; Michigan Greenhouse Grower Council; Michigan
Milk Producers Association; Michigan Nursery & Landscape
Association.
Michigan State Horticultural Society; Midwest Dairy
Coalition; Mid-West Dairymen's Company; Milk Producers
Council; Milk Producers of Idaho; Minnesota Area II Potato
Council; Minnesota Milk Producers Association; Minnesota
Nursery & Landscape Association; Missouri Rice Research and
Merchandising Council; Montana Nursery & Landscape
Association; Monterey County (CA) Farm Bureau; Mount Joy
Farmers Cooperative Association; Napa County Farm Bureau;
National All-Jersey; National Association of Produce Market
Managers.
National Council of Agricultural Employers; National
Council of Farmer Cooperatives; National Farmers Union;
National Grange; National Immigration Forum; National Milk
Producers Federation; National Onion Association; National
Potato Council; National Watermelon Association; Nebraska
State Dairy Association; New American Economy; New England
Apple Council; New England Farmers Union; New York Apple
Association; New York Farm Bureau Federation.
New York State Berry Growers Association; New York State
Flower Industries; New York State Vegetable Growers
Association; Nezperce Prairie Grass Growers Association;
Nisei Farmers League; North American Blueberry Council; North
Carolina Nursery & Landscape Association; North Carolina
Potato Association; Northeast Dairy Farmers Cooperatives;
Northeast Dairy Foods Association, Inc.; Northeast Dairy
Producers Association; Northern Plains Potato Growers
Association; Northern Virginia Nursery & Landscape
Association; Northwest Ag Co-op Council; Northwest Dairy
Association/Darigold.
Northwest Farm Credit Services; Northwest Horticultural
Council; Ohio Apple Marketing Program; Ohio Dairy Producers
Association; Ohio Nursery & Landscape Association; Olive
Growers Council of California; Oneida-Madison Milk Producers
Cooperative Association; Orange County Farm Bureau; Oregon
Association of Nurseries; Oregon Dairy Farmers Association;
Oregon Potato Commission; Pacific Coast Producers; Pacific
Egg and Poultry Association; Pacific Seed Association;
Pennsylvania Co-operative Potato Growers.
Pennsylvania Landscape & Nursery Association; Plant
California Alliance; POM Wonderful; Porterville Citrus;
Potato Growers of America; Potato Growers of Idaho; Potato
Growers of Michigan; Prairie Farms Dairy, Inc.; Premier Milk
Inc.; Produce Marketing Association; Professional Dairy
Managers of Pennsylvania; RBI Packing LLC; Reiter Affiliated
Companies; Richard Bagdasarian, Inc.; Riverside County Farm
Bureau.
Rocky Mountain Farmers Union; San Diego County Farm Bureau;
San Mateo County Farm Bureau; Santa Clara County Farm Bureau;
Santa Cruz County Farm Bureau; Scioto Cooperative Milk
Producers' Association; Select Milk Producers, Inc.; Seneca
Foods Corporation; Sierra Citrus Association; Snake River
Sugar Company; Solano County Farm Bureau; Sonoma County Farm
Bureau; South Dakota Association of Cooperatives; South
Dakota Dairy Producers; South East Dairy Farmers Association.
Southeast Milk Inc.; Southern States Cooperative; St.
Albans Cooperative Creamery, Inc.; Stanislaus County Farm
Bureau; State Horticultural Association of Pennsylvania;
Summer Prize Frozen Foods; Sunkist Growers; Sun-Maid Growers
of California; Sunsweet Growers, Inc.; Tennessee Nursery &
Landscape Association; Texas Agricultural Cooperative
Council; Texas Association of Dairymen; Texas Citrus Mutual;
Texas International Produce Association; Texas Nursery &
Landscape Association.
The National Association of State Departments of
Agriculture; The SF Market and San Francisco Produce
Association; Tillamook County Creamery Association; Tree Top
Inc.; Tulare County Farm Bureau; U.S. Apple Association; U.S.
Rice Producers Association; United Ag; United Dairymen of
Arizona; United Egg Producers; United Fresh Produce
Association; United Onions, USA; United Potato Growers of
America; Upstate Niagara Cooperative, Inc., Utah Farmers
Union.
Utah Horticulture Society; Valley Fig Growers; Ventura
County Agricultural Association; Ventura Pacific; Vermont
Dairy Producers Alliance; Virginia Apple Growers Association;
Virginia Nursery & Landscape Association; Virginia State
Dairymen's Association; Visalia Citrus Packing Group, Inc.;
WA Wine Institute; Washington Growers League; Washington
State Dairy Federation; Washington State Nursery & Landscape
Association; Washington State Potato Commission; Washington
State Tree Fruit Association.
Wawona Frozen Foods; West Virginia Nursery & Landscape
Association; Western Growers Association; Western States
Dairy Producers Association; Western United Dairies; Wine
Institute; WineAmerica; Wisconsin Dairy Business Association;
Wisconsin Potato & Vegetable Growers Association; Wonderful
Citrus; Wonderful Orchards; Yuma Fresh Vegetable Association.
Ms. LOFGREN. Madam Speaker, I also include in the Record a list of
those who care about immigrants who are also asking us to pass this
bill: Farmworker Justice, Justice for Migrant Women, the National
Domestic Workers Alliance, the Forest Worker Center, the Service
Employees International Union.
November 19, 2019.
Dear Member of Congress: We write to urge you to support
the Farm Workforce Modernization Act of 2019, HR 5038. The
bill is a bipartisan compromise representing the culmination
of hard fought negotiations to address the needs of
farmworkers and our agriculture system in the context of our
broken immigration system. Importantly, this bill recognizes
the valuable role of farmworkers in our food system by
providing an earned path to legal immigration status and
citizenship to farmworkers and their families.
If enacted, the Farm Workforce Modernization Act would
provide an opportunity for experienced agricultural workers
to apply
[[Page H10079]]
for legal status if they show employment in U.S. agriculture
and meet other criteria. At least half of the nation's
roughly 2.4 million farmworkers are undocumented immigrants
and immigration relief is urgently needed to address the
constant fear of deportation many farmworkers and their
children experience. The ability to obtain immigration status
and a path to citizenship is key to enabling farmworkers to
bargain for better working and living conditions and to
challenge serious labor abuses. This legislation would result
in a more stable farm labor force and greater food safety and
security to the benefit of employers, workers, and consumers.
The bill also would revise the existing H-2A visa program
to address concerns of both farmworkers and agricultural
employers. The compromise includes concessions made by all
sides in this debate and includes both important new
protections for farmworkers, such as new protections against
trafficking, as well as provisions sought by employers.
Importantly, for the first time, the bill would recognize the
humanity of those working here under temporary visas by
providing a path to permanent status for those who satisfy
the specified work requirements.
The Farm Workforce Modernization Act of 2019 is an
important step forward and sends a clear signal that there
are leaders in Congress ready to engage constructively on
immigration and reach across the aisle to develop sensible
policies. We encourage you to support this legislation and
join this important effort to protect farmworkers and our
nation's agricultural system.
Sincerely,
Advocates for Basic Legal Equality, Inc.; AirGo; America's
Voice; Association of Farmworker Opportunity Programs; Bread
for the World; California Human Development; California Rural
Legal Assistance Foundation, Inc.; CaliforniaHealth+
Advocates; Carolina Family Health Center; CASA.
Casa de Esperanza: National Latin@ Network for Healthy
Families and Communities; CASA of Oregon; Central Valley
Opportunity Center; Centro De Los Derechos Del Migrante, Inc.
(CDM); Chicago's Legal Aid Society; Child Labor Coalition;
Chillinois Young Farmers Coalition; Coalition for Humane
Immigrant Rights--CHIRLA; Coalition of Florida Farmworker
Organizations; Coalition on Human Needs.
Coalition to Abolish Slavery & Trafficking (CAST)
Community; Council of Idaho, Inc.; Community Farm Alliance;
CREDO; CRLA Foundation; Equal Justice Center; Farmworker and
Landscaper Advocacy Project (FLAP); Farmworker Justice;
Finger Lakes Community Health; Florida Legal Services, Inc.;
Food Policy Action; Freedom Network USA; Greater New York
Labor Religion Coalition; Hand in Hand Mano en Mano; Hispanic
Affairs Project; Hispanic Federation; Hispanics in
Philanthropy; Human Agenda; Immigration Hub; Inter University
Program on Latino Research.
Interfaith Center on Corporate Responsibility; Jobs With
Justice Education Fund; Justice at Work; Justice for Migrant
Women; Justice in Motion; Kentucky Equal Justice Center; La
Cooperativa Campesina de California; La Union del Pueblo
Entero (LUPE); LatinoJustice PRLDEF; League of United Latin
American Citizens (LULAC).
Logan Square Farmers Market; MAFO, Inc.; Maine Immigrants
Rights Coalition; MALDEF (Mexican American Legal Defense and
Educational Fund); Maryland Wineries Association; Mexican
American Council; Mississippi Delta Council for Farmworkers
Opportunities, Inc.; National Consumers League; National
Domestic Workers Alliance (NDWA); National Hispanic Medical
Association.
National Latinx Psychological Association; National Migrant
and Seasonal Head Start Association; National Partnership for
New Americans; NETWORK Lobby for Catholic Social Justice;
Northwest Forest Worker Center; Northwest Regional Primary
Care Association; Northwest Workers' Justice Project;
Operation Access; Oregon Human Development Corporation; Oxfam
America.
PathStone Corporation, Pesticide Action Network, Pineros y
Campesinos Unidos del Noroeste (Northwest Treeplanters and
Farmworkers United), Proteus Inc.; Public Justice Center;
Roots and Culture Kombucha; Rural and Migrant Ministry; SER
Jobs for Progress National Inc.; Service Employees
International Union (SEIU).
Southeast Community Health Systems; Telamon Corporation;
UFW Foundation; U.S. Committee for Refugees and Immigrants
(USCRI); UnidosUS; United Farm Workers (UFW); United Migrant
Opportunity Services/UMOS Inc.; United States Hispanic
Leadership Institute; Voto Latino; Wayne Action for Racial
Equality.
Ms. LOFGREN. Madam Speaker, there is a letter here from Farmworker
Justice that I include in the Record explaining why this is an
important thing to do.
Farmworker Justice
Judiciary Committee, House of Representatives, Farmworker Justice
Statement on House Agricultural Immigration Reform Bill
Farmworker Justice supports the Farm Workforce
Modernization Act of 2019, H.R. 5038, which is under
consideration by the Judiciary Committee of the House of
Representatives. The FWMA should be approved by the Judiciary
Committee and passed by the full House.
The bipartisan bill resulted from lengthy, complex
negotiations led by Rep. Lofgren (D-CA), Chair of the
Subcommittee on Immigration and Citizenship, and Rep.
Newhouse (R-WA), a farmer and former Director of Washington
State's Department of Agriculture, and additional colleagues.
To help reach agreement, Members of Congress involved
farmworker advocates, including the United Farm Workers, UFW
Foundation, and Farmworker Justice, and agricultural employer
trade associations. Farmworker Justice appreciates the
scheduling of the markup of the FWMA by the Chair of the
Judiciary Committee, Rep. Nadler.
Of utmost importance, the supporters of this legislation
recognize the important contributions of farmworkers to our
nation's food and agriculture systems. An estimated 2.4
million people labor on our farms and ranches to provide us
with fruits, vegetables, milk and other food. This
legislation addresses the fundamentally unfair conditions
experienced by many farmworkers due to our nation's broken
immigration system. The large majority of the nation's
farmworkers are immigrants, and a majority lack authorized
immigration status. Undocumented farmworkers and their family
members live in fear of arrest, deportation and the breakup
of their families. In these circumstances, many farmworkers
are reluctant to challenge illegal or unfair treatment in
their workplaces and their communities. At times, they cannot
go to work due to the presence of immigration enforcement
agents. The country's farms and our food system depend on
immigrants, both documented and undocumented.
The Farm Workforce Modernization Act bill provides a path
to lawful permanent residency for undocumented farmworkers
and their family members. It would eliminate the constant
fear of deportation and family breakup that is so stressful
for many farmworker families. Removing the threat of
immigration enforcement also would reduce disruptions of
farming businesses. With legal status and a path to
citizenship, farmworkers would be better able to improve
their wages and working conditions and seek enforcement of
their labor protections. These improvements would result in a
more stable farm labor force and greater food safety and
security to the benefit of employers, workers, and consumers.
The earned legalization program's requirements are more
rigorous and expensive than we would have preferred, but are
acceptable in the effort to reach a realistic compromise.
The bill also would revise the existing H-2A agricultural
guestworker program to address farmworker and employer
concerns with the program. Farmworker advocates have pressed
for reforms to reduce widespread abuses under this flawed
program, while agricultural employers have lobbied heavily to
remove most of its modest labor protections, claiming that
the program is unduly expensive and bureaucratic. The bill's
lengthy provisions include important new protections for
farmworkers, as well as changes to address agricultural
employers' concerns. Compromise was necessary to achieve
legislation that could become law and address serious harms
imposed on farmworker families by our broken immigration
system.
Farmworker Justice supports the Farm Workforce
Modernization Act of 2019 because the bill, if passed, would
enable hundreds of thousands of farmworker families to
improve significantly their living and working conditions and
their participation in our economy and democracy.
Farmworker Justice, based in Washington, D.C., is a
national advocacy organization for farmworkers with over
thirty-five years of experience serving the farmworker
community regarding immigration and labor policy. FJ's
website contains extensive information about farmworkers,
immigration policy, labor conditions and the H-2A
agricultural guestworker program. www.farmworkerjusice.
Ms. LOFGREN. Madam Speaker, there have been some who have suggested
privately, or even in public--the ranking member of the full committee
in the Rules Committee last night said, Well, we should be covering
chicken processing plants.
We did just one thing in this bill, and that was to deal with
agriculture. We didn't expand the definition of agriculture. There may
be issues in other parts of the American economy, but we decided to
focus on just this one thing: agriculture--not processing, not
trucking, not forestry, just agriculture.
The Laborers International Union has sent a letter in support, which
I include in the Record, endorsing this bill and noting that this bill
works in the agricultural sector and they hope that we will vote for
it.
LiUNA!,
December 9, 2019.
House of Representatives,
Washington, DC.
Dear Representative: On behalf of the more than 500,000
members of the Laborers' International Union of North America
(LIUNA), I want to express our support for H.R. 5038, the
bipartisan Farm Workforce Modernization Act.
Workers in agricultural industries, like those in all other
industries, must have a
[[Page H10080]]
path to legal immigration status and citizenship. H.R. 5038
does just that, providing security for millions of farm
workers and their families. This in turn will lead to better
wages and working conditions for a group of workers who have
historically been subject to horrific abuses.
H.R. 5038 also specifies that employers who try to misuse
the H-2A program in industries covered by a different guest
worker visa program (H-2B), including construction and
landscape, cannot do so. Specifically, LIUNA is pleased that
the House included language to the H-2.A program requirements
to investigate and prevent fraud in the H-2A program, as well
as to ensure that employers cannot use H-2A workers if the
majority of the worker's duties are related to Construction.
While LIUNA is supporting H.R. 5038, we want to be clear
that while many of these reforms may make sense in the
agricultural industry, it does not mean that all of the
bill's provisions are necessary or helpful for other guest
worker visa programs or workers in other industries.
Historically, agricultural workers have been treated under
different rules and laws than those in other industries, both
permanent and guest workers. All of the reforms in H.R. 5038
for the H-2A program may not work for the H-2B program, for
example. The H-2B guest worker program is commonly abused by
employers in the landscape and construction industries to
deny workers already in the U.S. access to jobs and to
exploit workers both in and out of the U.S. The H-2B program
must be significantly reformed in ways that will address the
specific abuses of our union's construction and landscape
members and foreign workers alike. LIUNA looks forward to
working with Congress on H-2B reform in the near future.
For decades, LIUNA has fought for comprehensive immigration
reform, which remains our goal. While we work toward that
end, LIUNA supports efforts including H.R. 5038 to give
vulnerable workers and their families who have suffered
historic exploitation a path to security and citizenship.
LIUNA asks that you vote for H.R. 5038, the Farm Workforce
Modernization Act.
With kind regards, I am
Sincerely yours,
Terry O'Sullivan,
General President.
Ms. LOFGREN. There may be other issues when you come to other parts
of the economy. We should address those issues as well, but we are
going to have to do that by sitting down, just as we did in this case,
with the unions, with the employers, with the stakeholders to see what
the issues are and how can we craft a bipartisan solution that makes
America strong, that makes our economy work.
I am confident we will have a chance to do that.
Now, I just want to say, some of the comments made, although I am
sure made in good faith, about the bill are incorrect.
The elements, the suggestion that this will be riddled with fraud is
just simply incorrect. These antifraud measures are the same that were
included and, in fact, in some cases are tougher than were included in
the Goodlatte bill that Members supported in the last Congress.
The criminal national security bars are stronger than were included
in the Goodlatte bill in the last Congress.
And I have heard also that these farmworkers, who have worked in the
fields, who have allowed us to eat vegetables and to have a salad, that
they should get in line.
I will tell you a sad thing: There is no line for them. There is no
line. So we are creating a line with this bill. We are allowing them to
get right with the law and live lawfully, pay taxes, and do the jobs
that we need them to do, that their employers need them to do, with
dignity and without fear.
I cannot forget going out and talking to farmworkers who are so
afraid because of enforcement. They are afraid to leave their homes to
go to church on Sunday morning. That is not the kind of situation we
want to have in America.
We write the laws. We can make sure that these individuals comply
with the law. We have E-Verify in this bill. We have a system that will
work for farmers, for farmworkers, and for America.
We have done it over a period of months. We have done it bipartisan.
We have the support of American agriculture, and I hope we have the
support of a broad, bipartisan group when this bill comes to a vote
today.
Let's not disappoint the people who are counting on us. Let's stand
up and get something done, finally, on this measure that we have failed
on over and over again.
Madam Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.
Mr. SCOTT of Virginia. Madam Speaker, farmworkers toil under
difficult and dangerous conditions for long hours and low pay to ensure
America has a safe and plentiful food supply.
Because of the scarcity of domestic farm labor, for decades, the
agricultural sector has depended largely on the labor of migrant
workers. The vast majority of crop workers in the United States were
not born here and are undocumented or here on guest visas. Though these
workers perform incredibly difficult work under hazardous conditions,
they are often unable to seek recourse when their rights are violated.
A pathway to citizenship, when accompanied by appropriate oversight
measures, could help reduce these dedicated workers' justifiable fear
of reprisal for asserting their rights. Farmworkers are integral to our
communities and our economy. Creating a pathway to citizenship for
these individuals--who work to feed us and our country year after
year--as well as their families is both an economic and humanitarian
necessity.
I support legalization of vulnerable, undocumented workers and a path
to citizenship. However, in exchange for legalization for some
undocumented farmworkers, this bill would depress labor standards for
H-2A workers. Because weakened labor standards for H-2A workers could
adversely impact the domestic workforce, this bill could negatively
impact the economic security of all farmworkers.
Wage cuts for many H-2A workers in turn would depress wages for all
farmworkers, The adverse effect wage rate (AEWR), which is often the
binding wage paid to H-2A workers, is designed to ensure that wages
paid to H-2A workers do not depress wages for U.S. farmworkers. This
means the AEWR must be high enough to reflect wages paid in the local
labor market. This bill would change the way the AEWR is currently
calculated over the first ten years to reflect average wages paid to
farmworkers in the region according to their specific occupation,
rather than the average wage paid to farmworkers across all
occupations. However, the bill fails to require the use of data that
actually reflects local wage conditions. Additionally, while setting
limitations on how much AEWR wages can decrease after an initial one-
year freeze, the bill imposes caps on wage increases from year to year,
limiting whether AEWR can truly reflect wages paid in the local labor
market.
As a result of these changes to the AEWR, the majority of H-2A
workers would see their wages actually go down, albeit modestly, while
others would see the growth in their wages capped. I have opposed
similar efforts proposed by the Trump Administration that would depress
wages.
This year, I was pleased to lead the House passage of H.R. 582, the
Raise the Wage Act, which would boost wages for millions of lower-wage
workers. I am confident that in the next ten years, we will enact a
meaningful increase in the federal minimum wage, boosting wages for
workers across our nation including farmworkers. However, I am
concerned that H.R. 5038 will create artificial barriers to wage
growth, or worse, lead to wage cuts, continuing to leave farmworkers
relegated to low pay and economic insecurity.
Our country's wage and hour laws are designed to ensure that workers
are guaranteed a fair day's pay for a fair day's work. But this right
is only as strong as a worker's ability to hold employers accountable,
especially in court. Unfortunately, this bill creates obstacles that
may delay farmworkers' ability to access their day in court, when they
have been victims of wage theft. While I welcome extending coverage of
the the Migrant and Seasonal Agricultural Worker Protection Act (MSPA)
to H-2A workers, adding a mediation requirement to both the MSPA and
the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) is problematic. This bill enables
employers to impose three months of mandatory mediation when an H-2A
worker brings a civil suit under these laws, even if the worker does
not consent to the mediation and wants his or her day in court. This
undermines the voluntary nature of mediation and provides bad actors
with an avenue for delaying or denying wage recovery. This delay could
prove significant for farmworkers who may be in this country for a
limited amount of time to participate in litigation. This is especially
fraught given that, in contrast to MSPA, the FLSA provides for recovery
of unpaid wages and liquated, or double, damages and recovery of
attorney's fees, plus costs. This provision may also pull domestic
farmworkers or other visa classifications of workers into required
mediation where there are collective or class actions, thereby
undermining incentives for other workers to join with H-2A workers to
seek redress.
This September, I supported the passage of H.R. 1423, the FAIR Act,
to ban forced arbitration in many areas, including employment, because
it could delay or totally block workers' access to courts. We should
promote legislation that protects workers' fundamental right to have
their day in court, not delay it.
This bill denies newly legalized farmworkers and their families
access to key social safety
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net programs, such as Medicaid and subsidies under the Affordable Care
Act. Denial of benefits that can promote economic stability, coupled
with the bill's wage suppressing provisions, threatens to create a
long-term pool of economically vulnerable workers. While most of these
individuals do not currently have access to these benefits due to their
immigration status, leaving immigrant workers who are granted legal
status under this legislation without access to social safety net
programs establishes a dangerous precedent that access to health care
and other basic necessities can be traded away for a path to legal
status.
This legislation weakens the current recruitment and hiring standards
for U.S. farmworkers. A reduction in employers' obligations to hire
U.S. workers under this bill will undermine one of the core principles
of the H-2A program: that H-2A workers should fill in gaps in the farm
workforce that U.S. employers are truly unable to fill, rather than
merely replacing U.S. workers that employers could attract with
reasonable efforts. I raised concerns with similar efforts to modify
recruitment standards by the Trump Administration earlier this year.
Agricultural work is hazardous, and workers in this sector have few
legal health and safety protections. Ensuring that H-2A workers and all
farmworkers have safe, healthy working conditions is critical. I am
pleased that this bill requires H-2A employers to maintain heat illness
prevention plans and requires H-2A employers in the dairy industry to
maintain workplace safety plans. However, as presently written, some
provisions are ambiguous and would be difficult to enforce; other
provisions have weak minimum requirements that would limit their value.
As this legislation moves forward, I would urge the inclusions of
stronger health and safety standards.
Strong labor protections are vital to protect both H-2A workers, who
are vulnerable given their temporary status, and domestic farmworkers,
whose employers may be disincentivized to provide employment. This is
especially true given that farmworkers have historically been carved
out of labor and employment laws, leaving these workers with fewer wage
protections and rights to bargain for better working conditions.
While this bill does make some improvements in immigration law, I
look forward to supporting a version of this bill that more accurately
reflects strong labor standards.
Ms. JOHNSON of Texas. Madam Speaker, I rise today in support of H.R.
5038, the Farm Workforce Modernization Act. This bipartisan piece of
legislation will go a long way in addressing the shortage of labor in
our agriculture sector. This bill will also provide a pathway to
citizenship for agricultural workers who have spent many years working
in the fields helping to ensure we have a safe and affordable food
supply.
Thanks to the leadership of Chairwoman Lofgren and Congressman
Newhouse, we have finally started to look at immigration as a solution
to some of our labor shortages. Farmers and ranchers rely on foreign
seasonal agricultural workers largely because it's difficult to find a
reliable source of labor domestically for this sector. It's a fair
compromise that these workers be offered a pathway to citizenship so
that they can one day live the American dream just like the rest of us.
It is my hope that this bill can serve as a blueprint for other
sectors of our economy where labor shortages persist. Construction is a
prime example of this. My district, along with the rest of North Texas
is in the process of seeing rapid population growth. This means
construction workers are in high demand to build new homes, schools,
roads, and hospitals for the thousands of people moving to the region
every month. Similar reforms in the construction industry would help in
making sure the economy in North Texas can continue to prosper.
Madam Speaker, we have a unique opportunity here today to pass
legislation that would benefit both farmers and the agricultural
workers they employ. I urge my colleagues to vote in support of this
bill.
Ms. SANCHEZ. Madam Speaker, I rise today in support of H.R. 5038, the
Farm Workforce Modernization Act of 2019. I would like to thank
Congresswoman Lofgren and Congressman Newhouse for convening
agriculture and labor stakeholders to develop this historic piece of
legislation.
This bill represents true bipartisan efforts to help stabilize our
nation's agriculture crisis. New workplace and legal protections for
farmworkers, including gender-based protections and heat safety
standards, are established under this bill.
Farmworkers have fought long and hard for these reforms. By voting to
strengthen health and safety standards and provide legal status to
agricultural workers, we do right by the hardworking men and women who
put food on our table.
This bill also modernizes the agricultural guest worker program in
order to address the nation's agricultural labor shortage. After months
of negotiations, I believe we have developed a commonsense solution
that will help both farmworkers and farmers.
I am proud to have worked with my colleagues to make this bill a
reality.
Mr. COLLINS of Georgia. Madam Speaker, Georgia is home to a vast
agriculture industry with hardworking farmers, ranchers, growers and
processors who contribute to America's economy every day. In the
northeast corner where my district is located, more than 10,000 farm
operators grow everything from peaches to cattle, chickens to
strawberries.
There is no doubt that not enough American workers want to work in
agriculture to fulfill the needs of the industry. Most farmers are
offering competitive wages to attract workers, while at the same time
being conscious of the reality that, when production costs get too high
and they can no longer sell their crops at a competitive rate, they
could be out of business.
Growers are increasingly turning to the H-2A visa program to get the
temporary labor they need, but the program needs reform. The
agricultural industry wants and deserves a streamlined program that
provides more certainty as to the temporary labor needed to sustain
their businesses.
H-2A users have asked Congress for many reforms of the H-2A program.
Unfortunately, despite its proponents' claims, H.R. 5038 doesn't fix
many of the issues with the program, and, in some cases, the bill makes
the problems worse.
Growers have requested permanent, long-term wage rate relief instead
of the unpredictable adverse effect wage rate that H-2A users are
currently required to pay. This change would help farmers plan for the
next growing season without facing increases of 6.2 percent like they
did for fiscal year 2019. H.R. 5038 fails to provide long-term
stability in wage determinations.
H-2A users have asked for litigation reform that protects against
frivolous lawsuits but provides an efficient way to resolve workers'
legitimate issues. H.R. 5038 does exactly the opposite--it subjects H-
2A users to a private right of action in federal court.
Those who use the H-2A program have requested that control of the
program be placed with the cabinet agency that understand growers,
their needs, and their processes. H.R. 5038 doesn't do that.
The agricultural industry has asked that Congress provide access to
the H-2A program for all sectors of agriculture.
H.R. 5038, however, covers the dairy industry, but leaves out other
important sectors like meat and poultry processing, forestry and
aquaculture. Of course, as someone who represents a district where the
poultry industry employs over 16,000 people and is a vital part of our
economy, the fact that meat and poultry processors are left out
represents an enormous problem.
H-2A users have asked for no cap on the program. Where H.R. 5038 does
provide some visas for year-round work, it caps the number initially at
the low rate of 20,000 per year and then reserves half of those for
dairies. So, a measly 10,000 visas per year are provided for all other
year-round agriculture needs. After that, the bill caps any increase at
12.5 percent--yet still reserves half for dairy.
While the 227 pages of H.R. 5038 make many more changes to the H-2A
program--some good and some bad--one need look no further than the
first few pages to figure out the real point of this bill: A path to
citizenship for an unknown number of illegal immigrants who do some
work in agriculture, along with their families.
Of course, we have no idea how many people will take advantage of
this amnesty. Estimates from groups like Farmworker Justice put the
number of farm workers in the U.S. at 2.4 million, while other
estimates reach as high as 2.7 million. Even at the very conservative
estimate that 50 percent of farm workers are here illegally, well over
a million and a half people will get a path to citizenship, and,
because that 50 percent number is from a self-reported survey, we can
expect the number of illegal workers is even higher than that.
What are some other concerns with H.R. 5038? The bill promotes
fraudulent applications through its extremely low document standards
and the ability to withdraw a knowingly false application without
prejudice. The bill allows aliens with multiple DUI convictions and
charges, as well as many other misdemeanor convictions or charges, to
get amnesty. It forgives Social Security fraud and rewards aliens who
engage in such fraud with a path to U.S. citizenship.
The bill defines a ``work day'' as only 5.75 hours long and only
requires 100 of those each year in order to get a path to citizenship.
Better yet, an alien can be exempt from one year of work if they are a
caretaker or are pregnant. The bill doesn't require the alien to pay
back taxes. H.R. 5038 rewards with amnesty those who failed to attend
removal proceedings and those who were removed and illegally reentered
America. The bill even authorizes U.S. taxpayer money to help illegal
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immigrants apply for amnesty and permits DHS to loot up to $10 million
from the fees paid by those seeking legal immigration benefits--such as
naturalization.
There are many more provisions of this bill that concern me. During
the markup, my Judiciary colleagues and I offered amendments aimed at
fixing some of these problems. Our amendments were defeated on party
line votes.
At the outset of this Congress, I expressed to the subcommittee chair
my desire to work together on an agricultural labor reform bill that
has a chance to be enacted. Unfortunately, that didn't happen. My offer
was ignored, and the bill before us is not something I can support.
I urge my colleagues to oppose this bill.
Ms. GARCIA of Texas. Madam Speaker, I stand as an original cosponsor
of the Farm Workforce Modernization Act.
Agricultural workers are crucial to our economy and this bill would
establish a legal and reliable farm workforce.
I support this bill because it recognizes the humanity of farmworkers
and their families.
This is personal to me.
I grew up poor picking cotton in the fields of South Texas.
I can testify firsthand about the incredibly hard, back breaking work
farm workers do, especially in the heart of South Texas.
Not much has changed since I worked in the fields.
This bill is long overdue and would provide farm workers with
important worker protections and legal rights that they desperately
need.
Texas is home to nearly 250,000 farms and the need for a strong
agricultural workforce is vital.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. All time for debate has expired.
Pursuant to House Resolution 758, the previous question is ordered on
the bill, as amended.
The question is on the engrossment and third reading of the bill.
The bill was ordered to be engrossed and read a third time, and was
read the third time.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to clause 1(c) of rule XIX, further
consideration of H.R. 5038 is postponed.
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