H.R. 603House117th Congress (2021-2023)In Committee

Raise the Wage Act of 2021

AI-Generated Summary

Updated February 7, 2026 at 9:44 PM UTC

The Raise the Wage Act of 2021 would increase the federal minimum wage in staged steps, moving from $9.50 an hour up to $15 an hour over five years, with future adjustments tied to median wage growth. It also changes the rules for tipped workers and for workers under 20, eventually eliminating separate minimum wages for those groups. The bill adds notice requirements and updates wage provisions for employees with disabilities.

Key Provisions

Sets a schedule to raise the federal minimum wage: $9.50 in year 1, $11.00 in year 2, $12.50 in year 3, $14.00 in year 4, and $15.00 in year 5, with later increases based on median hourly wage growth.
Requires the Labor Secretary to adjust the wage each year after year 5 using the median wage increase, rounding up to the nearest $0.05.
Establishes a temporary lower cash wage for tipped employees ($4.95 initially) that rises each year until it matches the regular minimum wage, then eliminates the separate tipped minimum.
Repeals the separate minimum wage for workers under 20, setting a phased increase from $6.00 that catches up to the regular minimum wage.
Mandates the Department of Labor to publish advance notices of any wage increases in the Federal Register and on its website.
Updates wage rules for individuals with disabilities, setting minimum rates that rise to match the general schedule and prohibiting new special wage certificates after enactment.

Legislative Activity

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1 earlier action

HouseIntro Referral Latest Action

Referred to the House Committee on Education and Labor.

Education and Workforce Committee

January 28, 2021

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HouseIntro Referral

Introduced in House

January 28, 2021

HouseIntro Referral

Referred to the House Committee on Education and Labor.

Education and Workforce Committee

January 28, 2021

Floor Debate

23 members

What members said about H.R. 603 on the floor

+18

12 Republicans11 Democrats

Rep. Zoe LofgrenD-CA-19 · Mar 18, 2021

Madam Speaker, our country has come through a pandemic, and many of us have suffered, but there is one thing that we can be grateful for, and that is that the food chain was never disrupted.…

Madam Speaker, our country has come through a pandemic, and many of us have suffered, but there is one thing that we can be grateful for, and that is that the food chain was never disrupted.

Throughout the pandemic, we could go to the grocery store and there would be food in that store. For that, we need to thank the farmers of this country. But we also need to thank the farmworkers of this country, a majority of whom are undocumented and a majority of whom have been here more than 10 years.

What this bill does and how it was formed is important. I want to thank Representatives Dan Newhouse, Mike Simpson, Doug LaMalfa, and many others on the Republican side of the aisle. I worked with Jim Costa, Jimmy Panetta, and many others to try to see if we could come together to come up with solutions for the challenges that we face in farm country.

We pulled together growers and the farmworkers union to talk together for solutions. It took us almost a year of growers and the farmworkers union, and Republicans and Democrats, sitting around a table to come up with this bill.

It has basically three provisions.

The first recognizes that we have had undocumented farmworkers in our

fields for decades. It allows them to get a certified agricultural worker card so that they can work without fear. That is a temporary worker status. They can renew it, travel, pay taxes, and continue forever in that status. After working for a long period of time, they and their families have the option of applying for legal permanent residence if they choose.

The second provision streamlines an existing program, the H-2A program, so that we will have a legal supply of farmworkers in the future. Both labor and employers agreed to those streamlines.

The final provision says that if we have a system that works, then we need to enforce that system. We are going to have the E-Verify system used in agriculture after this bill is fully implemented.

Who is in favor of this? The Arizona Nursery Association, California Farm Bureau Federation, Georgia Milk Producers, Michigan Greenhouse Growers Council, Minnesota Milk Producers Association, Ohio Produce Growers Marketing Association, Texas Association of Dairymen, and hundreds of other growers.

Madam Speaker, I include in the Record a list of Farmers and Producers Associations supporting H.R. 1603.

[From the House Committee on the Judiciary]

Over 250 Farmers and Producers Associations Support H.R. 1603

African-American Farmers of California; Ag Valley

Cooperative, Non-Stock; AgCountry Farm Credit Services;

Agribusiness Henderson County (NC); Agricultural Council of

California; Agri-Mark, Inc.; Alabama Farmers Cooperative,

Inc.; Alabama Nursery and Landscape Association; Almond

Alliance; Amalgamated Sugar Company; American AgCredit;

American AgriWomen; American Beekeeping Federation; American

Honey Producers Association; American Mushroom Institute;

American Pistachio Growers; American Seed Trade Association;

American Sheep Industry Association (ASI); AmericanHort;

Arizona Dairy Producers Trade Association; Arizona Nursery

Association; Associated Milk Producers Inc.; Aurora Organic

Dairy; Bluebird Bonanza Farms; Bongards' Creameries;

CalChamber.

California Apple Commission; California Association of Food

Banks; California Association of Wheat Growers; California

Avocado Commission; California Blueberry Association;

California Blueberry Commission; California Canning Peach

Association; California Cherry Growers and Industry

Association; California Citrus Mutual; California Dairies,

Inc.; California Date Commission; California Dried Plum

Board; California Farm Bureau Federation; California Fig

Advisory Board; California Fresh Fruit Association;

California Pear Growers Association; California Seed

Association; California State Floral Association; California

Strawberry Commission; California Sweet Potato Council;

California Tomato Growers Association; California Walnut

Commission; California Warehouse Association.

California Women for Agriculture; Cayuga Milk Ingredients;

Center for Dairy Excellence (Pennsylvania); Central Valley Ag

Coop; Certified American Grown; Chobani; CHS Inc.; Co-

Alliance Cooperative, Inc.; CoBank; Colorado Dairy Farmers;

Colorado Nursery and Greenhouse Association; Colorado Potato

Legislative Association; Cooperative Milk Producers

Association; Cooperative Producers, Inc.; Costa Farms; Dairy

Farmers of America, Inc.; Dairy Producers of New Mexico;

Dairy Producers of Utah; Edge Dairy Farmer Cooperative;

Ellsworth Cooperative Creamery; Empire State Potato Growers;

Far West Agribusiness Association; Farm Credit East; Farmers

Cooperative.

FarmFirst Dairy Cooperative; Federation of Employers and

Workers of America; First District Association; Florida Agri-

Women; Florida Citrus Mutual; Florida Fruit and Vegetable

Association; Florida Nursery, Growers and Landscape

Association; Florida Strawberry Growers Association; Florida

Tomato Exchange; Food Northwest; Food Producers of Idaho;

Foremost Farms USA; Frenchman Valley Farmers Cooperative

Inc.; Fresh Harvest/Steve Scaroni (CA); Fresno County Farm

Bureau (CA); Georgia Green Industry Association; Georgia Milk

Producers, Inc.; Georgia Urban Ag Council; Glanbia

Nutritionals; Idaho Alfalfa/Clover Seed Commission; Idaho

Alfalfa/Clover Seed Growers Association; Idaho Apple

Commission; Idaho Association of Commerce and Industry; Idaho

Bankers Association; Idaho Cattleman's Association.

Idaho Dairymen's Association; Idaho Grain Producers

Association; Idaho Grower Shippers Association; Idaho

Hispanic Chamber of Commerce; Idaho Hop Growers Association;

Idaho Horticulture Society; Idaho Milk Products; Idaho Mint

Growers Association; Idaho Nursery and Landscape Association;

Idaho Onion Growers Association; Idaho Potato Commission;

Idaho Sugarbeet Growers; Idaho-Oregon Fruit & Vegetable

Association; Illinois Green Industry Association; Indiana

Nursery and Landscape Association; Indiana Outdoor

Maintenance Alliance; International Dairy Foods Association;

Iowa Institute for Cooperatives; Iowa Nursery & Landscape

Association; Iowa State Dairy Association; Kansas Dairy

Association; Land O'Lakes, Inc.; Laurel Springs Nursery, LLC

(NC); Leitz Farms LLC/Fred Leitz (MI); Lone Star Milk

Producers; Madera County Farm Bureau (CA); Maine Landscape &

Nursery Association; Maine Potato Board.

Maryland & Virginia Milk Producers Cooperative Association;

Maryland Nursery, Landscape, and Greenhouse Association,

Inc.; Massachusetts Nursery and Landscape Association, Inc.;

MBG Marketing; McCain USA Inc.; Michigan Apple Association;

Michigan Greenhouse Growers Council; Michigan Milk Producers

Association; Michigan Nursery and Landscape Association; Mid

Kansas Cooperative; Midwest Apple Improvement Association;

Midwest Dairy Coalition; Milk Producers Council; Milk

Producers of Idaho; Minnesota Milk Producers Association;

Minnesota Nursery & Landscape Association; Missouri Green

Industry Alliance; Montana Nursery and Landscape Association;

Monterey County Farm Bureau (CA); Mount Joy Farmers

Cooperative Association; Napa Vinters Association; National

All-Jersey Inc.; National Council of Agricultural Employers;

National Council of Farmer Cooperatives; National Farmers

Union; National Grange; National Milk Producers Federation.

National Onion Association; National Potato Council;

National Young Farmers Coalition; Nebraska Cooperative

Council; Nebraska State Dairy Association; New England Apple

Council; New Jersey Landscape Contractors Association; New

Jersey Nursery & Landscape Association; New Mexico Chapter,

Colorado Nursery and Greenhouse Association; New York Apple

Association; New York Farm Bureau; New York State Flower

Industries; New York State Vegetable Growers Association;

Nezperce Prairie Grass Growers Association; Nisei Farmers

League; North American Blueberry Council; North Carolina

Dairy Producers Association; North Carolina Nursery &

Landscape Association; North Carolina Potato Association;

Northeast Dairy Farmers Cooperatives; Northeast Dairy

Producers Association, Inc.; Northern Family Farms LLP,

Merrillan, WI; Northern Plains Potato Growers Association;

Northwest Ag Cooperatives Council; Northwest Dairy

Association/Darigold; Northwest Horticultural Council.

Ohio Apple Marketing Program; Ohio Dairy Producers

Association; Ohio Fruit Growers Marketing Association; Ohio

Landscape Association; Ohio Nursery & Landscape Association;

Ohio Produce Growers Marketing Assocation; Oklahoma Nursery &

Landscape Association; Olive Growers Council of California;

Oneida-Madison Milk Producers Cooperative Association; Oregon

Association of Nurseries; Oregon Dairy Farmers Association;

Oregon Potato Commission; Pacific Northwest Christmas Tree

Association; PennAg Industries Association; Pennsylvania

Cooperative Potato Growers; Pennsylvania Landscape and

Nursery Association; Plant California Alliance; Potato

Growers of Michigan, Inc; Prairie Farms Dairy, Inc.;

Professional Dairy Managers of Pennsylvania; Reiter

Affiliated Companies; Rhode Island Nursery and Landscape

Association; San Diego County Farm Bureau (CA); Scioto

Cooperative Milk Producers' Association; Select Milk

Producers, Inc.; Simplot; South Dakota Association of

Cooperatives; South Dakota Dairy Producers; Southeast Milk

Inc.; Southern States Cooperative; Stanislaus County Farm

Bureau (CA).

Sunkist Growers, Inc.; Sunmaid Growers of California;

Sunsweet Growers Inc.; Tennessee Farmers Cooperative; Texas

Agricultural Cooperative Council; Texas Association of

Dairymen; Texas Citrus Mutual; Texas Nursery & Landscape

Association; Tillamook County Creamery Association; Tree Top;

Tulare County Farm Bureau (CA); Turfgrass Producers

International; U.S. Apple Association; U.S. Durum Growers

Association; United Dairymen of Arizona; United Fresh Produce

Association; United Potato Growers of America; Upstate

Niagara Cooperative, Inc.; Utah Apple Marketing Board; Utah

Horticulture Association; Utah Nursery & Landscape

Association; Utah Tart Cherry Marketing Board.

Valley Fig Growers; Valley Vision (CA); Ventura County

Agricultural Association (CA); Vermont Dairy Producers

Alliance; Virginia Apple Growers Association; Virginia

Nursery & Landscape Association; Virginia State Dairymen's

Association; Washington Growers League; Washington State

Dairy Federation; Washington State Nursery & Landscape

Association; Washington State Potato Commission; Washington

State Tree Fruit Association; West Virginia Nursery &

Landscape Association; Western Growers Association; Western

Plant Health Association; Western States Dairy Producers

Association; Western United Dairies; Wine Institute;

WineAmerica; Wisconsin Landscape Contractors Association;

Wisconsin Potato & Vegetable Growers Association; Yuma Fresh

Vegetable Association.

Madam Speaker, we have many others, including labor. We have the National Association of Counties, United Farm Workers, Service Employees International Union, U.S. Chamber of Commerce, and Conference of Catholic Bishops.

Madam Speaker, I include in the Record a list of organizations supporting H.R. 1603.

[From the House Committee on the Judiciary]

More Than 100 Organizations, Representing Labor Unions, Immigrants' Rights, and Business Interests Have Expressed Their Support for H.R.

1603

Labor Unions and Immigrant Rights Advocates

United Farm Workers (UFW); UFW Foundation; Farmworker

Justice; African Communities Together; America's Voice;

American Immigration Lawyers Association; Association of

Farmworker Opportunity Programs; Bend the Arc: Jewish Action;

Bipartisan Policy Center Action; Bridges Faith Initiative;

Carbondale Branch NAACP; CASA; Center for American Progress;

Center for Law and Social Policy (CLASP); Central American

Resource Center of Northern CA--CARECEN SF; Centro de los

Derechos del Migrante, Inc.; Child Labor Coalition;

Children's Defense Fund; Church World Service; El Colectivo

NC; Faith in Public Life; Farmworker and Landscaper Advocacy

Project--FLAP--FWD.us; Greater New York Labor-Religion

Coalition; Health Outreach Partners; Hispanic Federation;

Immigrant Worker Project--Centro San Jose; Immigration Hub.

Justice for Migrant Women; Justice in Motion; La Union del

Pueblo Entero; Latino Service Center; Leadership Conference

of Women Religious; Legal Aid Society of Metropolitan Family

Services; LIUNA; LULAC; MI Familia Vota; Migrant Legal Aid

(Michigan); MomsRising/MamasConPoder; NAACP; National

Consumers League; National Domestic Workers Alliance;

National Immigration Forum; NC Justice Center; NETWORK Lobby

For Catholic Social Justice; New American Economy; Ohio

Immigrant Alliance; Oxfam America; PCUN; Service Employees

International Union (SEIU); The Advocates for Human Rights;

The Foundation for Farmworkers; The LIBRE Initiative; U.S.

Hispanic Leadership Institute; UndocuBlack Network; USHLI.

Business, Community, and Other Organizations

Americans for Prosperity; National Association of Counties

(NACo); National Association of State Departments of

Agriculture (NASDA); National Education Association (NEA);

Maryland Pesticide Education Network; PhDTrekkers; Rochelle

Township High School; South Central Idaho Hispanic Chamber of

Commerce; Union for Reform Judaism; U.S. Chamber of Commerce;

U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops; U.S. Hispanic Chamber of

Commerce.

Madam Speaker, I ask that we come together and pass this bill. America will be stronger and better if we do.

Madam Speaker, may I inquire how much time remains on both sides?

Madam Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the gentleman from Texas (Mr. Cuellar).

No, I do not.

Madam Speaker, I yield myself the balance of my time.

There has been a lot of rhetoric today about the border, and I think it is important to address some of it.

First, let's get the facts straight. The uptick in apprehensions at the southern border began in April 2020, last year, long before we knew President Biden was even going to become the Democratic nominee, much less the President.

During the pandemic, the Trump administration did something that troubled me a great deal and that I objected to. They ignored the Trafficking Victims Protection Act. That was a bipartisan bill. Congressman Chris Smith from New Jersey was the lead on the Republican side. I worked on it on our side along with others. It had a very precise protocol for what to do when an unaccompanied child presented at the border, a potential trafficking victim.

Instead of following that protocol, the prior administration would simply take that child, an 11- or 12-year-old little girl, and turn her back into Mexico, not knowing what would happen to her.

Now, those children who have been in squalid camps for the last year are being addressed pursuant to the Trafficking Victims Protection Act. It is correct that we have had more children present than we were prepared to deal with, and there was a scramble to take care of those children properly. But it has nothing to do with the Farm Work Modernization Act.

I listened with some interest to the suggestion that there needs to be a change in the Migrant and Seasonal Agricultural Worker Protection Act provisions of this bill. Currently, H-2A employers must comply with the H-2A program requirements, which largely meet or exceed MSPA. The primary difference is that the DOL stands in the place of the foreign farmworker in bringing forward cases of alleged violation of the H-2A program.

The Fair Labor Standards Act and a number of other Federal and State laws apply to the H-2A program, but it is worth noting that any H-2A employer that employs one or more domestic workers who perform seasonal or temporary agricultural work is already covered under MSPA, and that would be close to like all employers. This bill would formally place all employers of H-2A workers under MSPA, impacting only those who hire no domestic employees.

The idea that there needs to be a right to cure has merit, except it is already addressed in this bill because it requires mandatory mediation. If there is a problem that can be fixed, it will be fixed in the mediation system. That is quite new.

The other thing to point out is that there are no attorney's fees provided for in the bill or in MSPA, so the idea that somehow this is a windfall for the trial bar is simply incorrect.

There is a great Q&A truth setting in a publication called Hoard's Dairyman, ``What the Farm Workforce Act could mean.'' I include the article in the Record.

[From Hoard's Dairyman, Mar. 15, 2021]

What the Farm Workforce Act Could Mean

(By Bob Gray)

The Farm Workforce Modernization Act, bipartisan bill H.R.

1603, was reintroduced this week by Congresswoman Zoe Lofgren

(D-Calif.) and Congressman Dan Newhouse (R-Wash.). It could

be taken up by the full House this week.

Here are some additional details about the bill. Most of

this information came from the four Republican leads--

Representatives Dan Newhouse (R-Wash.), Mike Simpson (R-

ldaho), Mario Diaz-Balart (R-Fla.), and Doug LaMalfa (R-

Calif.). Before reading further, I want to reiterate,

however, that this is a bipartisan bill with support from

both sides of the aisle.

The Farm Workforce Modernization Act (FWMA) expands the

current H-2A seasonal worker program to include full-time,

year-round workers for dairy and other agricultural

businesses.

The bill is not perfect, but it is a very good start in

providing an extremely important piece of the legislative

reform needed by dairy farmers. Right now, as you all know,

we have no program. We have never had an immigration worker

program in the past.

When the bill goes before the House next week, you will

hear various pros and cons about it in the press. Therefore,

I thought it would be useful to include a ``Facts and Myths''

sheet about the legislation so you can fully understand its

provisions and not be misled by information that is

incorrect.

This is what the Farm Workforce Modernization Act does

Simplifies H-2A by reducing duplicative paperwork--only one

filing needed instead of three.

Bureaucracy is reduced even further for many farmers with

staggered labor needs. Farmers can file one petition for the

entire season, allowing for staggered entry of H-2A workers.

Modernizes recruitment by allowing employers to post job

openings on an online job registry. No classified ads are

required.

Reduces labor costs by freezing wages for one year and

capping wage growth thereafter. The adverse effect wage rate

is replaced in later years.

Makes available 60,000 year-round H-2A visas over the first

three years, growing annually by 12.5%. Dairy is guaranteed

at least half of these visas, and any unused visas are

available for other agriculture industries.

Stabilizes the existing workforce by giving legitimate

farmworkers a chance to get a five-year Certified Agriculture

Worker (CAW) visa to work in U.S. agriculture. As long as the

worker continues to meet minimum days in agriculture

annually, the worker can continue to work in the U.S. with

unlimited five-year renewals. CAWs can cross the border as

they need without restriction.

CAWs can earn the opportunity to apply for a green card by

paying a penalty and continuing to work in agriculture for at

least eight years. If a CAW can prove 10 years of prior work

in agriculture, they can apply for a green card after four

years.

Myths and facts

MYTH: This bill will codify wage surveys into law and

result in multiple wage classes. Under this bill, wages will

be much higher than the current Adverse Effect Wage Rate

(AEWR).

FACT: This bill provides for greater certainty and

granularity in wages. First, this bill applies a one-year

freeze of wages across all categories at the current year's

rate. After the one-year freeze, all wage rates are then

limited in any increases year over year to 3.25% with the

ability to decrease 1.5%. (Exception: If the resulting wage

is less than 110% of the federal or state minimum wage, then

the wage could increase an additional percentage point to

4.25%.) After year 10, the AEWR requirement ends, and the

Secretaries of Agriculture and Labor must develop a new wage

standard with input from stakeholders. If Congress fails to

act to control and reform AEWR, some estimates have shown

AEWR rates could rise 7% to 8% annually in the coming years.

MYTH: Adjusted workers are treated immediately as U.S.

workers, thus requiring employers to hire them. This

displaces previous H-2A workers.

FACT: This bill includes a provision that allows employers

to prioritize their longtime H-2A workers over new Certified

Agriculture Workers (CAWs). CAWs have a requirement to work

in agriculture that no domestic worker has. Because of that

requirement and proven experience in agriculture work, CAWs

do receive preference over new foreign agriculture workers.

There is no expansion of the current workforce; CAW workers

are already here and working in agriculture. The bill

eliminates the legal chaos farmers and workers face today.

MYTH: This bill does not allow agricultural associations to

file as agents on behalf of their members.

FACT: This bill does not affect the ability of associations

to file as agents. The bill allows associations to file as

agents, or as a joint or sole employer of workers.

MYTH: This bill provides no relief for dairies or year-

round agriculture.

FACT: This bill creates year-round access to the H-2A

program for dairy and other agricultural sectors that

desperately need workers but have previously been unable to

utilize the program. Without this bill, year-round

agriculture has no access to a legal foreign workforce.

MYTH: This bill would create new funding for the Legal

Services Corporation.

FACT: There is no new funding in this bill for the Legal

Services Corporation.

MYTH: This bill requires farmworker housing to meet

Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA)

standards.

FACT: Farmworker housing is already required to meet OSHA

standards, and DOL requires annual approved inspections

before approving a certification. The bill makes no changes

to that requirement, and in fact, reduces the inspection to

every two years. The bill provides $11 billion in additional

funds to

offset costs for grower-provided and other farmworker

housing.

MYTH: This bill establishes a new bureaucratic complaint/

investigation process that allows anyone to file a complaint.

FACT: There is no new process established in this bill. It

simply codifies existing regulations.

MYTH: The bill requires more reporting on employer

recruitment efforts.

FACT: There are no additional reporting requirements in

this bill, and requirements for recruitment efforts have been

simplified and modernized.

MYTH: This bill creates a new private right of action for

H-2A workers under the Migrant and Seasonal Agricultural

Worker Protection Act (MSPA).

FACT: Currently, H-2A employers must comply with the H-2A

program requirements, which largely meet or exceed MSPA. The

primary difference is that DOL stands in the place of the

foreign farmworker in bringing forward cases of alleged

violations of the H-2A program, the Fair Labor Standards Act

(FLSA), and a number of other federal and state laws. In

addition, any H-2A employer that employs one or more domestic

worker who performs seasonal or temporary agricultural work

is also currently covered under MSPA. The bill would formally

place all employers of H-2A workers under MSPA (impacting

only those who currently hire no domestic employees for

seasonal or temporary work) while creating a new mandatory

mediation requirement for any claim not just filed under MSPA

but extended it to claims under the H-2A program and FLSA.

Mandatory mediation could help reduce litigation costs and

attorney fees for growers, in part by resolving frivolous

claims before reaching the court room.

MYTH: This bill gives workers up to two years to file a

legal claim against an employer, even after the worker has

returned to their home country.

FACT: Under current statue, H-2A workers already get this.

There is nothing new in this bill. Many state-based claims

have longer statute of limitations.

MYTH: This bill gives the Department of Labor (DOL) a new

ability to sue on behalf of employees.

FACT: Under the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA), DOL

already has this ability. There is nothing new in this bill.

MYTH: To overcome a denial of labor certification, this

legislation places the burden of proof on employers to show

that domestic workers were turned away for lawful reasons.

FACT: Nothing new is in this bill. This provision already

exists under current law.

MYTH: This bill permits very limited appeals and does not

grant de novo appeals of denials or Notice of Disagreement

(NOD).

FACT: This bill allows employers to quickly fix application

deficiencies, as with current law. The bill, however,

improves this process by creating a new emergency procedure

for farmers so issues are fixed faster and workers are not

delayed. It also allows for post-certification modifications.

MYTH: This bill establishes a new requirement for employers

to provide housing for domestic workers outside of a 50-mile

distance.

FACT: The bill does not change any current housing

requirements. As with current law, the requirement to provide

housing applies only to U.S. workers who live outside of the

normal commuting distance for the area.

MYTH: The bill makes no meaningful reform to the high

housing costs in the H-2A program.

FACT: The bill makes historic investments in farmworker

housing while reducing employer costs in providing such

housing, including to H-2A workers. The bill provides $1

billion to rehabilitate existing housing, triples federal

funding for USDA Section 514/516 rural housing and grant

programs, and doubles funding for the Section 521 rental

assistance program. The bill also reduces the cost of

providing housing to H-2A workers by making operating

assistance subsidies available to 514/516 property owners who

house H-2A workers.

MYTH: Mandatory E-Verify just for agriculture means

thousands of year-round employers will have no access to

labor whatsoever.

FACT: This bill provides a way for the current workforce to

get right with the law, which means they would be compliant

with E-Verify. As noted above, the bill provides employers

with two avenues for hiring new year-round workers. The E-

Verify requirement would only apply to new hires and is

phased in, beginning three years after enactment.

MYTH: Illegal farmworkers, their spouses, and all their

dependents are provided a special, expedited path to legal,

permanent residence and will move out of agriculture and into

other jobs in the economy.

FACT: This bill does not create an immediate path to

permanent residence. First, it creates a temporary legal

status that can only be renewed with significant agricultural

work. Second, the bill provides the option of earning

permanent residence through continued agricultural work, but

it would take at a minimum five to 10 years to earn such

status, depending on the amount of past agricultural work the

worker could demonstrate. These significant past and future

work commitments would ensure the stability of American

agriculture for years to come. Spouses and dependents receive

the same protections that currently exist in the H-2A

program.

MYTH: The bill puts AEWR into law after 2029 with no

increase or decrease in caps. Keeping the AEWR for another 10

years and preserving it in statute means employers will see

no relief.

FACT: After year 10, the AEWR requirement ends, and the

Secretaries of Agriculture and Labor must develop a new wage

standard with input from stakeholders.

MYTH: The bill provides new authority for the DOL to award

back wages, penalties, and damages and/or to debar employers

from the program for five years or permanently.

FACT: The DOL already has authority to temporarily debar

bad actors. This bill would give the DOL new authority to

permanently debar individuals who have previously been

debarred and are habitual violators of the program's

requirements.

We have labored long and hard, those of us in our bipartisan group that worked to solve a problem that our country has, which is we need a stable workforce in the agricultural sector.

I thank last year's chairman of the Agriculture Committee, Collin Peterson, for the work that he did on this bill; this year's chair who also supports this bill, Mr. Scott; as well as the ranking member who said that he would vote for it even though there are some things he would like to change. It is a compromise, and it was worked on for almost over a year to get to this point.

We believe that having a legal workforce in agriculture that will give stability is not only good for those workers, but it is good for their employers, and it is good for America.

We believe that making sure that there is a future flow of a legal workforce not only into farms but now into dairy is good for America because we think immigration ought to be legal. It ought to be regularized. It ought to be orderly. That is what this bill would accomplish.

Finally, there has been a lot of talk about enforcement. This bill has enforcement in it. When the bill is implemented, we will have a strategy in a legal way to meet the needs of agriculture in America. If we have that as law, we ought to enforce that law. That is why, on a bipartisan basis, we agreed that E-Verify ought to be applied to this whole sector.

This is a package that will make America stronger. It is fair to farmworkers. It is fair to farmers. And it is good for America. I hope that people will vote for it on both sides of the aisle. So many of us worked together to bring it to this point.

Madam Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.

Rep. Tom McClintockR-CA-4 · Mar 18, 2021

Madam Speaker, it was no accident that when we finally won control of the border and cut the flow of low-wage labor, Americans saw the strongest wage growth in 40 years, the lowest unemployment rate in 50 years, and the lowest poverty rate in 60 years. For the first time in decades, the wage gap between rich and poor narrowed.

Now, this bill extends amnesty, green cards, and a path to citizenship to somewhere between 1 and 2\1/2\ million illegal immigrants now working in agriculture and their families in a manner that will depress wages, not just in agriculture, but in every field of the economy for years to come.

Madam Speaker, if you obeyed the law and came here legally to work, then you cannot qualify as a certified agricultural worker. You must have come here illegally, and you must have worked here illegally for at least 1,035 hours in the last 2 years. That is about 13 40-hour workweeks a year. You get legal status for yourself and your family for the next 5\1/2\ years. You can get indefinite extensions as long as you work in agriculture 575 hours or about 14 weeks a year. If you do this for between 4 and 8 years and you get a green card, then your family gets green cards and you are on a 5-year path to citizenship. The green cards give you the right to work in direct competition with American workers in any sector of the economy.

Madam Speaker, let me emphasize that if you came here legally and worked the same hours, then you are out of luck. If you obeyed the laws, well, you are just a schmuck.

It utterly escapes me how America's working families are helped by flooding the labor market with millions of low-wage workers under this program. As these workers get green cards, they are sure to move from agriculture to high-paying jobs, ensuring a continuous need for new agricultural workers to replace them.

Between the two immigration bills today, somewhere north of 4 million illegal immigrants will qualify for amnesty, legal employment, and a path to citizenship as a reward for breaking our laws.

Is it any wonder that our Border Patrol is now completely overwhelmed as millions of economic refugees rush our border in expectation of the same rewards?

This bill would bring a tragic end to the blue-collar economic boom that President Trump proudly announced on this floor just a year ago. Here is the real tragedy: During the Trump blue-collar boom, the poorest Americans were making the greatest gains, and it is precisely these American families who will be the most harmed by these amnesty bills.

Trump had their back. Biden is on their backs.

Madam Speaker, I yield 3 minutes to the gentleman from Arizona (Mr. Biggs).

Madam Speaker, I yield 3 minutes to the gentleman from Texas (Mr. Roy).

Madam Speaker, I yield the gentleman from Texas an additional 30 seconds.

Madam Speaker, I yield 2\1/2\ minutes to the gentleman from Georgia (Mr. Hice).

Madam Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.

I can assure the gentlewoman from Texas that we are outraged by the fact that this administration's policies and pronouncements have encouraged thousands upon thousands of children to be placed on that trail of terror in the hands of Mexican criminal cartels and brought here on the expectation of admission, an expectation that this administration is fulfilling.

I must also assure the gentlewoman that this certainly is an amnesty bill. It allows anyone who is here illegally, who can claim to have worked the equivalent of 13 40-hour weeks over 2 years, legal status, amnesty. The documentation can be as little as having a friend vouch for them.

Madam Speaker, I yield to the gentlewoman from Texas.

Madam Speaker, reclaiming my time.

This only applies to illegal aliens. If you are legally here, obeying our laws, you are out of luck with this bill. What this bill says is, if you are here illegally and can have a friend vouch for you that you worked 1,000 hours over the last 2 years in agriculture--again, that is the equivalent of 13 40-hour weeks--you get legal status.

This is one of the many reasons why we are seeing this response from around the world now flooding our southern border.

Madam Speaker, I am pleased to yield 3 minutes to the gentlewoman from Indiana (Mrs. Spartz).

Madam Speaker, no one disputes that this bill is a huge windfall to big agriculture. The problem is that it comes at the expense of American workers.

Madam Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Madam Speaker, I yield 4 minutes to the gentleman from Wisconsin (Mr. Tiffany).

Will the gentleman yield?

Not this session, no.

Madam Speaker, I would remind this Speaker that Cesar Chavez was one of the most outspoken adversaries to illegal immigration, precisely because he knew what that did to depress the wages of the legal immigrants that he represented through the United Farm Workers.

I yield 1 minute to the gentleman from Pennsylvania (Mr. Thompson), the ranking member of the Committee on Agriculture.

I yield 1 minute to the gentleman from California (Mr. LaMalfa).

Madam Speaker, I would just point out, the last 30 seconds was on the time of the gentleman from New York. I reserve the balance of my time.

Madam Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the gentleman from Ohio (Mr. Davidson).

Madam Speaker, I am pleased to yield 3 minutes to the gentlewoman from Minnesota (Mrs. Fischbach).

Madam Speaker, I yield an additional 1 minute to the gentlewoman.

Madam Speaker, may I inquire of my friend from California if she has any additional speakers?

Madam Speaker, I yield myself the balance of my time.

Just yesterday, the Secretary of Homeland Security told the Homeland Security Committee that the border is secure. The Secretary said the border is secure, despite saying only 1 day earlier that the Department of Homeland Security is on pace to encounter more individuals on the southwest border than we have in the last 20 years.

He said the border is secure, despite a 590 percent increase in the number of family units crossing the border in the first 6 weeks of the Biden administration.

He said the border is secure, despite Customs and Border Protection referring over 7,300 unaccompanied alien minors to the Department of Health and Human Services during the month of February. That is the highest number of referrals in any February in the history of the program.

He said the border is secure despite the Biden administration's plan to use the Dallas Convention Center to house thousands of the unaccompanied minors who the cartels have smuggled across the border.

No matter what Secretary Mayorkas says, the fact is the border is not secure, and it is not secure because of President Biden's dangerous immigration policies.

We know that when foreign nationals think they can easily get into the U.S. and be rewarded with legal status, which is what this bill does, they flood the border.

We are watching that happen before our eyes. Aliens are flooding the border in response to the President's rhetoric and policies and in response to the promises of additional rewards made through bills like this.

Talk of amnesty fuels border crossings. That is a fact.

This bill grants amnesty and a special path to U.S. citizenship to at least 1 million farmworkers currently in the United States. I have seen estimates that go up to 2\1/2\ million--nobody really knows--as well as to their spouses and children.

This bill allows aliens to get green cards even if they illegally reentered the U.S., committed immigration fraud, voted illegally in a Federal or State election, or have two serious misdemeanor convictions.

The supporters of this bill claim that illegal aliens who get green cards must work in agriculture. However, the bill includes broad waiver authority that allows those who did not complete all the work requirements because of weather conditions or COVID or if the alien was fired, among other situations, to still get a green card.

Those legalized under this bill would, from the outset, compete directly for jobs with Americans. Nothing in this bill prevents those who get employment authorization during the initial process from working in nonagricultural labor sectors. And of course, once they and their family members get a green card, as provided under this legislation, they are free to work wherever they want.

This bill sends a powerful message and an invitation to those who cross our borders illegally that they can expect to be rewarded with legal status and, ultimately, green cards and an expedited path to citizenship.

But far worse than that, it floods our market with low-wage labor at a time when Americans are struggling to recover from the devastating lockdowns that have crushed the dreams of so many working families.

I will end as I began. The people who were most helped by the economic expansion that we saw were working-class Americans because the Trump administration got control of our borders and stemmed the flow of this illegal labor.

They made the greatest gains during the expansion; they have been the most harmed during the lockdowns; and this adds to their burdens and woes by ensuring that the market for their skills and labor will remain stagnant for a decade to come.

Please don't do this to those good Americans in this perilous time for our country.

Madam Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.

Rep. Robert C. "Bobby" ScottD-VA-3 · Mar 18, 2021

Madam Speaker, farmworkers toil under difficult and dangerous conditions for long hours and low pay to ensure America has a safe and plentiful food supply. Because of the scarcity of domestic farm…

Madam Speaker, farmworkers toil under difficult and dangerous conditions for long hours and low pay to ensure America has a safe and plentiful food supply.

Because of the scarcity of domestic farm labor, for decades, the agricultural sector has depended largely on the labor of migrant workers. The vast majority of crop workers in the United States were not born here and are undocumented or here on guest visas. Though these workers perform incredibly difficult work under hazardous conditions, they are often unable to seek recourse when their rights are violated. A pathway to citizenship, when accompanied by appropriate oversight measures, could help reduce these dedicated workers' justifiable fear of reprisal for asserting their rights. Farmworkers are integral to our communities and our economy. Creating a pathway to citizenship for these individuals--who work to feed us and our country year after year--as well as their families is both an economic and humanitarian necessity.

I support legalization of vulnerable, undocumented workers and a path to citizenship. However, in exchange for legalization for some undocumented farmworkers, this bill would depress labor standards for H-2A workers. Because weakened labor standards for H-2A workers could adversely impact the domestic workforce, this bill could negatively impact the economic security of all farmworkers.

Wage cuts for many H-2A workers in turn would depress wages for all farmworkers. The adverse effect wage rate (AEWR), which is often the binding wage paid to H-2A workers, is designed to ensure that wages paid to H-2A workers do not depress wages for U.S. farmworkers. This means the AEWR must be high enough to reflect wages paid in the local labor market. This bill would change the way the AEWR is currently calculated over the first ten years to reflect average wages paid to farmworkers in the region according to their specific occupation, rather than the average wage paid to farmworkers across all occupations. However, the bill fails to require the use of data that actually reflects local wage conditions. Additionally, while setting limitations on how much AEWR wages can decrease after

an initial one-year freeze, the bill imposes caps on wage increases from year to year, limiting whether AEWR can truly reflect wages paid in the local labor market.

As a result of these changes to the AEWR, the majority of H-2A workers would see their wages actually go down, albeit modestly, while others would see the growth in their wages capped. I have opposed similar efforts proposed by the Trump Administration that would depress wages.

This year, I was pleased to lead House efforts to include an increase to the federal minimum wage in the House-passed American Rescue Plan (H.R. 1319). While those minimum wage provisions did not ultimately survive Senate budget reconciliation rules, I will continue to push for H.R. 603, the Raise the Wage Act, which would gradually raise the federal minimum wage to $15 per hour by 2025. I am confident that in the next ten years, we will enact a meaningful increase in the federal minimum wage, boosting wages for workers across our nation--including farmworkers. However, I am concerned that H.R. 1603, Farm Workforce Modernization Act of 2021, will create artificial barriers to wage growth, or worse, lead to wage cuts, continuing to leave farmworkers relegated to low pay and economic insecurity.

Our country's wage and hour laws are designed to ensure that workers are guaranteed a fair day's pay for a fair day's work. But this right is only as strong as a worker's ability to hold employers accountable, especially in court. Unfortunately, this bill creates obstacles that may delay farmworkers' ability to access their day in court, when they have been victims of wage theft. While I welcome extending coverage of the Migrant and Seasonal Agricultural Worker Protection Act (MSPA) to H-2A workers, adding a mediation requirement to both the MSPA and the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) is problematic. This bill enables employers to impose three months of mandatory mediation when an H-2A worker brings a civil suit under these laws, even if the worker does not consent to the mediation and wants his or her day in court. This undermines the voluntary nature of mediation and provides bad actors with an avenue for delaying or denying wage recovery. This delay could prove significant for farmworkers who may be in this country for a limited amount of time to participate in litigation. This is especially fraught given that, in contrast to MSPA, the FLSA provides for recovery of unpaid wages and liquidated, or double, damages and recovery of attorney's fees, plus costs. This provision may also pull domestic farmworkers or other visa classifications of workers into required mediation where there are collective or class actions, thereby undermining incentives for other workers to join with H-2A workers to seek redress.

Last Congress, I supported the passage of H.R. 1423, the FAIR Act, to ban forced arbitration in many areas, including employment, because it could delay or totally block workers' access to courts. We should promote legislation that protects workers' fundamental right to have their day in court, not delay it.

This bill denies newly legalized farmworkers and their families access to key social safety net programs. Denial of benefits that can promote economic stability, coupled with the bill's wage suppressing provisions, threatens to create a long-term pool of economically vulnerable workers. While most of these individuals do not currently have access to these benefits due to their immigration status, leaving immigrant workers who are granted legal status under this legislation without access to social safety net programs establishes a dangerous precedent that access to health care and other basic necessities can be traded away for a path to legal status.

This legislation weakens the current recruitment and hiring standards for U.S. farmworkers. A reduction in employers' obligations to hire U.S. workers under this bill will undermine one of the core principles of the H-2A program: that H-2A workers should fill in gaps in the farm workforce that U.S. employers are truly unable to fill, rather than merely replacing U.S. workers that employers could attract with reasonable efforts. I raised concerns with similar efforts to modify recruitment standards by the Trump Administration in 2019.

Agricultural work is hazardous, and workers in this sector have few legal health and safety protections. Ensuring that H-2A workers and all farmworkers have safe, healthy working conditions is critical. I am pleased that this bill requires H-2A employers to maintain heat illness prevention plans and requires H-2A employers in the dairy industry to maintain workplace safety plans. However, as presently written, some provisions are ambiguous and would be difficult to enforce; other provisions have weak minimum requirements that would limit their value. As this legislation moves forward, I would urge the inclusions of stronger health and safety standards.

Strong labor protections are vital to protect both H-2A workers, who are vulnerable given their temporary status, and domestic farmworkers, whose employers may be disincentivized to provide employment. This is especially true given that farmworkers have historically been carved out of labor and employment laws, leaving these workers with fewer wage protections and rights to bargain for better working conditions.

While this bill does make some improvements in immigration law, I look forward to supporting a version of this bill that more accurately reflects strong labor standards.

Rep. Nancy PelosiD-CA-12 · Mar 18, 2021

Madam Speaker, I salute the gentleman for the excellent work of his committee, bringing this important legislation, H.R. 1603, the Farm Workforce Modernization Act, to the floor. I thank the chairman for this critical victory for farmworkers and growers, who have come together in support of this legislation, this legislation which ensures that America can continue to feed the world.

Thank you to Chair Zoe Lofgren, chair of the Subcommittee on Immigration and Citizenship, for her years of relentless leadership on behalf of farmworkers, without which this bill would not be possible. I sang her praises earlier as a former teacher of immigration, immigration lawyer, and chair of the Subcommittee on Immigration and Citizenship. She knows of what she legislates.

I think that it is clear to see there are a number of Californians involved in this. I want to salute Mr. Costa and Mr. Carbajal, who are an important part of this. They represent farmland in California. They know the needs of the workers. They respect the involvement of the growers.

This, again, is a wonderful bill. We salute many Members, representing every corner of the country, whose vision and values have strengthened this bill that has truly been a caucus- and Congress-wide effort.

Thank you to the United Farm Workers for their outstanding organizing which made this possible. In addition to our work internally, their outside mobilization is so important.

We are also inspired by the immortal words of our beloved Dolores Huerta: ``Yes, we can,'' ``Si, se puede.'' Yes, we can; yes, we will; and, yes, we are doing it. It was an honor last year at this time to celebrate her 90th birthday in the Rayburn Room, the last event we had before COVID took over. So here we are a year later. This is probably a better celebration.

Passing the Farm Workforce Modernization Act and doing so on a bipartisan basis was a source of pride in the last Congress, and it is now. With a Democratic majority in the Senate and President Biden in the White House, when we pass it again, it is with better assurance that it will become law.

The bill honors the millions of farmworkers who are the backbone of our economy, quietly persevering through harsh working conditions and low wages as they power the farm economy and put food on our tables.

As the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops has written:

Recognizing the dignity of work of farmworkers and their

families is a central concern.

Farmworkers produce the food that we eat and contribute to

the care of our community.

This legislation, while long overdue, is urgently needed now, in light of the coronavirus crisis, which is forcing our essential farmworkers to live and work under a cloud of fear and uncertainty about their health and their jobs.

At the same time, the pandemic has accelerated a labor crisis in the farm economy that endangers farmers and producers and requires action. This action today is an agreement between the growers and the farmworkers.

This legislation supports workers and the farm economy with strong, smart reforms.

This bill provides a path to legalization for more than one million currently undocumented farmworkers. No one who works to feed our country should be condemned to permanent second-class status.

This bill establishes the agricultural workforce of the future by modernizing the H-2A initiative to ensure that farms have stable, secure workforces.

Critically, it demands fair, humane treatment for farmworkers by securing fairness in pay, improving access to quality housing, and ensuring robust safety and heat illness protections.

Any of us who have visited farmworkers in the fields--and some of our Members have been farmworkers themselves or children of farmworkers-- know the environment, the heat, the chemicals, and the rest, are a challenge.

This legislation is a critical step forward for our workers, for our growers, and the farm economy, but our work is not done.

Congress will continue to stabilize the farm economy, protect workers and families, and maintain America's agricultural preeminence in the world.

Under the leadership of President Biden, we will continue our work to fundamentally, fully fix our broken immigration system so that we can honor

America's proud immigrant heritage and advance a better future for all.

Earlier, I quoted President Reagan. I want to do so again more fully. Earlier, when I spoke on the floor about Dreamers, I did so for 8 hours and 6 minutes. I promised earlier today to be shorter, and so I didn't give as much of President Reagan's speech.

This is what he said: ``And since this is the last speech that I will give as President, I think it's fitting to leave one final thought, an observation about a country which I love.''

He went on to talk about the Statue of Liberty, Madam Speaker. He said: ``The torch of Lady Liberty symbolizes our freedom and represents our heritage, the compact with our parents, our grandparents, and our ancestors. It is that lady who gives us our great and special place in the world. For it's the great life force of each generation of new Americans that guarantees that America's triumph shall continue unsurpassed into the next century and beyond. Other countries may seek to compete with us; but in one vital area, as a beacon of freedom and opportunity that draws the people of the world, no country on Earth comes close.''

As I said earlier, he said: ``This, I believe, is one of the most important sources of America's greatness. We lead the world because, unique among nations, we draw our people--our strength--from every country and every corner of the world. And by doing so we continuously renew and enrich our Nation. While other countries cling to the stale past, here in America we breathe life into dreams. We create the future, and the world follows us into tomorrow. Thanks to each wave''-- President Reagan said--``Thanks to each wave of new arrivals to this land of opportunity, we're a Nation forever young, forever bursting with energy and new ideas, and always on the cutting edge, always leading the world to the next frontier. This quality is vital to our future as a Nation. If we ever closed the door to new Americans, our leadership in the world would soon be lost.''

This being the last speech that I will give as President, President Reagan said, ``I think it's fitting to leave one final thought, an observation about a country which I love.''

As we remember the words of President Reagan, I also recall the words of the late Cesar Chavez, whose birthday we celebrate later this month. He said: ``To make a great dream come true, the first requirement is a great capacity to dream; the second is persistence.''

Thanks to all of our bipartisan Members for their persistence on this legislation for which I urge a strong bipartisan ``aye'' vote.

Rep. Sheila Jackson LeeD-TX-18 · Mar 18, 2021

Madam Speaker, as I stood on the floor of the House for H.R. 6, this is not amnesty. I thank the gentlewoman from California (Ms. Lofgren) for her leadership, and Mr. Nadler as well. Madam Speaker,…

Madam Speaker, as I stood on the floor of the House for H.R. 6, this is not amnesty. I thank the gentlewoman from California (Ms. Lofgren) for her leadership, and Mr. Nadler as well.

Madam Speaker, let me explain to you that under the American Dream and Promise Act, which immigrants are eligible for, they would have 43,500 homes and $340 million in mortgage payments.

Today, I rise in support of H.R. 1603 because this would allow farmworkers, agricultural workers, to be able to gain legal status and to be able to seek a certified agricultural worker status.

Dr. Ruiz, our colleague, indicated that he was raised by farmworkers. He saw the bent hands, the bent banks, and the broken hands, and he saw the patriotism. This is not amnesty. I will tell you what it is not. It is not the Trump policy of caging children in cages. It is not the Trump policy of turning young 11-year-olds back across the border to be raped.

I hope my colleagues who are talking about abortion and talking about rape voted for the Violence Again Women Act to really protect immigrant women.

I rise to support this legislation because it will provide dignity, opportunity for an enhanced economic engine, as the farmworkers take certified status because they can do it over and over again.

Where is the bread on our table coming from?

The hardworking farmworkers who are out there every day in these fields working to provide for the American people and the people around the world.

We are the breadbasket of the world and, because of their work, we are able to feed many. So I rise in enthusiastic support. I wish my colleagues would have been as enthusiastic and as angry about caging children as they are today about us fixing the immigration system.

Madam Speaker, I ask for support of H.R. 1603.

Madam Speaker, I rise in strong support of H.R. 1603, the bipartisan ``Farm Workforce Modernization Act,'' which will stabilize the agricultural sector and preserve our rural heritage by ensuring that farmers can meet their labor needs well into the future.

First, the bill establishes a program for agricultural workers in the United States (and their spouses and minor children) to earn legal status through continued agricultural employment.

Specifically, the bill creates a process for farm workers to seek Certified Agricultural Worker status, a temporary status for those who have worked at least 180 days in agriculture over the prior 2-year period.

Certified Agricultural Worker status can be renewed indefinitely with continued farm work (at least 100 days per year).

Applicants must undergo background checks and pass strict criminal and national security bars.

Dependent status is available for spouses and minor children.

The bill does not require workers to do or apply for anything else in order to stay and work in the United States.

But long-term workers who want to stay have the option of earning a path to lawful permanent residence by paying a $1,000 fine and engaging additional agricultural work, as follows:

1. Workers with 10 years of agricultural work prior to the date of enactment must complete 4 additional years of such work.

2. Workers with less than 10 years of agricultural work prior to the date of enactment must complete 8 additional years of such work.

The Farmworkers Movement in this country was started and led by a great leader, Cesar Chavez who said:

We cannot seek achievement for ourselves and forget about

progress and prosperity for our community. Our ambitions must

be broad enough to include the aspirations and needs of

others, for their sakes and for our own.

The Texas Farm Workers Union (``TFWU'') was established by Antonio Orendain and farmworker leaders of the Rio Grande Valley active with the United Farm Workers (UFW) after a disagreement with UFW leadership over direction of a melon strike in south McAllen, TX in 1975.

In August 1975, nearly ten years after he began organizing farm workers for the United Farm Workers in the Rio Grande Valley of South Texas.

Antonio Orendain worked for Cesar Chavez in the Chicago UFW national grape and lettuce boycott office.

Farmworkers undertake some of the toughest jobs in America.

They have earned the opportunity to build their lives without the fear of being uprooted from their families and their communities.

The bipartisan Farm Workforce Modernization Act empowers the economic and physical well-being of immigrant families while providing much- needed labor security for our nation's farms.

The agricultural industry relies on the labor of 2.4 million farmworkers--about half of whom are undocumented.

This bill would protect thousands of families from deportation.

This is a big step in making our immigration system more humane and more efficient.

I know the farming and agricultural communities in the state of Texas farm and my district borders communities that farm.

What we are doing here is the right thing and attempting to reinforce the breadbasket that the United States happens to be to the world.

I have heard the clamoring of farm workers for a very long time but I have also heard the need for fairness and the improvement of conditions that they are working in with adequate compensation.

This bill regularizes people who want to be regularized and who want to contribute to helping the agricultural industry in this great nation.

I would like to thank my Judiciary Committee colleagues on both sides of the aisle, and in particular, Chairman Nadler and Subcommittee Chairwoman Lofgren, for their work in shepherding this important legislation to the floor.

I am reminded of our tenure here on the Judiciary Committee and our record of being fair and bipartisan on immigration reform for at least 2 decades.

I urge all members to join me in voting for H.R. 1603, the Farm Workforce Modernization Act of 2021.

Will the gentleman yield?

Let me say that we can respect each other's differences, and I thank the gentleman for explaining that. Amnesty is not related to people working to earn their status, and that is what this bill does, just as the DACA bill does. They earn their status.

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Introduced in HouseIssued January 28, 2021

117th CONGRESS

1st Session

H. R. 603

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

January 28, 2021

Mr. Scott of Virginia (for himself, Mrs. Murphy of Florida, Ms. Jayapal, Ms. Pelosi, Mr. Hoyer, Mr. Clyburn, Ms. Adams, Mr. Aguilar, Mr. Auchincloss, Mrs. Axne, Ms. Barragán, Ms. Bass, Mrs. Beatty, Mr. Bera, Mr. Beyer, Mr. Bishop of Georgia, Mr. Blumenauer, Ms. Blunt Rochester, Ms. Bonamici, Mr. Brendan F. Boyle of Pennsylvania, Mr. Brown, Ms. Brownley, Mrs. Bustos, Mr. Bowman, Ms. Bush, Mr. Butterfield, Mr. Carbajal, Mr. Cárdenas, Mr. Carson, Mr. Cartwright, Mr. Casten, Mr. Castro of Texas, Ms. Castor of Florida, Ms. Chu, Mr. Cicilline, Ms. Clark of Massachusetts, Ms. Clarke of New York, Mr. Cleaver, Mr. Cohen, Mr. Connolly, Mr. Cooper, Mr. Courtney, Ms. Craig, Mr. Crist, Mr. Crow, Mr. Danny K. Davis of Illinois, Ms. Dean, Mr. DeFazio, Ms. DeGette, Ms. DeLauro, Ms. DelBene, Mr. Deutch, Mrs. Demings, Mr. DeSaulnier, Mrs. Dingell, Mr. Michael F. Doyle of Pennsylvania, Ms. Escobar, Ms. Eshoo, Mr. Espaillat, Mr. Evans, Ms. Lois Frankel of Florida, Mr. Foster, Mr. Gallego, Mr. Garamendi, Mr. García of Illinois, Ms. Garcia of Texas, Mr. Green of Texas, Mr. Grijalva, Mr. Gomez, Ms. Haaland, Mr. Hastings, Mrs. Hayes, Mr. Horsford, Mr. Huffman, Mr. Higgins of New York, Mr. Himes, Ms. Jackson Lee, Ms. Jacobs of California, Mr. Jeffries, Ms. Johnson of Texas, Mr. Johnson of Georgia, Mr. Jones, Mr. Kahele, Ms. Kaptur, Mr. Keating, Ms. Kelly of Illinois, Mr. Khanna, Mr. Kildee, Mrs. Kirkpatrick, Mr. Kilmer, Mr. Kim of New Jersey, Mr. Krishnamoorthi, Mr. Larsen of Washington, Mr. Larson of Connecticut, Mr. Lamb, Mr. Langevin, Mr. Lawson of Florida, Mrs. Lawrence, Ms. Lee of California, Ms. Leger Fernandez, Mr. Levin of Michigan, Mr. Levin of California, Mr. Lieu, Ms. Lofgren, Mr. Lowenthal, Mrs. Luria, Mr. Lynch, Mrs. Carolyn B. Maloney of New York, Mr. Sean Patrick Maloney of New York, Mr. Malinowski, Ms. Manning, Ms. Matsui, Mrs. McBath, Ms. McCollum, Mr. McEachin, Mr. McGovern, Mr. McNerney, Mr. Meeks, Ms. Meng, Mr. Mfume, Ms. Moore of Wisconsin, Mr. Morelle, Mr. Moulton, Mr. Mrvan, Mr. Nadler, Mrs. Napolitano, Mr. Neguse, Ms. Newman, Mr. Norcross, Ms. Norton, Ms. Ocasio-Cortez, Ms. Omar, Mr. Pallone, Mr. Panetta, Mr. Pascrell, Mr. Payne, Mr. Peters, Mr. Perlmutter, Ms. Pingree, Mr. Pocan, Ms. Pressley, Mr. Price of North Carolina, Mr. Quigley, Mr. Raskin, Miss Rice of New York, Ms. Ross, Ms. Roybal-Allard, Mr. Ruiz, Mr. Ruppersberger, Mr. Rush, Mr. Ryan, Ms. Sánchez, Mr. Sarbanes, Ms. Scanlon, Ms. Schakowsky, Mr. Schneider, Mr. David Scott of Georgia, Mr. Sherman, Ms. Sherrill, Mr. Sires, Mr. Smith of Washington, Ms. Spanberger, Ms. Speier, Ms. Stevens, Ms. Strickland, Mr. Soto, Mr. Suozzi, Mr. Swalwell, Mr. Takano, Mr. Thompson of Mississippi, Mr. Thompson of California, Ms. Titus, Ms. Tlaib, Mr. Tonko, Mrs. Torres of California, Mr. Torres of New York, Mrs. Trahan, Mr. Trone, Ms. Underwood, Mr. Vargas, Mr. Veasey, Ms. Velázquez, Ms. Wasserman Schultz, Ms. Waters, Mrs. Watson Coleman, Mr. Welch, Ms. Wexton, Ms. Wild, Ms. Williams of Georgia, Ms. Wilson of Florida, and Mr. Yarmuth) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Education and Labor

A BILL

To provide for increases in the Federal minimum wage, and for other purposes.

Short title

This Act may be cited as the Raise the Wage Act of 2021.

Minimum wage increases

(a)

In general

Section 6(a)(1) of the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 (29 U.S.C. 206(a)(1)) is amended to read as follows:

(1)

except as otherwise provided in this section, not less than—

(A)

$9.50 an hour, beginning on the effective date under section 7 of the Raise the Wage Act of 2021;

(B)

$11.00 an hour, beginning 1 year after such effective date;

(C)

$12.50 an hour, beginning 2 years after such effective date;

(D)

$14.00 an hour, beginning 3 years after such effective date;

(E)

$15.00 an hour, beginning 4 years after such effective date; and

(F)

beginning on the date that is 5 years after such effective date, and annually thereafter, the amount determined by the Secretary under subsection (h);

(b)

Determination based on increase in the median hourly wage of all employees

Section 6 of the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 (29 U.S.C. 206) is amended by adding at the end the following:

(h)

(1)

Not later than each date that is 90 days before a new minimum wage determined under subsection (a)(1)(F) is to take effect, the Secretary shall determine the minimum wage to be in effect under this subsection for each period described in subsection (a)(1)(F). The wage determined under this subsection for a year shall be—

(A)

not less than the amount in effect under subsection (a)(1) on the date of such determination;

(B)

increased from such amount by the annual percentage increase, if any, in the median hourly wage of all employees as determined by the Bureau of Labor Statistics; and

(C)

rounded up to the nearest multiple of $0.05.

(2)

In calculating the annual percentage increase in the median hourly wage of all employees for purposes of paragraph (1)(B), the Secretary, through the Bureau of Labor Statistics, shall compile data on the hourly wages of all employees to determine such a median hourly wage and compare such median hourly wage for the most recent year for which data are available with the median hourly wage determined for the preceding year.

Tipped employees

(a)

Base minimum wage for tipped employees and tips retained by employees

Section 3(m)(2)(A)(i) of the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 (29 U.S.C. 203(m)(2)(A)(i)) is amended to read as follows:

(i)

the cash wage paid such employee, which for purposes of such determination shall be not less than—

(I)

for the 1-year period beginning on the effective date under section 7 of the Raise the Wage Act of 2021, $4.95 an hour;

(II)

for each succeeding 1-year period until the hourly wage under this clause equals the wage in effect under section 6(a)(1) for such period, an hourly wage equal to the amount determined under this clause for the preceding year, increased by the lesser of—

(aa)

$2.00; or

(bb)

the amount necessary for the wage in effect under this clause to equal the wage in effect under section 6(a)(1) for such period, rounded up to the nearest multiple of $0.05; and

(III)

for each succeeding 1-year period after the increase made pursuant to subclause (II), the minimum wage in effect under section 6(a)(1); and

(b)

Tips retained by employees

Section 3(m)(2)(A) of the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 (29 U.S.C. 203(m)(2)(A)) is amended—

(1)

in the second sentence of the matter following clause (ii), by striking of this subsection, and all tips received by such employee have been retained by the employee and inserting of this subsection. Any employee shall have the right to retain any tips received by such employee; and

(2)

by adding at the end the following: An employer shall inform each employee of the right and exception provided under the preceding sentence..

(c)

Scheduled repeal of separate minimum wage for tipped employees

(1)

Tipped employees

Section 3(m)(2)(A) of the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 (29 U.S.C. 203(m)(2)(A)), as amended by subsections (a) and (b), is further amended by striking the sentence beginning with In determining the wage an employer is required to pay a tipped employee, and all that follows through of this subsection. and inserting The wage required to be paid to a tipped employee shall be the wage set forth in section 6(a)(1)..

(2)

Publication of notice

Subsection (i) of section 6 of the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 (29 U.S.C. 206), as amended by section 5, is further amended by striking or in accordance with subclause (II) or (III) of section 3(m)(2)(A)(i).

(3)

Effective date

The amendments made by paragraphs (1) and (2) shall take effect on the date that is 1 day after the date on which the hourly wage under subclause (III) of section 3(m)(2)(A)(i) of the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 (29 U.S.C. 203(m)(2)(A)(i)), as amended by subsection (a), takes effect.

(d)

Penalties

Section 16 of the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 (29 U.S.C. 216) is amended—

(1)

in the third sentence of subsection (b), by inserting or used after kept; and

(2)

in the second sentence of subsection (e)(2), by inserting or used after kept.

Newly hired employees who are less than 20 years old

(a)

Base minimum wage for newly hired employees who are less than 20 years old

Section 6(g)(1) of the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 (29 U.S.C. 206(g)(1)) is amended by striking a wage which is not less than $4.25 an hour. and inserting the following:

a wage at a rate that is not less than—

(A)

for the 1-year period beginning on the effective date under section 7 of the Raise the Wage Act of 2021, $6.00 an hour;

(B)

for each succeeding 1-year period until the hourly wage under this paragraph equals the wage in effect under section 6(a)(1) for such period, an hourly wage equal to the amount determined under this paragraph for the preceding year, increased by the lesser of—

(i)

$1.75; or

(ii)

the amount necessary for the wage in effect under this paragraph to equal the wage in effect under section 6(a)(1) for such period, rounded up to the nearest multiple of $0.05; and

(C)

for each succeeding 1-year period after the increase made pursuant to subparagraph (B)(ii), the minimum wage in effect under section 6(a)(1).

(b)

Scheduled repeal of separate minimum wage for newly hired employees who are less than 20 years old

(1)

In general

Section 6(g) of the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 (29 U.S.C. 206(g)), as amended by subsection (a), shall be repealed.

(2)

Publication of notice

Subsection (i) of section 6 of the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 (29 U.S.C. 206), as amended by section 3(c)(2), is further amended by striking or subparagraph (B) or (C) of subsection (g)(1),.

(3)

Effective date

The repeal and amendment made by paragraphs (1) and (2), respectively, shall take effect on the date that is 1 day after the date on which the hourly wage under subparagraph (C) of section 6(g)(1) of the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 (29 U.S.C. 206(g)(1)), as amended by subsection (a), takes effect.

Publication of notice

Section 6 of the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 (29 U.S.C. 206), as amended by the preceding sections, is further amended by adding at the end the following:

(i)

Not later than 60 days prior to the effective date of any increase in the required wage determined under subsection (a)(1) or subparagraph (B) or (C) of subsection (g)(1), or in accordance with subclause (II) or (III) of section 3(m)(2)(A)(i) or section 14(c)(1)(A), the Secretary shall publish in the Federal Register and on the website of the Department of Labor a notice announcing each increase in such required wage.

Promoting economic self-sufficiency for individuals with disabilities

(a)

Wages

(1)

Transition to fair wages for individuals with disabilities

Subparagraph (A) of section 14(c)(1) of the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 (29 U.S.C. 214(c)(1)) is amended to read as follows:

(A)

at a rate that equals or exceeds, for each year, the greater of—

(i)

(I)

$5.00 an hour, beginning on the effective date under section 7 of the Raise the Wage Act of 2021;

(II)

$7.50 an hour, beginning 1 year after such effective date;

(III)

$10.00 an hour, beginning 2 years after such effective date;

(IV)

$12.50 an hour, beginning 3 years after such effective date;

(V)

$15.00 an hour, beginning 4 years after such effective date; and

(VI)

the wage rate in effect under section 6(a)(1), beginning 5 years after such effective date; or

(ii)

if applicable, the wage rate in effect on the day before the date of enactment of the Raise the Wage Act of 2021 for the employment, under a special certificate issued under this paragraph, of the individual for whom the wage rate is being determined under this subparagraph,

(2)

Prohibition on new special certificates; sunset

Section 14(c) of the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 (29 U.S.C. 214(c)) (as amended by paragraph (1)) is further amended by adding at the end the following:

(6)

Prohibition on new special certificates

Notwithstanding paragraph (1), the Secretary shall not issue a special certificate under this subsection to an employer that was not issued a special certificate under this subsection before the date of enactment of the Raise the Wage Act of 2021.

(7)

Sunset

Beginning on the day after the date on which the wage rate described in paragraph (1)(A)(i)(VI) takes effect, the authority to issue special certificates under paragraph (1) shall expire, and no special certificates issued under paragraph (1) shall have any legal effect.

(8)

Transition assistance

Upon request, the Secretary shall provide—

(A)

technical assistance and information to employers issued a special certificate under this subsection for the purposes of—

(i)

assisting such employers to comply with this subsection, as amended by the Raise the Wage Act of 2021; and

(ii)

ensuring continuing employment opportunities for individuals with disabilities receiving a special minimum wage rate under this subsection; and

(B)

information to individuals employed at a special minimum wage rate under this subsection, which may include referrals to Federal or State entities with expertise in competitive integrated employment.

(3)

Effective date

The amendments made by this subsection shall take effect on the date of enactment of this Act.

(b)

Publication of notice

(1)

Amendment

Subsection (i) of section 6 of the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 (29 U.S.C. 206), as amended by section 4(b)(2), is further amended by striking or section 14(c)(1)(A),.

(2)

Effective date

The amendment made by paragraph (1) shall take effect on the day after the date on which the wage rate described in paragraph (1)(A)(i)(VI) of section 14(c) of the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 (29 U.S.C. 214(c)), as amended by subsection (a)(1), takes effect.

General effective date

Except as otherwise provided in this Act, or the amendments made by this Act, this Act and the amendments made by this Act shall take effect on the first day of the third month that begins after the date of the enactment of this Act.