H.R. 707: Short Term Retention for Agricultural Workers Act of 2013

Introduced:
Feb 14, 2013 (113th Congress, 2013–2015)
Sponsor:
Rep. Eric “Rick” Crawford [R-AR1]
Status:
Referred to Committee

The bill’s title was written by the bill’s sponsor. H.R. stands for House of Representatives bill.

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Status

This bill was assigned to a congressional committee on February 14, 2013, which will consider it before possibly sending it on to the House or Senate as a whole.

Progress
Introduced Feb 14, 2013
Referred to Committee Feb 14, 2013
Reported by Committee ...
Passed House ...
Passed Senate ...
Signed by the President ...
Prognosis

1% chance of getting past committee.
0% chance of being enacted.

Only 11% of House bills made it past committee and only 3% were enacted in 2011–2013. [show factors | methodology]

Cosponsors
1 cosponsors (1R) (show)
Committees

House Education and the Workforce

House Energy and Commerce

↪ Health

House Judiciary

↪ Immigration and Border Security

The committee chair determines whether a bill will move past the committee stage.

Full Title

To amend the Immigration and Nationality Act to simplify and rename the H-2C worker program, and for other purposes.

Summary

No summaries available.

Text

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Last updated Feb 14, 2013.
11 pages

Primary Source

View on THOMAS (The Library of Congress)

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Citation

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GovTrack’s Bill Summary

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Library of Congress Summary

The summary below was written by the Congressional Research Service, which is a nonpartisan division of the Library of Congress.

2/14/2013--Introduced.
Short Term Retention for Agricultural Workers Act of 2013 - Amends the Immigration and Nationality Act to rename H-2A nonimmigrant temporary agricultural workers as STRAW workers.
Includes dairy or ranch workers in such category.
Eliminates the 50% rule requiring employers to agree to accept all qualified U.S. workers until 50% of the certified employment period has been completed.
Provides that an employer shall not be required to pay a wage rate greater than the greatest of the federal, state, and local minimum wage rates.
Prohibits the Legal Services Corporation from providing legal assistance for any alien and prohibits providing financial assistance to any person or entity that provides legal assistance for any alien, unless:
(1) the alien is present in the United States when the legal assistance is provided, and
(2) the parties to the dispute have attempted mediation or other non-binding dispute resolution of all issues.
Sets forth STRAW worker provisions regarding housing and length of U.S. stay.
Directs the Secretary of Homeland Security (DHS) to provide each nonimmigrant agricultural worker with an identification card that contains:
(1) an encrypted, machine-readable, electronic identification strip that is unique to such alien;
(2) biometric identifiers, including fingerprints and a digital photograph; and
(3) physical security features designed to prevent tampering, counterfeiting, or duplication.
Directs the Secretary of Agriculture (USDA) to establish a trust fund to pay for:
(1) program administration and enforcement,
(2) identification card costs,
(3) monetary incentives for nonimmigrant agricultural workers to return to their country of origin, and
(4) emergency medical services furnished to such workers.
Provides for the payment of specified funds into the trust fund from employers and worker wage deductions.

House Republican Conference Summary

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No summary available.

House Democratic Caucus Summary

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The bill contains the following citations to other parts of U.S. law:

United States Code

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