H.R. 1740 · 116th Congress
Workforce for an Expanding Economy Act
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Never voted on. It didn't reach a floor vote before the 116th Congress ended, so it expired. A bill has to be introduced again to be considered in a new Congress.
R
SmuckerSponsor9 cosponsors · 2 D, 7 R
R
Rooney
WS
R
Steube
SW
D
Wild
RA
R
Allen
HC
D
Cuellar
JH
R
Hagedorn
DR
R
Riggleman
ND
R
Dunn
SS
R
Stivers2 signed on when it was introduced; the rest joined later. Cosponsors who withdrew aren't shown.
This bill establishes a new nonimmigrant visa for temporary nonagricultural workers (H-2C visa) to fill jobs that have remained open for a certain amount of time and are located in an area where the unemployment rate is 4.9% or less.
What it does: CRS summary · Introduced in House · Mar 13, 2019
Workforce for an Expanding Economy Act
This bill establishes a new nonimmigrant visa for temporary nonagricultural workers (H-2C visa) to fill jobs that have remained open for a certain amount of time and are located in an area where the unemployment rate is 4.9% or less. This visa shall only be available for certain occupations, and those requiring a bachelor's degree or higher level of education shall not be eligible.
The bill imposes various requirements related to H-2C positions, such as requiring that the employer make certain efforts to recruit a U.S. worker beforehand. The employer must register the opening before filling it with an H-2C worker, and the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) shall maintain a publicly available registry of registered positions.
For the first fiscal year after the bill's enactment, no more than 65,000 positions may be registered. For subsequent fiscal years, the number shall be increased or decreased depending on how many positions were registered the previous year and how quickly the allotment was filled. A certain number of allocations shall be reserved for small businesses.
An employer seeking to hire H-2C workers shall register with DHS and provide documentation establishing that the employer meets various qualifications. An employer may become ineligible for registration for certain actions, such as having been penalized for a pattern of willful violation of wage and hour laws.
H-2C workers shall not be entitled to certain federal public benefits.
The Bureau of the Census shall report to Congress on the impact of the H-2C program.
Written by the nonpartisan Congressional Research Service. All summary versions on Congress.gov
About this bill and sources
Official title: Workforce for an Expanding Economy Act
Latest action (May 3, 2019): Referred to the Subcommittee on Immigration and Citizenship.
Policy area: Immigration · Origin: House · Introduced: Mar 13, 2019
Official page on Congress.gov · Bill text (GovInfo) · Status record (XML)
No recorded floor vote found.