Immigration Reform and Agriculture

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Immigration Reform and Agriculture

• Craig J. Regelbrugge, Co-chair
• Agriculture Coalition for Immigration Reform
• V.P. Govt Relations, Amer. Nursery Landscape
  Assn
• cregelbrugge_at_anla.org

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Goals

• Offer a national perspective on immigration
  reform and the realities facing labor-intensive
  agriculture
• Explore nature and scope of the challenge, and
  implications
• Provide an outlook for both meaningful reform,
  negative developments
• Discuss how farm credit community can help

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What is ACIR?

• Agriculture Coalition for Immigration Reform
• Formed in 2001 to lead effort to negotiate, enact
  bipartisan reform legislation
• Over 300 national, regional, state groups whose
  members are engaged in all facets of
  labor-intensive agriculture fruit, vegetable,
  dairy and livestock, nursery greenhouse

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Hired Farm Workforce in U.S.

• 1.6 million serious farmworkers
• 80 foreign born
• 70 unauthorized
• IRCA-1986
• Legalized 1.2 million farmworkers
• Launched statistical gathering
• We know more about demographics of farm labor
  force than remainder of economy

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We Didnt Get Here Overnight

• 1989 7 of farmworkers admitted in govt
  surveys that they were not authorized to work in
  the U.S.
• 1994 34
• 1998 52
• Each year, 1 in 6 farmworkers new to the sector,
  and 99 are unauthorized
• Lack of legal channels has led to the crisis

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Why Do Farmworkers Leave?

• Wages? Not so much
• Nature of work
• Entry level, seasonal, intermittent
• Physically demanding, difficult
• Tighter border has had opposite of intended
  effect by encouraging long-term settlement,
  search for year-round work
• See Backfire at the Border by Douglas Massey,
  Princeton Univ.

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Are Foreign Workers Taking Jobs from Americans?

• Through 1990s, American economy produced
  hundreds of thousands of jobs each year in excess
  of Americans entering job market and legal
  immigration
• Domestic workers and many foreign workers
  were sucked out of agriculture
• Foreign workers filled the void
• Only legal channelH-2Afills less than 2 of
  farm jobs (4.6 in NY)

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The Rest of the Story

• Employers meet requirements of the law at time of
  hiring (I-9 process)
• Over time, best workers promoted into key
  positions, year-round jobs. Backbone of industry
• Any reform solution must address this aspect of
  the workforce or agriculture will be devastated

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Is There A Labor Shortage?
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Labor Shortage?

• Some superficial reports say no
• Anecdotal evidence suggests otherwise
• Quarter of NoCal pear crop lost 2006
• 1 million lbs asparagus in MI lost 2007
• Labor force triage
• Broader analysis (1990-2002) shows
• 29 increase in labor productivity in crop
  production
• 15.4 increase in output
• 9.2 decrease in labor input

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And

• Considering global picture, U.S. is steadily
  losing market share in specialty crops
• Nearly one third of fresh fruit and one fifth of
  fresh vegetables consumed in U.S. are now
  imported
• This is double to more than double the market
  share of imports in 1990
• Growing market overall is masking erosion of U.S.
  producers market share

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Risks to the Sector NY Study

• NY Farm Credit Associations studied risks of
  enforcement-only approach. At high risk are
• Over 800 dairy, nursery, fruit, vegetable farms
  with at least 700 million in sales
• 750,000 acres of farmland subject to conversion
  to less profitable crops or taken out of
  production altogether
• Almost 16,000 non-farm but farm-dependent jobs,
  especially in rural areas

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Outlook for Reform

• Unique Ag history, position
• Ag first to admit problem, seek solution
• Commitment to bipartisan approach after
  guest-worker-only efforts failed
• Successful negotiation of landmark AgJOBS bills
  in 2003
• AgJOBS passed Senate in 2006, was feature of
  comprehensive bill in 2007, still pending as
  S.340 and H.R. 371

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Ags Position in the Debate

• Many policymakers see ag as different
• Jobs Americans least likely to fill
• Food security, national security
• Longstanding bipartisan agreement vs. hasty
  closed negotiation
• Some support incremental or pilot approach
• Addressing agriculture would allow for testing of
  approaches, distribution of workload

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AgJOBS in Brief

• Long-term solution by reforming H-2A
• Streamline, simplify process
• Legal reform, Wage relief
• Bridge or transition via Blue Card
• experienced workers could earn eventual status
  subject to strict conditions
• 800,000 workers expected to qualify
• Especially attractive for dairy industry
• Structure important politically, substantively

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High Hopes, High Hurdles

• Post-Senate failure, many see immigration as off
  the table
• Collapsing middle, wedge politics (whether a good
  idea or not)
• Complications of wide-open presidential contest

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Yet, We Have Assets

• Considerable support, highly motivated champions
• Chance to move as pilot ahead of comprehensive
  reform
• Some potential for rifle-shot or smart, lean
  bill early in 2008

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Other Dynamics

• Social Security No-Match Rule
• Bush Admin Regulatory Reform of H-2A
• Enforcement-only bills
• H.R. 4088 now has over 130 cosponsors
• Raids, even rumor of raids
• Epidemic of state and local laws
• Innovation labs or race to the bottom?

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Needs

• Grassroots action/political education
• Economic impact insights
• Favorable media
• Community outreach

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Where Is the American Public?

• Most polls, evidence suggest
• Small but vocal minority (20)
• Concerned but pragmatic majority (60 to 75)
• Key challenge sound bytes easier for
  seal-the-border and deport restrictionists
• Key issues sense of fair play, real solutions

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How Can Farm Credit Help?

• Economic Analysis inform the debate by
  developing analysis of risks of inaction or
  unwise action (e.g., enforcement only)
• NY Farm Credit methodology
• Media Who can speak out? Farm Credit well
  positioned to organize press outreach, position
  spokespeople
• Grassroots Inform networks about
  www.saveUSfarms.org

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Ronald Reagan Radio Address

• One thing is certain in this hungry world no
  regulation or law should be allowed if it results
  in crops rotting in the fields for a lack of
  harvesters

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Questions?