H-2A Visa Program Surges as Stakeholders Clash Over Reform

The H-2A visa program for temporary agricultural workers has grown by more than 500 percent since 2012, surging from 62,743 visas to nearly 400,000 in 2025. Yet despite this explosive growth, virtually no one is satisfied with how the program operates. Farmers say it is burdened by bureaucracy and rising costs, labor advocates argue it leaves workers vulnerable to exploitation, and conservatives oppose any expansion that could create pathways to legal status.

At the center of the current debate is the Securing Agriculture’s Workforce Act of 2026 (SAWA), introduced by House Agriculture Committee Chairman Glenn Thompson (R-PA). The bill would represent the first major statutory reform to the H-2A program since its creation in 1986.

The Program’s Meteoric Growth

Established under the Immigration Reform and Control Act of 1986, the H-2A program allows agricultural employers to hire foreign workers for temporary and seasonal jobs when domestic workers are unavailable. For decades, it operated as a relatively niche program. But as the domestic farm labor supply has dwindled, reliance on H-2A workers has skyrocketed.

According to NPR, Florida is the top state for H-2A use, followed by Georgia, California, Washington, and North Carolina — states that together account for more than half of all certifications. The scale of the domestic labor shortage is stark: in 2025, only 182 domestic workers applied for nearly 415,000 advertised H-2A positions.

About half of all crop farmworkers are working without authorization, according to USDA estimates. In the dairy industry, more than half of workers are undocumented. The Congressional Budget Office projects a continued drop in the working-age population, intensifying pressure on the agricultural labor market.

What SAWA Would Change

Thompson’s bill, which has 50 co-sponsors including four Democrats and is backed by more than 400 agricultural organizations, would make several fundamental changes to the H-2A program:

• Eliminate the seasonal mandate: Contracts could extend up to 350 days per year, opening the program to year-round agricultural sectors
• Expand eligibility: Dairy, pork, poultry, forestry, aquaculture, and livestock operations would gain access
• Worker transition: Unauthorized agricultural workers could transition into the H-2A program through background checks and in-person interviews — though with no pathway to citizenship
• Wage reform: The bill would codify a court-ordered methodology for calculating the Adverse Effect Wage Rate (AEWR) and cap annual wage changes at plus 3.5 percent or minus 1.5 percent
• Streamlined administration: A single online portal would be created across the Departments of Labor, Homeland Security, and State

Gregg Doud of the National Milk Producers Federation called the legislation “the most significant reform to the ag workforce we have seen in decades.”

Farmers: A Necessary but Broken System

Agricultural employers acknowledge the program’s flaws even as they rely on it. “We estimate using about 55,000 guest workers this past year, not because the program works well, but because growers have no other choice,” said Mike Joyner, president of the Florida Fruit and Vegetable Association.

Sydney Allison, who runs Wild Goose Farms in Florida, described being pushed into the program out of necessity. “We couldn’t get the labor and so we were pushed to use this program,” she said. “We can’t continue to expand. We honestly will probably shrink.”

Farmers point to rising wage costs — the AEWR outpaced inflation by 70 percent between 2010 and 2025 — and the bureaucratic complexity of navigating three separate federal agencies. Zippy Duvall of the American Farm Bureau Federation called the labor shortage “among the largest limiting factors of American agriculture.”

Labor Advocates: Workers Left Vulnerable

Labor groups oppose expanding the program without stronger worker protections and a pathway to legalization. Teresa Romero, president of the United Farm Workers, argued that employers have used the program to displace domestic workers. “Employers preferred to bring these workers, pay them less, have more control over them, and displace the workforce that is here right now,” she said.

A central concern is that H-2A workers are tied to a single employer, making them particularly vulnerable to exploitation. Shannon Lederer of the AFL-CIO warned that “systems that create an underclass of workers who cannot exercise their rights are bad for all workers.”

Enforcement of existing protections has eroded significantly. Department of Labor audits fell from over 500 in fiscal year 2018 to fewer than 50 by fiscal year 2023. Agricultural investigations have dropped to less than half of what they were a decade ago, with fewer than 650 completed in the latest reporting year. Daniel Costa of the Economic Policy Institute noted that “when less than 1 percent of farm employers are investigated every year, they can act with impunity.”

Conservative Opposition

Conservatives also oppose the expansion, though for different reasons. Simon Hankinson of the Heritage Foundation argued that because the H-2A visa is essentially uncapped, it “is going to create competition against American workers and drive wages down in a huge variety of sectors.” Conservatives in the House want a vote on border enforcement legislation first before considering any expansion of guest worker programs.

The Business Case for Reform

The business community sees the program as essential to economic growth. Martin Durban of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce said, “Now that the administration has secured the border, it is time to address the rest of our immigration system. You cannot grow the economy with a shrinking workforce.”

The Trump administration has taken no formal position on the bill. White House spokesperson Anna Kelly said, “We do not get ahead of the president on pending legislation.”

A Thorny Path Forward

The bill faces significant hurdles. It was referred to the House Judiciary Committee — not Thompson’s Agriculture Committee — and committee leaders Reps. Jim Jordan (R-OH) and Jamie Raskin (D-MD) have not committed to holding hearings or votes. No companion measure has been introduced in the Senate.

Thompson has argued that the politics may shift as farm-state lawmakers push for progress. “Ninety-two percent of all planted acres are represented by Republicans,” he noted. “Now, I will say 100 percent of all constituents eat.”

With stakeholders on all sides expressing dissatisfaction, the question is whether Congress can bridge the deep ideological divides to craft reform that satisfies both agricultural needs and worker protections — or whether the H-2A program will continue its rapid expansion without the structural changes that virtually everyone agrees are necessary.