Dallas City Wire

WASHINGTON – House Agriculture Committee Member Congresswoman Jasmine Crockett (TX-30) released the following statement after announcing her appointment to a new bipartisan Agricultural Labor Working Group, focusing on workforce issues within the agricultural sector. The group's mandate will focus on addressing the growing labor shortage hitting American farmers, ranchers, and agricultural producers by investigating and responding to its underlying causes, including lax and inconsistent worker protections and an overburdened, under-resourced visa system for agricultural workers and their families.

"The labor crisis hitting American agriculture is exacerbating America's existing hunger crisis, hiking prices at the grocery store and pushing small farmers and ranchers to the brink of bankruptcy," said Rep. Crockett. "The demonization of migrants and politicization of our visa system has created a culture of fear for agricultural workers, creating conditions rife for labor exploitation and pushing many out of the workforce entirely. After hearing from my constituents and agricultural producers and workers across Texas, I know that we can't address this crisis without improving labor standards for farm workers and streamlining visa programs so farmers and laborers are no longer hamstrung by convoluted, bureaucratic legal processes.

"I'm ready and willing to work with my colleagues to craft bipartisan solutions to make it easier for workers and producers to operate legally, safely, and fairly. Perfectly good American food is rotting on farms, waiting to be picked, while we debate the humanity of migrant farm workers. If we want to solve our hunger crisis, we need stop listening to anti-immigrant extremist rhetoric and start listening to American farmers and farm workers."

Congressmen Rick Crawford (AR-01) and Don Davis (NC-01) will co-chair the working group. The working group will:

• Seek input from stakeholders, employers, and workers, particularly emphasizing the H-2A visa program for nonimmigrant agricultural workers.
• Produce an interim report detailing the program's shortcomings and the impacts on food security.
• File a final report with recommendations to address the flaws within the program.

The final report of the working group will provide a comprehensive suite of potential solutions that can inform and be utilized in subsequent legislative efforts.

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Congresswoman Jasmine Crockett represents portions of Dallas and Tarrant Counties, with the cities of Dallas, Grand Prairie, DeSoto, Cedar Hill, Lancaster, Duncanville, Glenn Heights, Hutchins, Wilmer, Arlington, Ovilla, and Seagoville.

Original source can be found here.