2005-04-11 Support for S. 359, The Agricultural Job Opportunity, Benefits, and Security Act of 2005

Speaker: Richard W. Kirchhoff
Subject: The Agriculture Job Opportunity, Benefits and Secu
Venue: U.S. Senate
Date of Speech: April 11, 2005

April 11, 2005

Dear Senator:

The National Association of State Departments of Agriculture (NASDA) urges you to support enactment of S.359, the Agricultural Job Opportunity, Benefits, and Security Act of 2005, or AgJOBS. This bill is sponsored by Senators Larry Craig (R-Idaho) and Ted Kennedy (D-Mass.) with 44 cosponsors. This landmark bipartisan legislation would achieve historic reforms to our nation's labor and immigration laws as they pertain to agriculture. The legislation reflects years of negotiations on complex and contentious issues among employer and worker representatives and leaders in Congress.

This legislation enjoys broad nation-wide support in agriculture and has been the subject of congressional hearings over the last 7 years compared to new proposals that may emerge. Since AgJOBS has wide-ranging, bi-partisan support, it garners the best opportunity for enactment. In previous legislative sessions, partisan agricultural labor proposals have failed passage.

This legislation is critical in securing a legal work force for agriculture as well as regularizing the status of current agricultural workers through an adjustment program. The bill tackles the issue of undocumented workers in the farm labor force in a way that does not perpetuate the existence of a large underground workforce, create massive disruptions in the agricultural industry, or drive labor-intensive agricultural industries out of the country.

NASDA’s current policy on agricultural labor is consistent with the objectives of the AgJOBS legislation. NASDA addresses four areas of concern to all agricultural industries: concern for the basic rights of all agricultural workers, recognition that the current H2A program does not serve as a viable means for addressing gaps in the local workforce, the need for a trustworthy identification system for non-citizen workers, and the need to regularize the status of the existing workforce during a transition to a more transparent and enforceable means of meeting basic workforce needs.

As leaders in agriculture, we recognize that the problem will not go away and needs to be resolved. Farmers in most regions of the United States have faced critical shortages of entry level workers for many years. AgJOBS is a solution for agriculture and workers.

We greatly appreciate your support and vote for this important legislation.

Sincerely,

Richard W. Kirchhoff
Executive Vice President and CEO