H-2B cap met for second half of 2008
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS)
announced Jan. 3 that it has received a sufficient number of petitions
to reach the congressionally mandated H-2B cap for the second half of
2008. As a result, Jan. 2, 2008 is the "final receipt date" for new H-2B
worker petitions requesting employment start dates prior to Oct. 1,
2008. The "final receipt date" is the date on which USCIS determines
that it has received enough cap-subject petitions to reach the limit of
33,000 H-2B workers for the second half of FY2008. The cap was reached
with existing totals for that day. USCIS will reject petitions for new
H-2B workers seeking employment start dates prior to Oct. 1, 2008, that
arrive after Jan. 2, 2008. USCIS will apply a computer-generated random
selection process to all petitions that are subject to the cap and were
received on Jan. 2, 2008. USCIS will use this process to select the
number of petitions needed to meet the cap. USCIS will reject, and
return the fee, for all cap-subject petitions not randomly selected.
Petitions for workers who are currently in H-2B status do not count
toward the congressionally mandated bi-annual H-2B cap. USCIS will
continue to process petitions filed to:
- Extend the stay of a current
H-2B worker in the United States;
- Change the terms of employment for
current H-2B workers and extend their stay; or
- Allow current H-2B
workers to change or add employers and extend their stay.
Write or call your representatives today! There is
still time to renew the exemption for returning H-2B workers. But it
won’t be easy. After the very public failure of comprehensive
immigration reform earlier this year, our lobbyists advised us that a
powerful coalition had developed to block any small fixes, such as Save
Our Small and Seasonal Businesses Act. The bill would extend the
exemption from the cap for returning workers.
Sen. Mikulski (Voice for Trees 2007 Legislator of
the Year) managed to get the exemption inserted into the budget
resolution for the Commerce and Justice Departments. While it passed the
Senate, it was stripped from the House version. A second try also passed
the Senate as part of an Omnibus spending bill. That, too, was stripped
from the House bill.
Unfortunately, the Hispanic Caucus has decided
that if they can’t get amnesty, they are going to oppose all immigration
measures – even though a seasonal, temporary visa program is not
immigration. And organized labor has decided to oppose the program, too,
unless it is changed radically in ways that would make it useless for
our members.
 H-2B has become a
vital source of labor for our members who use the program. We urge all
of our members to write or fax or call their representatives to ask them
to support a continuation of the exemption. A sample letter is below.
January 23, 2008
The Honorable (First name, Last name, Street Address)
Washington, DC 12345
Fax #
Dear [Official's Title and Name will be inserted
here]:
I am writing to you as a small business owner to
urge your support for the "Save Our Small and Seasonal Businesses Act of
2007" (S. 988) and to ask you to push for its immediate passage.
My company uses the H-2B visa program to assure
its workers are legally documented. The H-2B program provides a vital
and legal source of seasonal labor for our industry and other industries
that cannot fill their labor needs with American citizens.
Unfortunately, the program's congressionally mandated cap of 66,000 was
met in Jan. 3. Clearly, it is inadequate to meet the seasonal needs of
tree care companies and other small businesses whose labor needs do not
begin until spring.
The failure of Congress to extend the H-2B
returning worker exemption means that I will not have access to the
workforce I need this year. For the past few years, I have been able to
hire my past H-2B employees because returning workers were exempt from
the cap. The cap exemption for returning workers expired on September
30, 2007, leaving me without a source of legal labor to supplement my
year-round American workforce during the busy season.
The viability of my company is dependent on an
immediate extension of the returning worker exemption. I cannot expand
my business, order supplies or purchase new equipment without knowing if
I will have the employees to do the work. For this reason, I urge you to
immediately push for an extension of the returning worker exemption.
Three years of successful implementation have proven that the exemption
works. A temporary visa program should not be confused with the larger
issues concerning immigration.
Again, thank you for co-sponsoring "Save Our Small
and Seasonal Businesses Act of 2007" for my business and for other small
businesses with seasonal labor needs.
Sincerely,
(Your name, business name and address here)
Click on the link below and see how your contributions can affect the political, regulatory and legislative climate in Washington, D.C.
|
