DeVaney: Issues With SB 5438 More Than Double Charging

Those in the Washington Ag community unhappy with Senate Bill 5438, legislation focused on the H2-A program, say the bill would charge farmers twice for the federal service.  Once for the Feds, another payment would go to the state.

But Jon DeVaney Washington state Tree Fruit Association president said growers need to be weary of the legislation beyond the impact it would have on the bottom line.  He said SB 5438 blurs the responsibilities of the state and national governments and could allow for overreach.  He added the responsibilities are very clearly laid out.

“Ensuring compliance with contract terms and workforce rules is primarily the responsibility of the federal government, for example, the Department of Labor Wage and Hour division would come out and make sure that workers are being properly treated and paid.”

Meanwhile, the state he points out, “Employment Security’s role and the state’s role is primarily to the licensing of housing and the verification of the local labor market.  The Feds do ask them to check on a certain percentage of the contracts, with site visits but that’s a fairly small portion of overall enforcement.”

DeVaney noted the Washington state Tree Fruit Association is interested in ensuring the right agencies are funded, but also does not want the state of Washington to use H2-A as a platform to argue for or against immigration policy.

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