To amend the Immigration and Nationality Act to provide for terms and conditions for nonimmigrant workers performing agricultural labor or services, and for other purposes.
Analysis under review: This bill has generated analysis that may be too generic or incomplete. Clause-level evidence remains available below.
Summary
What This Bill Does
This bill creates a pathway for undocumented agricultural workers to obtain legal status and eventually permanent residence if they can prove prior farm work experience. It also modernizes the H-2A temporary agricultural worker visa program with a streamlined electronic platform and reforms worker protections.
Who Benefits and How
Undocumented farmworkers benefit by gaining legal status through the certified agricultural worker program if they can prove 1,035+ hours of prior farm work. Agricultural employers benefit from a larger legal workforce, protection from prosecution for hiring these workers, and a streamlined H-2A hiring process. The agricultural industry gains access to 40,000 additional permanent residence visas annually reserved for farmworkers.
Who Bears the Burden and How
Agricultural employers face mandatory E-Verify requirements with penalties for violations, phased in by company size over 6-15 months. Foreign labor recruiters must register with the Department of Labor and post bonds, facing fines up to $25,000 for violations. Employers must pay processing fees and document worker employment annually.
Key Provisions
- Creates certified agricultural worker status for undocumented workers with 1,035+ hours of prior farm work, renewable for 5.5-year periods
- Provides pathway to permanent residence after 8-10 years of certified status
- Modernizes H-2A visa program with single electronic platform for applications
- Mandates E-Verify for all agricultural employers, phased in by company size
- Authorizes $2.7 billion annually for rural housing rental assistance
Evidence Chain:
This summary is generated from the full bill text using AI analysis. Expand "Detailed Analysis" below for identified beneficiaries/burden bearers.
At a Glance
What This Bill Does
Provides a pathway to legal status for undocumented agricultural workers while reforming the H-2A temporary worker program and mandating electronic employment verification (E-Verify) for agricultural employers.
Key Policy Areas
Immigration, Agriculture, Labor, Housing
Primary Purpose
Provides a pathway to legal status for undocumented agricultural workers while reforming the H-2A temporary worker program and mandating electronic employment verification (E-Verify) for agricultural employers.
Policy Domains
Title III - Employment Eligibility Verification
Identified Gains
Contextual inference, no direct clause citation- U.S. workers (job protection)
- Compliant employers
Contextual inference, no direct clause citation
Identified Costs
Contextual inference, no direct clause citation- Agricultural employers
- Social Security Administration
Contextual inference, no direct clause citation
Subtitle A - Certified Agricultural Worker Status
Identified Gains
Contextual inference, no direct clause citation- Undocumented agricultural workers
- Agricultural employers
- Farm labor contractors
Contextual inference, no direct clause citation
Identified Costs
Contextual inference, no direct clause citation- Employers (documentation requirements)
- DHS (processing)
Contextual inference, no direct clause citation
Subtitle B - Adjustment of Status
Identified Gains
Contextual inference, no direct clause citation- Long-term agricultural workers
- Worker families
Contextual inference, no direct clause citation
Identified Costs
Contextual inference, no direct clause citation- Applicants (tax compliance, fees)
Contextual inference, no direct clause citation
Subtitle C - General Provisions
Identified Gains
Contextual inference, no direct clause citation- Nonprofit immigrant services organizations
- Certified workers
Contextual inference, no direct clause citation
Identified Costs
Contextual inference, no direct clause citation- Employers providing fraudulent records
- Applicants making false statements
Contextual inference, no direct clause citation
Title II - H-2A Program Reform
Identified Gains
Contextual inference, no direct clause citation- Agricultural employers
- H-2A workers
- Long-term agricultural workers seeking permanent residence
Contextual inference, no direct clause citation
Identified Costs
Contextual inference, no direct clause citation- Federal agencies (system development)
- Employers (compliance)
Contextual inference, no direct clause citation
Subtitle - Rural Housing Preservation
Identified Gains
Contextual inference, no direct clause citation- Low-income rural residents
- Farmworker families
- Rural housing property owners
- Certified agricultural workers
Contextual inference, no direct clause citation
Identified Costs
Contextual inference, no direct clause citation- Federal budget (appropriations)
Contextual inference, no direct clause citation
Subtitle - Foreign Labor Recruiters
Identified Gains
Contextual inference, no direct clause citation- H-2A workers (protection from exploitation)
Contextual inference, no direct clause citation
Identified Costs
Contextual inference, no direct clause citation- Foreign labor recruiters
Contextual inference, no direct clause citation
Sponsors
Legislative Progress
IntroducedMs. Lofgren (for herself, Mr. Newhouse, Mr. Costa, Mr. Simpson, …
Stakeholder Effects
cui bono?How this legislation distributes effects. Mention counts reflect frequency, not effect magnitude.
Adjustment of status applicants, Aggrieved H-2A workers, Agricultural employers
Agricultural employers, Certified agricultural worker applicants face effects in multiple directions
Positive-direction: Adjustment of status applicants, Aggrieved H-2A workers, Agricultural employers filing H-2A petitions, Agricultural employers of certified worker applicants, Agricultural employers providing employment records, Agricultural employers using E-Verify, Agricultural workers with non-traditional work documentation, Certified agricultural workers, Certified agricultural workers meeting work requirements, Certified agricultural workers seeking permanent residence, Certified agricultural workers with prior identity issues, Certified worker applicants needing assistance, Eligible agricultural workers, Employees subject to verification, Farm laborers in rural housing, Farm laborers needing housing, Farmworkers in USDA-financed housing, H-2A temporary agricultural workers, H-2A workers, H-2A workers in pilot program, Legal domestic farm laborers, Long-term H-2A agricultural workers, Long-term certified agricultural workers, Low-income agricultural worker applicants, Registered agricultural employers, Remote and seasonal agricultural operations, U.S. agricultural workers, U.S. workers in agriculture, Undocumented agricultural workers with prior farm work experience, Undocumented agricultural workers with removal orders, Unskilled workers in agricultural labor
Negative-direction: Agricultural employers paying worker fees, Agricultural employers using H-2A program, Agricultural employers using H-2A workers, Applicants making false statements, Certified workers seeking permanent residence, Current E-Verify users, Employers knowingly hiring unauthorized workers, Employers subject to anti-discrimination enforcement, Large agricultural employers (500+ employees), Medium agricultural employers (100-499 employees), Small agricultural employers (1-99 employees)
Congress and policymakers, Department of Agriculture, Department of Homeland Security
Department of Homeland Security, Department of Labor, Social Security Administration face effects in multiple directions
Positive-direction: Congress and policymakers, Department of State, Federal government (Treasury), Federal law enforcement agencies, USDA Rural Housing Service
Negative-direction: Department of Agriculture, Department of Homeland Security (system operation), Federal Mediation and Conciliation Service, Immigration enforcement agencies, Inspectors General (SSA and DHS), Office of Management and Budget
Certified agricultural worker dependents, Low-income households in maturing rural properties, Low-income rural residents
Owners of Section 515 rural multifamily housing, Owners of farmworker housing projects, Rural housing property owners receiving rental assistance
HR software and payroll service providers, IT systems and technology vendors, Technology contractors
Employment-authorized workers receiving erroneous nonconfirmations, Workers concerned about data privacy, Workers facing discrimination based on E-Verify misuse
Foreign labor recruiters, Non-compliant foreign labor recruiters
Farmworker housing developers, Large-scale farmworker housing developers
Bill Structure & Actor Mappings
Who is "The Secretary" in each section?
- "the_secretary"
- → Secretary of Homeland Security
- "the_secretary"
- → Secretary of Homeland Security
- "the_secretary"
- → Secretary of Homeland Security
- "the_secretary"
- → Secretary of Homeland Security
- "secretary_of_labor"
- → Secretary of Labor
- "secretary_of_agriculture"
- → Secretary of Agriculture
- "the_secretary"
- → Secretary of Agriculture
- "the_secretary"
- → Secretary of Labor
- "the_secretary"
- → Secretary of Homeland Security
- "the_commissioner"
- → Commissioner of Social Security
Note: 'The Secretary' refers to Secretary of Homeland Security in Title I and most of Title II, but to Secretary of Agriculture in the Rural Housing Preservation sections (220-231), and to Secretary of Labor in the Foreign Labor Recruiter sections (251-254) and parts of H-2A administration.
Key Definitions
Terms defined in this bill
Agricultural labor or services as used in section 101(a)(15)(H)(ii) of the INA, without regard to whether the labor or services are seasonal or temporary, and agricultural employment as defined in section 3 of the Migrant and Seasonal Agricultural Worker Protection Act.
Any person or entity, including any labor contractor or any agricultural association, that employs workers in agricultural labor or services.
Any person who performs foreign labor recruiting activity in exchange for money or other valuable consideration to recruit individuals to work as H-2A nonimmigrant workers, including activity wholly outside the United States.
We use a combination of our own taxonomy and classification in addition to large language models to assess meaning and potential beneficiaries. High confidence means strong textual evidence. Always verify with the original bill text.
Learn more about our methodology