H-2B Bill Gains New Cosponsors

Total number of cosponsors for the "Save Our Small & Seasonal Businesses" Act rises to 56.

Lauren Spiers

Published March 09, 2005

Fla

The H-2B lobby is making headway.

 

After a successful visit to Capitol Hill last Wednesday, including more than 100 visits to congressional offices, 50 senators and representatives signed on as cosponsors of the recently introduced “Save Our Small & Seasonal Businesses” Act developed by the H-2B Workforce Coalition. The Coalition also held a congressional staff briefing on Monday and, at last check, the total number of cosponsors has risen to 56. New additions to the list are:

 

  • Sen. Russell Feingold (D-Wis.)
  • Rep. Timothy Bishop (D-N.Y.)
  • Rep. Jeff Flake (R-Ariz.)
  • Rep. Sander Levin (D-Mich.)
  • Rep. Paul Ryan (R-Wis.)
  • Rep. Joe Wilson (R-S.C.)

A full, updated list of cosponsors is available by clicking here, along with information on how to contact your state lawmakers to ask for their support.

 

While not all of the bill’s cosponsorship’s can be directly attributed to the Coalition’s efforts, John Meredith, Director of Legislative Relations for the American Nursery & Landscape Association says both ANLA and the Coalition are encouraged by the progress.

 

Fla

“The event on Monday went very well and we actually had more people attend than we expected,” Meredith says. “The session lasted 45 minutes, which was quite long, and included a question-and-answer section at the end. All of the staffers who attended were very engaged and attendees from the industries that were represented had a change to speak with aides from their states and explain their experiences with the H-2B program.”

 

H-2B BILL DETAILS 

    Introduced on Feb. 10, “Save Our Small & Seasonal Business Act of 2005," (S.352, H.R. 793) was developed by the newly formed H-2B Workforce Coalition in order to effect change in the flawed H-2B program for the 2005 and 2006 seasons.

    If passed, the bill would:

  • Exempt workers who have participated in the H-2B program for any of the past 3 fiscal years from the 66,000 cap and direct the Department of Homeland Security to immediately resume the processing of petitions for these workers. This provision would take effect immediately and expire on Oct. 1, 2006.
  • Allow the Department of Homeland Security to impose a “fraud prevention and detection” fee of $150 for each petition filed. This section would not take effect until Oct. 1, 2005.
  • Allow the Department of Homeland Security to impose a fine of up to $10,000 per violation and prohibit the use of the H-2B program for one to five years for a “willful misrepresentation of a material fact” in a petition. This section would not take effect until Oct. 1, 2005.
  • Specifies that only 33,000 of the 66,000 workers subject to the cap can be used during the first six months of the fiscal year. This provision would be a permanent change to the program.
  • Require the Department of Homeland Security to notify Congress on a quarterly basis of the number of visas issued and the number of visas that were expired or revoked. This reporting must be in place by March 1, 2006.
  • Require the Department of Homeland Security to report annually to Congress, beginning in fiscal 2007, on the number of visas issued and expired and on the previous fiscal year’s H-2B workers’ countries of origin, occupations and wages.

"Congress will not take immediate action on this bill unless senators and congressional representatives continue to hear concerns about the issue from their constituents: You, your employees and other local businesses who use the program," notes the Professional Landcare Network in a news release on its Web site.

The association encourages companies to provide feedback to PLANET and the American Nursery & Landscape Association on their activities and any meetings or conversations that contractors have with their elected officials.

Monday’s briefing included a presentation by Beau Cooper, former general counsel for the Immigration & Naturalization Service (now the Citizenship & Immigration Service), as well as remarks from individuals representing the landscape, amusement and them park, and hospitality industries. “The presenters were able to explain to the congressional staff members in attendance exactly how the lack of H-2B workers negatively affects their businesses and, on the other hand, how they’re positively impacted when the workers are available,” Meredith says. “Several staffers stayed behind after the briefing and gave other industry attendees in the audience opportunities to continue the discussion.”

 

As the “Save Our Small & Seasonal Businesses” Act continues to gain support, Meredith also applauds the fact that lawmakers on both sides of the political aisle are coming out in support of the legislation. “For any bill on any issue, it’s essential to have that level of bipartisan support,” he says. “For our bill in particular, lawmakers are realizing that this is truly a small business issue, and everyone wants to support small business as a large part of our national economy.” Currently, 29 republicans, 26 democrats and one independent are cosponsoring the bill.

 

The H-2B Coalition, in partnership with the offices of Senators Barbara Mikulski (D-Md.) and Judd Gregg (R-N.H.), is working to push the H-2B legislation through Congress as quickly as possible in order to help affected businesses see change for the upcoming season. Meredith says the organization is looking for an appropriate bill to which this legislation can be attached and is hoping to achieve that in the next couple of weeks. “Sen. Mikulski’s goal is to get this legislation passed by April 1, and we’re working very hard to make that happen,” he notes. “We’re working with her staff and taking cues from the Senator’s office to find an appropriate vehicle for our bill.”
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