Speech #1100199224

I have seen this vulnerability first hand as dozens of constituent dairy farmers have repeatedly shared with me the toll that the uncertainty associated with the status quo is extracting from them. There is a similar need for yearround sheepherders. Given that the U.S. sheep industry was unable to secure sufficient domestic labor to herd range livestock beginning decades ago. a regulatory provision was created allowing the industry to utilize the H2A program to employ foreign sheepherders. This measure has proven to be extremely successful. For more than 60 years. more than onefourth of the nations entire sheep flock has been produced by ranchers utilizing sheepherders born outside of the United States. Unfortunately. due largely to its "temporary or seasonal in nature" employment requirement. dairy farmers are currently unable to utilize the H2A visa program. Thus. it is imperative that Congress act now to provide American dairy farmers access to this program through enacting the Dairy and Sheep H2A Visa Enhancement Act of 2008. This measure would codify existing regulatory practices and allow American sheep ranchers to legally hire foreign workers for an initial period of three years and additional terms of three years without requiring intervening periods of absence. It would also allow dairy farmers to hire foreign workers on a similar basis. Put simply. American dairy farmers need workers now. They can ill afford to wait for Congress to complete its long delayed attempts to enact legislation accomplishing comprehensive immigration reform. Accordingly. I urge my colleagues to work with me to help American dairy farmers and bolster our nations economy by enacting the Dairy and Sheep H2A Visa Enhancement Act of 2008.