[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 147 (2001), Part 9]
[Senate]
[Page 12910]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]



                              H-2A REFORM

  Mr. BURNS. Mr. President, I rise today to express my support of the 
Agriculture Job Opportunity, Benefits, and Security Act of 2001. I am 
proud to join my colleague Senator Craig as a cosponsor of this 
important legislation.
  I am a strong believer that American workers should have the first 
chance to have American farm and ranch jobs. However, when there are 
not enough American workers, our agricultural producers should be able 
to find farmworkers elsewhere. Under the current H-2A agricultural 
guest worker program, producers are required to go through a lengthy, 
uncertain, and undoubtedly costly process to demonstrate to the Federal 
Government that American workers are not available in order to gain 
authorization for guest workers. During this long process, Montana 
crops are not being harvested and cattle and sheep herds are not being 
tended to the degree they require. A General Accounting Office study 
recently found that the Government's inefficiency in processing such 
claims discourages use of the program. As a result, the Federal 
Government estimates that only half of this country's 1.6 million 
agricultural workers are authorized to work in the U.S., and the figure 
may be higher since the estimate is based on self-disclosure by illegal 
workers.
  Let me give you an example of how H-2A reform will benefit real 
producers. We have a number of large sheep operations in Montana. All 
of these sheep need to be sheared in the spring of the year, and as any 
sheep rancher will tell you, this is a job that needs to be done 
quickly, safely, and accurately. Shearers need to pay close attention 
to detail, lest sheep could be severely injured. With the number of 
sheep ranches in this country dwindling, there are few Americans who 
shear professionally, so guest workers from countries such as Argentina 
must be brought in to do the job. Reform of the H-2A program would make 
this process easier for our sheep producers.
  It is high time we reformed the H-2A program. This legislation will 
replace the current system with a more efficient process for 
certification of H-2A employers looking to hire agricultural guest 
workers. It will also replace the current, unrealistic premium wage 
mandated for H-2A employers with the standard, minimum wage. Employers 
will continue to furnish housing and transportation to H-2A workers.
  This bill makes sense for producers in Montana, Senator Craig's home 
State of Idaho, and other agricultural States across the country. It 
also provides a better environment for our guest workers. I look 
forward to working with my colleagues on this important legislation.

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