The Farm Workforce Modernization Act and warnings from previous immigration reforms

Abstract

Immigrants are vital to agricultural production in the United States, and nearly half the crop workforce is unauthorized. Previous attempts to reform the immigration system have not successfully legalized the farm workforce or caused substantive rise in farmworker incomes. Current proposed legislation would legalize unauthorized farmworkers, streamline the H-2A agricultural guest worker program, and provide a pathway to citizenship for H-2A workers while simultaneously requiring agricultural employers to check the immigration status of workers using E-Verify. This paper discusses proposed farm labor legislation in the context of current farm labor market conditions, outcomes of historical farm labor and immigration policies, and ongoing immigration trends.