Newhouse Feels Ag Labor Will Be Addressed

Wherever you come down on the immigration debate, the past couple of months have proven to those not familiar with the ag industry the growing need for farm labor reform.  Central Washington’s Dan Newhouse, a member of the House Ag Committee, said he’s been working with the Committee Chair G.T. Thompson on what can be done to make sure farms across the country have the needed labor to safely produce food, fuel and fiber.

“We've been working on legislation, as you know, to update and improve the laws and regulations around the guest labor programs that we have the visa programs for agricultural labor," Newhouse said.  "I think that's where this leads. It gives us a tremendous opportunity to finally get some of this legislation across the finish line.”

Lawmakers Need To Address Ag Labor Needs

Newhouse added law enforcement must continue to do its job and root out bad actors, but only Congress can tackle the issue head on.

“[Boarder Czar] Tom Homan said Congress has to fix this and we absolutely do. And that's why I think that now we have an opportunity in front of us to do just that,” Newhouse said. 

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