After 40 years of legislative stalemate, House Agriculture Chairman G.T. Thompson believes it’s the right political and economic time to reform agricultural labor. Last week, he introduced the Securing Agriculture’s Workforce Act (SAWA) that gives livestock and dairy producers a seat at the table. In addition to removing seasonal restriction and allowing 350-day contracts, updates to the current H-2A program include:
- Limiting annual Adverse Effect Wage Rate (AEWR) increases to a maximum 3.25%. AEWR is the mandatory minimum wage farmers must pay H-2A workers set by the Department of Labor.
- Shifting paperwork to a single, streamlined online portal.
- Reducing “compliance drag” and legal hurdles through simplified rules.
The H-2A program was created in 1986 by the Immigration Reform and Control Act, and it’s been largely untouched since then.
“The border is now under control. That was an issue why we haven’t been able to really do any update to H-2A or any type of agriculture workforce legislation since Ronald Reagan was president of the United States,” Thompson says. “I also think past attempts had some detractors.”
In the past, Thompson has backed three bills that would have supported necessary labor reforms, but they didn’t gain traction.
“We’ve pursued this in a way with great due diligence and bringing everybody to the table,” he says.
Ending the Seasonal Barrier for Livestock
SAWA drops the requirement that H-2A workers must be seasonal. The bill clarifies the maximum temporary contract length is 350 days. The change will benefit sectors such as dairy, livestock and mushrooms. Thompson clarifies he does not believe the potential influx of H-2A requests will backlog the application system.
“I think we’ve addressed that actually because there should be less bureaucracy. We’ve made the process much more efficient,” he says.
Fee Structure Explained
In addition to operating costs, input costs and inflation, Thompson says labor challenges are hurting farmers.
“Sometimes labor is not even available, but when it is available, it comes at a heavy price based on how the Adverse [Effect] Wage Rate has ... well, it’s outpaced the rate of inflation by 70%,” he says. “So, really the timing is just right to get this done.”
Cutting Through the Red Tape
Thompson says costs are also addressed by streamlining the H-2A process through an online portal.
“There’s a cost to compliance, and this certainly smooths and makes it not just more accessible, but quite frankly, more affordable as well.”
A Unified Industry Front
An unprecedented 400 agricultural organizations support the legislation, including the American Farm Bureau Federation (AFBF), Western Growers Association, the National Milk Producers Association and the National Council of Agricultural Employers. Thompson says the bill had 50 original cosponsors, and he’s looking forward to adding more now that the bill is introduced.
“The moment has finally come for agricultural labor reform to occur,” says John Hollay, president and CEO of the National Council of Agricultural Employers. “We’ve got renewed bipartisan energy finally behind this effort, and, most importantly, we’ve got a political environment in which the border is secure and we can actually look at the challenges with the H2A program as an economic issue, not just for the American farmer, but for the American food economy.”
From fiscal year 2021 to 2025, AFBF reports H-2A position certifications grew by over 25%, and 2026 is on track to set a new record for H-2A certifications.
What’s Next
SAWA falls under the jurisdiction of the House Judiciary Committee. Thompson says he’s had discussions for several months with Judiciary Committee chairman Jim Jordan and his staff.
“I don’t want to put words in Chairman Jordan’s mouth, but I think he really appreciates the fact we work so hard to unify the agriculture community,” Thompson says, adding he believes there will be member support on the committee as a number of the representatives are also on the House Agriculture Committee.
