{"database": "press", "table": "releases", "rows": [["https://valadao.house.gov/news/documentsingle.aspx?DocumentID=3902", "Congressman Valadao Works to Solve Labor Shortages for Central Valley Dairy Producers", "2026-07-01", "2026", "2026-07", "Republican", "House", "CA", "David G. Valadao", "V000129", "valadao.house.gov", "valadao", "https://valadao.house.gov/news/documentquery.aspx?DocumentTypeID=27", "scraper", "WASHINGTON \u2013 Today, Congressman David Valadao (CA-22) joined House Agriculture Committee Chairman G.T. Thompson as an original co-sponsor of the Securing Agriculture\u2019s Workforce Act. This bipartisan bill would modernize the H-2A program to better meet the needs of year-round agricultural operations while giving existing unauthorized workers the opportunity to participate in the program, providing much-needed stability for the ag sector.\n\nAs the sole dairyman in Congress, Congressman Valadao has been a leading advocate for modernizing the H-2A program and strengthening America\u2019s agricultural workforce. Among his efforts, he has introduced the Farm Workforce Modernization Act in the 118th and 119th Congresses.\n\n\u201cOne of the biggest concerns I hear from producers across the Central Valley is the ongoing agricultural labor shortage,\u201d said Congressman Valadao. \u201cWhile the H-2A program works well for many seasonal operations, it hasn\u2019t kept pace with the needs of year-round industries like dairy. That\u2019s why I\u2019m proud to support the bipartisan Securing Agriculture\u2019s Workforce Act, which modernizes the program by clarifying that \u2018temporary labor\u2019 refers to the length of a farmworker\u2019s contract\u2014not whether the job itself is seasonal. It also creates a pathway for eligible undocumented agricultural workers to earn H-2A status and provide for their families. This bill is a commonsense step that gives producers greater certainty to plan for their workforce, provides long-overdue stability for agricultural workers, and helps strengthen the Central Valley\u2019s food supply for the future.\"\n\nBackground:\n\nIn the 1980s, the H-2A program was created to help address temporary and seasonal agricultural labor needs. The program requires workers to hold temporary visas tied to jobs lasting no more than ten months. While this structure works well for many agricultural sectors with defined planting and harvesting seasons, it creates challenges for dairy producers, whose operations run year-round. As a result, dairy producers often face uncertainty and application denials because their labor needs are viewed as permanent rather than \u201ctemporary\u201d or \u201cseasonal.\u201d\n\nThe Securing Agriculture's Workforce Act would:\n\nAllow H-2A visas to be used for agricultural jobs that are temporary in nature, while removing the current requirement that jobs must also be seasonal.\n\nClarify that \u201ctemporary\u201d refers to the length of the employment contract\u2014up to 350 days\u2014rather than whether the work itself is seasonal.\n\nExpand eligibility for the program to include controlled environment agriculture, forestry, aquaculture, and livestock harvesting.\n\nCreate a pathway for existing unauthorized agricultural workers to participate in the H-2A program if they meet all requirements, including successfully completing a criminal background check.\n\nEstablish an online platform to streamline communication and processing between agricultural employers, workers, and government agencies.\n\nProvide agricultural producers with the flexibility needed to meet the industry\u2019s year-round workforce demands while maintaining strong, transparent, and enforceable program standards.\n\nSupporting organizations include the American Farm Bureau Federation, California Farm Bureau, National Milk Producers Federation, Western Growers, AmericanHort, International Fresh Produce Association, U.S. Chamber of Commerce, USA Farmers, National Council of Agricultural Employers, National Council of Farmer Cooperatives, American Business Immigration Council, National Potato Council, Northwest Horticultural Council, US Apple, American Peanut Shellers Association, American Soybean Association, Livestock Marketing Association, Meat Institute, National Association of Wheat Growers, National Chicken Council, National Cotton Council, National Pecan Federation, National Pork Producers Council, National Sorghum Producers, National Turkey Federation, National Watermelon Association, U.S. Peanut Federation, U.S. Rice Producers Association, USA Rice, Vidalia Onion Business Council, Florida Fruit & Vegetable Association, Florida Peanut Federation, Georgia Blueberry Commission, Georgia Fruit and Vegetable Growers Association, Midwest Council on Agriculture, Southern Peanut Farmers Federation, and Washington Red Raspberry Commission.\n\nRead the full bill here.\n\n###", 1, "2026-07-02T06:20:02Z", "2026-07-02T06:21:32Z"]], "columns": ["url", "title", "date", "year", "month", "party", "chamber", "state", "member_name", "bioguide_id", "domain", "scraper", "source", "date_source", "text", "has_text", "collected_at", "updated_at"], "primary_keys": ["url"], "primary_key_values": ["https://valadao.house.gov/news/documentsingle.aspx?DocumentID=3902"], "units": {}, "query_ms": 3.4587259870022535, "source": "dwillis/congress-press", "source_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press", "license": "MIT", "license_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press/blob/main/LICENSE"}