Immigration Debate Rages On

By Mike Sparks|August 18, 2011

Immigration reform has been a part of the national dialogue for much of the past two decades. One clear truth has emerged from the debate: there are no easy solutions to the problem. It is multifaceted and complex, crossing over social, political, and economic lines. Florida citrus growers rely almost exclusively on immigrant labor to harvest their crop. As such, a full-blown crisis will erupt if reform measures stemming the flow of immigrant labor to the Sunshine State are enacted without suitable alternatives. A potential labor shortage resulting from misguided policy decisions could be the most serious issue now facing Florida agriculture.

Although the discussion over immigration has taken many forms in Congress over the years, the current debate centers on the mandatory use of E-Verify, a federal database that instantly verifies the legal status of employees. The move toward passing an E-Verify bill in both the House and the Senate has ramped up the urgency of finding an agricultural labor solution. In addition to mandating E-Verify, the House and Senate bills increase penalties for employers who don’t use the system or illegally hire undocumented workers. Neither bill contains any reform to the agricultural guestworker program known as H-2A, which growers view as expensive and inefficient. Florida Senator Marco Rubio is a co-sponsor of the Senate measure.

Legislation Leverage

A long-standing measure to re-create the agricultural guestworker program, known as AgJOBS, which would have overhauled the H-2A visa program, appears to be dead. Florida Citrus Mutual keeps informed on the federal immigration debate through our membership in two organizations: the National Council of Agricultural Employers and the Agricultural Coalition for Immigration Reform, and we will continue to do so as this issue moves forward.
In Tallahassee, a bill sponsored by Rep. William Snyder (R-Stuart) mandating E-Verify for all Florida employers passed in a House Committee during the 2011 session. Fortunately, a similar measure died in the Senate thanks to the efforts of Sen. J.D. Alexander. The E-Verify issue will return in 2012, however. State Rep. Gayle Harrell (R-Stuart) says if Snyder does not file a bill she will.

Florida Citrus Mutual will continue to work with Commissioner of Agriculture Adam Putnam and with other major agricultural organizations including the Florida Farm Bureau, the Florida Fruit and Vegetable Association, as well as the Florida Chamber of Commerce and Associated Industries of Florida to educate legislators about the damage mandatory E-Verify would cause to Florida’s economy.

We are currently finalizing a legislative strategy to kill any state E-Verify measure. This is our top legislative priority for 2012.

Working Together

We want to ensure Florida citrus growers have a legal, reliable workforce and an adequate pool of labor. Keep in mind, the immigration debate is much larger than Florida, particularly Florida citrus. Consequently any substantial change must be coordinated with our partners at the state and federal level. Despite a strong presence in both Tallahassee and Washington, Mutual will not influence the issue on its own.

Changes in the H-2A program or the creation of a new guestworker system will require a unified lobbying effort where leaders from agriculture, tourism, construction, and hospitality industries can tone down the rhetoric and educate policymakers on the realities of the nation’s labor force.