S. 495 – Prioritizing Help to Businesses Act

AI-Generated Summary

Updated February 7, 2026 at 11:31 PM UTC

The Prioritizing Help to Businesses Act changes how H‑2B temporary worker visas are allocated. It gives states with low unemployment rates a higher priority for receiving these visas, aiming to help businesses in those states fill seasonal labor needs. The rule applies to foreign workers seeking H‑2B visas and to employers in qualifying states.

Key Provisions

Amends the immigration law to exempt H‑2B visas for positions in states whose seasonally adjusted unemployment rate is 3.5% or lower in at least three of the six most recent monthly reports, removing the usual numerical cap for those visas.
Sets a ceiling on the number of exempt visas a state can receive in a fiscal year: the lower of 125% of the visas issued to that state in the previous fiscal year or 2,500 visas.
If applications for exempt visas exceed the state’s limit, a lottery selects eligible applicants up to the limit, and the remaining applicants are subject to the standard H‑2B visa cap.

Legislative Activity

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1 earlier action

SenateIntro Referral Latest Action

Read twice and referred to the Committee on the Judiciary. (text: CR S956)

Judiciary Committee

March 1, 2021

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SenateIntro Referral

Introduced in Senate

March 1, 2021

SenateIntro Referral

Read twice and referred to the Committee on the Judiciary. (text: CR S956)

Judiciary Committee

March 1, 2021

Floor Debate

2 members

What members said about S. 495 on the floor

1 Republican1 Democrat

Sen. John ThuneR-SD · Mar 1, 2021

Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the text of the bill be printed in the Record.

Sen. Richard J. DurbinD-IL · Mar 1, 2021

Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the text of the bill be printed in the Record.

Bill Text

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Introduced in SenateIssued March 1, 2021

II

117th CONGRESS

1st Session

S. 495

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

March 1, 2021

Mr. Thune introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee on the Judiciary

A BILL

To prioritize the allocation of H–2B visas for States with low unemployment rates.

1.

Short title

This Act may be cited as the Prioritizing Help to Businesses Act.

2.

Prioritizing the allocation of H–2B visas for States with low unemployment rates

Section 214(g)(10) of the Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1184(g)(10)) is amended to read as follows:

(10)

(A)

Except as provided in subparagraphs (B) and (C), the numerical limitation under paragraph (1)(B) shall not apply to H–2B visas issued to aliens for positions that are certified for employment pursuant to subpart A of part 655 of title 20, Code of Federal Regulations, to perform service or labor in a State that had a seasonally adjusted unemployment rate of 3.5 percent or lower in at least 3 of the 6 most recent monthly reports issued by the Bureau of Labor Statistics during the previous fiscal half year corresponding to each allotment period of H–2B visas pursuant to subpart A of part 655 of title 20, Code of Federal Regulations.

(B)

The number of aliens exempted from the numerical limitation pursuant to subparagraph (A) in any State during any fiscal year may not exceed the lesser of—

(i)

125 percent of the number of visas issued to aliens working in such State during the most recently concluded fiscal year; or

(ii)

2,500.

(C)

If more H–2B visa applications are received in a fiscal year on behalf of aliens desiring to work in a State described in subparagraph (A) than the limit set forth in subparagraph (B)—

(i)

eligible applicants, in a number equal to such limit, shall be selected, by lottery, from such applications for the exemption under subparagraph (A); and

(ii)

the remaining applicants shall be subject to the numerical limitation under paragraph (1)(B).

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