News Update
February 21, 2018
AG Act Explained
Proposed legislation to revamp the guestworker program for immigrant agricultural workers is again being discussed in Congress. Speaking on behalf of Congressman Bob Goodlatte (R-VA), Stephanie Gadbois, senior counsel for the U.S. House of Representatives Judiciary Committee, explained the proposed Agricultural Guestworker Act (AG Act), to the National Cattlemen’s Beef Association (NCBA) Agriculture & Food Policy Committee Feb. 2 in Phoenix, Ariz. during the 2018 Cattle Industry Convention.
According to Gadbois, the proposed AG Act (dubbed the “H-2C” program), which would replace the current H-2A program applied to immigrant agricultural workers seeking temporary or seasonal work in the United States, would be administered by the USDA instead of the Secretary of Labor.
“We believe a guestworker program should help farmers, not hinder them,” she noted, but also emphasized that the proposed H-2C program is not a pathway to citizenship for guestworkers.
Providing an overview of the AG Act, Gadbois explained 450,000 visas would be available each year for H-2C workers; 40,000 of those would be exclusive for meat- and poultry-processing workers. Returning H-2A workers and previously unauthorized farmworkers who participate legally in the new program will not count toward the annual visa limit.
Continue reading this Angus summary online.
Farm Bureau Statement on AG Act Workforce Legislation
The American Farm Bureau Federation (AFBF) is calling on all members of Congress to support Goodlatte in his goal of including the AG Act in the Securing America’s Future Act.
“We are at a crisis point in agriculture,” AFBF President Zippy Duvall said. “Chairman Bob Goodlatte wants to address our problem and has included the AG Act in pending legislation related to the DACA (Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals) issue. Chairman Goodlatte’s AG Act would establish a new H-2C agriculture worker program that is far superior to the existing H-2A program. The new H-2C program offers a much brighter future for agriculture. For farmers in sectors like dairy, mushrooms and others, who are excluded from H-2A and have nowhere else to turn, the H-2C program offers a path forward in meeting their future labor needs.
“At the same time, we are continuing to work with Chairman Goodlatte and other members of Congress to provide greater assurances on how the AG Act would affect our existing workforce. Farmers today rely on these workers. They sustain our farms. They are part of the fabric of many rural economies.”
Learn more in the Farm Bureau release online.
Culver’s to Award $15,000 in Educational Funds
to FFA Chapters
Culver’s is celebrating National FFA Week in a big way. Through its Thank You Farmers® Project, the restaurant launched its fourth annual FFA Essay Contest on Feb. 19. The three winning essay writers will win $7,500, $5,000 and $2,500, respectively, for their FFA chapters.
The FFA chapters are encouraged to use their prize money to support educational opportunities for their members, like attending the National FFA Convention & Expo in Indianapolis, Oct. 24-27, 2018. FFA members can submit their essays at Culvers.com/essaycontest.
This year’s essay contest prompt is:
- The 2017 National FFA Convention & Expo theme was “I can. We will.” What does this mean to you, and how will you apply it in your future ag career?
The contest ends April 6, 2018, at 5 p.m. Central.
“FFA members are our future, and we want to do our part in supporting them and their education,” said Jessie Kreke, senior marketing manager for Culver’s. “This contest is always such a great way for us to connect with them on an individual level to hear what they’re passionate about and what they hope to accomplish in their careers.”
For more information, read the full Culver’s news release online.
‘Tyson Bill’ Being Debated in Kansas
The Kansas State Senate is poised to consider State Senate Bill 405 — dubbed the “Tyson Bill” after the Arkansas-based poultry corporation, which tried twice in 2017 to build chicken processing plants in Kansan counties.
Current Kansas law requires a 4,000-foot (ft.) setback for poultry production operations confining 100,000 or more birds from habitable structures, including homes, schools, churches, office buildings, childcare centers and senior facilities. Supporters of SB 405 would shrink the distance requirement.
To protect the chickens housed in large-scale confinements from noxious particles and gases, powerful fans in the massive 500-ft. to 600-ft. long barns run constantly to exhaust air from poultry production houses. That air is ventilated away from the chickens and out into the surrounding landscape and communities. Under SB 405, as many as 11 confined animal feeding operation barns could be constructed at sites in suburban and rural areas, and those with up to 99,000 birds could be located 100 ft. from a neighbor’s property line.
SB 405 also allows major poultry corporations the ability to construct tightly packed networks of up to 400 chicken barns within 30 miles of an industrial slaughterhouse.
Read the full news release online.
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