KEEPING THE FAITH ACTION ALERT
March 31, 2006

The 2006 Legislative Session is over!  I will send out a review next week.

In the meantime, as the U. S. Senate continues to debate the illegal immigration issue, both of ’s Senators have come out with legislation.  Here are the bills.  If you would like to comment on these proposals Senator Chambliss’ number is 202-224-3521 and Senator Isakson’s number is 202-224-3643.

S. 2087, The Agricultural Workforce and Employment Protection Act by U.S. Senator Saxby Chambliss

Preventing illegal immigration and gaining greater control of our borders must include accountability in the hiring of legal workers. Agriculture has traditionally been the gateway for immigration to the , and historically, farmers across the nation have relied on a seasonal workforce. As many farming operations have modernized and diversified to year-round work, the current avenue for agricultural employers to obtain legal temporary workers – from the H-2A program – has not been able to accommodate the needs of all of ’s farmers. Not only does the current program exclude certain ag sectors and other occupations – like dairy farmers and meat, poultry, seafood, and fiber processors and packers – it is costly, litigious, and difficult for many employers to navigate.

Senator Chambliss’ measure would provide much needed reform and increased accessibility to the present H-2A program by broadening eligibility requirements and streamlining the process for obtaining temporary agricultural workers. Chambliss’ measure would:

  • Provide a mechanism for addressing the presence of undocumented agricultural workers in the without creating a potential work stoppage on our nation’s farms and without providing a new path to citizenship;

  • Ensure stringent protections for American workers are in place;

  • Crack down on employers who hire illegal workers.  If Congress provides employers with a viable migrant worker program to obtain a reliable legal workforce, we should not tolerate and hold accountable employers who hire illegal aliens. Employers who knowingly violate the law by hiring unauthorized workers are hampering ’s efforts to secure the border;

  • Require the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) to provide each H2A worker with a tamper and counterfeit-proof document with biometric identifiers and requires the H2A employer to verify the work authorization of all domestic workers;

  • Ensure that foreign workers’ ties to their country of nationality remain strong, mandates limits to a foreign worker’s continuous stay in the US without returning to his/her country of nationality for specified periods, but allows employers to extend work periods as necessary to ensure that crops are planted, cultivated and harvested in a timely manner; and

  • Require the US Department of Labor to increase the number of random audits and investigations of program users to ensure compliance with US workplace laws and regulations.

 

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A Weekly e-Newsletter from Senator Johnny Isakson (R-GA)

 

March 31, 2006

 

Dear Friends,

 

This week the Senate debated several different immigration reform measures.  I believe that the people of this country are looking to us to secure our borders for the homeland and for immigration, and we must secure them first before we do anything else.

 

On Thursday, I announced on the Senate floor that I am seeking to amend the immigration reform legislation currently being debated to prohibit implementation of any guest worker program until the Department of Homeland Security certifies in writing that U.S. borders are sealed and secured.  Those reforms that involve temporary workers must only be implemented after certification by the Secretary of Homeland Security that our borders are secure.  I offered the amendment this morning, and the Senate is expected to vote on it next week.

I also have introduced other amendments to beef up security along the borders that mirror the provisions of a border security bill I introduced on March 9. That bill, S.2394, provides increased manpower, equipment and technology to secure the border and stop the influx of illegal immigration, including a provision to provide more than $450 million to acquire and maintain a squadron of at least 25 unmanned aerial vehicles with high-tech sensors and satellite communication. This would allow coverage on the border by an unmanned vehicle 24 hours a day. I will fight as hard as I can to see to it that whatever passes this United States Senate first and foremost, requires the securing of our border before the extension of any guest workers or creation of any new guest worker program.

Thank you for Keeping The Faith.
Sadie Fields