Experience has shown that foreign workers are more likely to migrate than domestic workers. As a result of domestic short supply. farmers and ranchers have had to rely upon the assistance of foreign workers. The only current mechanism available to admit foreign workers for agricultural employment is the H2A program. The H2A program is intended to serve as a safety valve for times when domestic labor is unavailable. Unfortunately. the H2A program isnt working. Despite efforts to streamline the temporary worker program in 1986. it now functions so poorly that few in agriculture use it without risking an inadequate work force. burdensome regulations and potential litigation expense. In fact. usage of the program has actually decreased from 25.000 workers in 1986 to only 17.000 in 1995. Our amendment will provide some much needed reforms to the H2A program. I urge my colleagues to consider the following parts of our amendment as a reasonable modification of the H2A program. First. the amendment will reduce the advance filing deadline from 60 to 40 days before workers are needed. In many agricultural operations. 60 days is too far in advance to be able to predict labor needs with the precision required in H2A applications. Furthermore. virtually all referrals of U.S. workers who actually report for work are made close to the date of need. The advance application period serves little purpose except to provide time for litigation.