According to the White House, immigration reform will benefit America’s agricultural industry and the rural communities. The country’s agricultural industry is hampered by the country’s broken immigration system. The US agricultural industry relies on foreign born workers as the Americans are not willing to take up jobs in the agricultural industry.
Due to this reason, farmers are unable to fill labor shortages. Most of the farmers hire undocumented immigrants as they are unable to find qualified legal workers in America. Out of the crop workers surveyed between 2007 and 2009, 71 percent were foreign born. Likewise, most of the farm workers are undocumented.
The Senate passed a comprehensive immigration bill in June and this legislation would strengthen border security apart from providing an earned path to US citizenship for undocumented immigrants including the farm workers.
US farmers who are short of workers are in favor of the Senate bill that would legalize the farm workers and put them on a pathway to US citizenship. This Senate bill would give the undocumented farm workers and their families security. This would also help the US farmers to fill labor shortages.
Farm workers are vital to America’s agricultural industry. If the Senate bill is approved by the House and passed by the US Congress, an earned path to US citizenship for the undocumented farm workers would be created. This plan would require these workers to pay fines and taxes. This legislation would help around 1.5 million agricultural workers and their family members to obtain legal status.
According to the Regional Economic Models, Inc, if the H-2A visa program is expanded, the country’s GDP would raise by $2 billion in the next year and by $9 billion by 2045. This comprehensive immigration reform bill that has cleared its way through the US Senate would benefit the local governments, improve job opportunity and boost the country’s economy, according to the White House.