King, Rounds Seeking Maximum H-2B Work Visas to Support Small Businesses in 2025

WASHINGTON, D.C. -U.S. Senators Angus King (I-Maine) and Mike Rounds (R-S.D.), alongside a bipartisan group of their colleagues, have written to the Department of Labor (DOL) and the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) to release the maximum allowable number of additional H-2B visas for Fiscal Year (FY) 2025.

H-2B visas fill needs for American small businesses when there are not enough able and willing American workers to fill the temporary, seasonal positions. As required by law, employers must first make a concerted effort to hire American workers to fill open positions; when the local workforce is insufficient, H-2Bs are seen as a necessary tool to support local economies. With Maine continuing to see a shortage of seasonal and temporary employees, these special visas provide a lifeline for the economy and ensure small businesses can meet the demand for their products and services.

"Many employers turn to the H-2B program to meet their workforce needs to not only sustain their businesses, but also support their American workers. The H-2B program places requirements on employers to recruit U.S. workers, who are intentionally prioritized by the program and also receive demonstrated, positive impacts from their seasonal colleagues. In fact, a 2020 Government Accountability Office report concluded that 'counties with H-2B employers generally had lower unemployment rates and higher average weekly wages than counties that do not have any H-2B employers,'" wrote the senators.

"The most current employment data illustrates the workforce struggles of seasonal businesses nationwide. The Department of Labor's Job Openings and Labor Turnover Surveys (JOLTS) show the rate of job openings have increased year over year for the industries that represent the top five H-2B occupations. As you know, the FY 2025 H-2B first half fiscal year cap was met on September 18, 2024-roughly three weeks earlier than the cap was met in FY 2024. The result is that seasonal employers whose peak seasons are in late fall and winter are capped out before their period of seasonal need begins. Absent cap relief, these employers will be unable to receive temporary, U.S. government-vetted guest workers," continued the senators.

The letter was also signed by Senators John Barrasso (R-Wyo.), Michael Bennet (D-Colo.), Maria Cantwell (D-Wash.), Ben Cardin (D-Md.), Tom Carper (D-Del.), Susan Collins (R-Maine), Chris Coons (D-Del.), John Cornyn (R-Teas.), Kevin Cramer (R-N.D.), Mike Crapo (R-Idaho), John Fetterman (D-Penn.), Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.), Maggie Hassan (D-N.H.), George Helmy (D-N.J.), John Hickenlooper (D-Colo.), Cindy Hyde-Smith (R-Miss.), Tim Kaine (D-Va.), Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn.), Cynthia Lummis (R-Wyo.), Joe Manchin (I-W.V.), Jerry Moran (R-Kan.), Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska), Pete Ricketts (R-Neb.), Jim Risch (R-Idaho), Jeanne Shaheen (D-N.H.), Tina Smith (D-Minn.), Dan Sullivan (R-Alaska), John Thune (R-S.D.), Thom Tillis (R-N.C.), Chris Van Hollen (D-Md.), Mark Warner (D-Va.), Raphael Warnock (D-Ga.), Peter Welch (D-Vt.), Sheldon Whitehouse (D-R.I.), Roger Wicker (R-Miss.), Ron Wyden (D-Ore.), Kyrsten Sinema (I-Ariz.) and Tim Scott (R-S.C.)

Senators King and Rounds have consistently pushed the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and Department of Labor (DOL) to increase the availability of H-2B visas, and they have worked to ensure that the H-2B visa program is efficient and effective. In 2022, they successfully urged the agencies to release the maximum number of H-2B visas - marking the first time that the Departments issued a single rule making available H-2B supplemental visas for several allocations throughout the entire fiscal year. Furthermore, last summer, Senator King sent a letter sent to DOL Acting Secretary Julie Su requesting an explanation for the extreme delays affecting the processing of labor certifications for H-2B visa applications.

The full text of the letter can be found here or below.

+++

Dear Secretaries Mayorkas and Su:

We write on behalf of seasonal businesses in our states-including employers of housekeepers in tourist destinations, landscapers with defined seasons, seafood processors with short harvesting windows, and fairs and carnivals-who are struggling to hire a sufficient number of temporary, seasonal laborers to support their operations.

In light of these labor shortages, we strongly urge the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), in consultation with the Department of Labor (DOL), to utilize the authority provided by Congress in the FY2025 Continuing Appropriations and Extensions Act to release the maximum allowable number of additional H-2B visas for Fiscal Year 2025, as you did for Fiscal Year 2024. These visas will help employers handle their labor challenges, and provide additional certainty regarding their workforce planning decisions in the coming months. We urge you to promptly publish a temporary rule implementing the release of these supplemental visas.

Many employers turn to the H-2B program to meet their workforce needs to not only sustain their businesses, but also support their American workers. The H-2B program places requirements on employers to recruit U.S. workers, who are intentionally prioritized by the program and also receive demonstrated, positive impacts from their seasonal colleagues. In fact, a 2020 Government Accountability Office report concluded that "counties with H-2B employers generally had lower unemployment rates and higher average weekly wages than counties that do not have any H-2B employers."

The most current employment data illustrates the workforce struggles of seasonal businesses nationwide. The Department of Labor's Job Openings and Labor Turnover Surveys (JOLTS) show the rate of job openings have increased year over year for the industries that represent the top five H-2B occupations. As you know, the FY 2025 H-2B first half fiscal year cap was met on September 18, 2024-roughly three weeks earlier than the cap was met in FY 2024. The result is that seasonal employers whose peak seasons are in late fall and winter are capped out before their period of seasonal need begins. Absent cap relief, these employers will be unable to receive temporary, U.S. government-vetted guest workers.

Congress has acknowledged this seasonal labor shortage by providing DHS with the authority to lift the H-2B visa cap for each of the past eight fiscal years. Given the growing demand for H-2B workers as employers continue to struggle with staffing shortages, we encourage you to promptly promulgate a temporary final rule for FY 2025 along the same lines as the FY 2024 rule.

Sincerely,

###