Thirty members of the U.S. House of Representatives—all Democrats—introduced a bill to give legal status to undocumented immigrants working in U.S. agriculture and to their families as well. The House bill is a companion to a Senate bill to create a “blue card” that would authorize the presence of the farm workers and offer them a path to citizenship.
“Every American is complicit in the reality that we depend on agriculture, and agriculture depends on immigrants, but we have not allowed those workers to come here legally nor allowed them to work legally once they have been here,” said lead sponsor Rep. Luis Gutierrez of Illinois. “So let’s put our agricultural industry and the families, farmers, and entrepreneurs in this critical industry on a legal footing and take them out of the black market.”
The House bill would allow workers to apply for “blue card” status if they show consistent employment in U.S. agriculture for two years, pay a fine, and pass a background check. A three- to five-year path to citizenship would be available to those who continue to work in agriculture.
By some estimates, more than half of U.S. farm workers are undocumented. Farm groups have expressed concern about access to a legal and reliable workforce. The Trump administration has given border security and the deportation of undocumented immigrants a higher priority than immigration reform.
For a package of material about the Agricultural Worker Program Act and to read a Gutierrez release on the legislation, click here.