WASHINGTON – Chautauqua County’s Congressman is hoping to include some key agricultural reforms in comprehensive immigration reform currently being taken up by Congress.
Congressman Tom Reed (R-Corning) visited a farm in Odessa County on Tuesday morning to raise awareness for his effort to reform the broken H-2A program. During his stop, he said that program must be transformed to allow New York’s agriculture industry to reach its full potential.
Reed said his ultimate goal is ensuring farmers in New York State have access to a stable, legal, qualified workforce. Saying the federal government should provide a solution to farmers’ worker needs, Reed will reintroduce the Family Farm Relief Act, a bill Reed previously introduced with Reps. Chris Gibson (R-NY) and Bill Owens (D-NY).
Reed is working on provisions to include dairy farms in the program, as these farms are currently excluded from the H-2A program. Reed also says he is working to move administration of the current H-2A seasonal agricultural worker program from the Department of Labor to the Department of Agriculture and allow farmers to co-op workers with other farms so that each of the farms’ needs are met.
Both the House and Senate are currently working on immigration reform plans. For many, agricultural provisions will be essential in broader immigration reform.
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