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Goodlatte AG Act encounters committee delay

Chris Galen

Congressman Bob Goodlatte’s Agricultural Guestworker Act has been introduced in the House, but a dairy group spokesman says there has been a delay in the next step.

The House Judiciary Committee Chairman’s plan to create an improved ag visa program was introduced as planned Tuesday, but Chris Galen from National Milk Producers Federation tells Brownfield it did not go to the Judiciary Committee for markups Wednesday as planned.  “We were expecting that not only would the Goodlatte Ag Guestworker Act be introduced this week, but then the House Judiciary Committee would take action on it immediately and that effort, that hearing has been postponed.”

He says the important first step of introducing the bill is done.  “It doesn’t fulfill every one of NMPF’s policy objectives when it comes to immigration reform, but it’s a huge leap forward and it’s an effort that we support.”

Galen says the biggest concern is if the House and Senate can agree on the bill before the end of the year.  “It will take a bit of time to get it through the House of Representatives, and then of course, for any immigration solution to be finalized, the Senate is going to have to do something similar, although they probably aren’t going to take up exactly the same legislation.  The Senate and the House often approach these issues differently, but that’s why it’s so important from a timing standpoint.”

The American Dairy Coalition is hosting an update on the Goodlatte H2-C bill at World Dairy Expo Thursday.

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