HR-3227-119
Referred to the Committee on the Judiciary, and in addition to the Committees on Ways and Means, Education and Workforce, and Financial Services, for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned.
Sponsored by Zoe Lofgren (D-CA)
What it does
This bill would create a new "Certified Agricultural Worker" (CAW) visa status for unauthorized immigrants already working in U.S. agriculture, providing a path to lawful permanent residency. It would expand the H-2A temporary agricultural worker program to cover year-round (not just seasonal) jobs and require employers to guarantee minimum work hours. It would also require all agricultural employers to use a new electronic employment verification system modeled on E-Verify, and would permanently extend a federal rural and farmworker housing program.
Who benefits
Unauthorized immigrant farmworkers currently in the U.S. who meet work-hour and continuous-presence requirements, and their spouses and children who would receive dependent status. Agricultural employers who would gain access to a larger, more stable legal workforce year-round through H-2A expansion. Domestic food consumers who may benefit from a more stable agricultural labor supply. Rural housing program beneficiaries, including low-income farmworker families. Immigration attorneys and legal service providers who would handle CAW applications. H-2A workers who would gain stronger wage and hour protections through guaranteed minimum hours.
Who is hurt
U.S.-born and lawfully present agricultural workers who may face increased labor market competition. Agricultural employers who would bear compliance costs for the new mandatory electronic verification system. Employers currently relying on unauthorized labor who could face penalties under the new verification mandate. Taxpayers who may bear costs of administering the new CAW program and expanded housing program. Workers in other industries who do not receive a comparable legalization pathway. Small and mid-size farms with limited administrative capacity to implement a new verification system.
Supporters argue
Supporters argue that approximately 50% of the U.S. farm labor force is currently unauthorized, creating a fragile food supply chain that depends on workers with no legal protections. They contend the CAW program addresses this structural vulnerability by stabilizing the workforce, while the mandatory E-Verify requirement simultaneously strengthens enforcement — offering a balanced trade-off that prior immigration bills lacked. They also argue that H-2A expansion to year-round work fills a documented gap, as many agricultural jobs (e.g., dairy, livestock) are not seasonal but have been excluded from the program.
Opponents argue
Opponents argue that creating a legalization pathway rewards unauthorized presence and would incentivize future unauthorized immigration, undermining border enforcement efforts. They contend that expanding H-2A to year-round work could depress wages for domestic agricultural workers by dramatically increasing the supply of lower-cost foreign labor, and that the E-Verify mandate — while framed as enforcement — is insufficient without broader interior enforcement measures. They also argue that a sector-specific legalization program sets a precedent for similar industry carve-outs that could fragment any comprehensive immigration framework.
Constitutional context
Congress holds broad authority over immigration under the Naturalization Clause (Art. I, §8, cl. 4) and the Necessary and Proper Clause. The CAW provision shielding applicants from detention or removal during adjudication touches on executive enforcement discretion; under DHS v. Regents (2020) and United States v. Texas (2023), courts have scrutinized the boundaries of congressionally directed versus executive-discretion-based enforcement deferrals. The mandatory E-Verify requirement for agricultural employers implicates the Commerce Clause and federal preemption principles established in Arizona v. United States (2012).
Checks and balances
Congress would gain authority by codifying a legalization pathway and mandatory verification system, constraining executive enforcement discretion; DHS implements the CAW program and verification system, subject to judicial review under the APA and Due Process Clause of the Fifth Amendment.
Historical precedent
A nearly identical version of this bill passed the House in 2019 and again in 2021 but did not advance in the Senate; those versions also combined a farmworker legalization pathway with H-2A expansion and an agricultural E-Verify mandate.