U.S. Rep. Bill Huizenga (R-MI) recently led more than 100 of his colleagues in urging U.S. House Appropriations Committee leaders to freeze H-2A visa guestworker wages in upcoming legislation.
“In Michigan and across our nation, family farms are struggling due in part to soaring H2A labor costs,” Rep. Huizenga said on May 29. “Washington should be working to help American farmers lower costs, not crushing them with outdated mandates that balloon their expenses and make it more difficult for these multi-generational farms to keep the lights on.
“I am proud to lead this bipartisan effort, which includes the majority of House Republicans, to provide the most immediate, practical, and agreed-upon way to enact relief and stop farms here in Michigan and around the country from shutting down their operations,” said the congressman.
Freezing the annual adjustment to the Adverse Effect Wage Rate (AEWR) in upcoming appropriations legislation would lower input costs for the agricultural community and save family farms across the nation, wrote Rep. Huizenga and the bipartisan contingent of lawmakers in a May 23 letter sent to House appropriations leaders.
“Now in 2025, the H-2A labor rates paid by agricultural employers have become more unaffordable, and it will certainly increase in 2026 as well,” the members wrote. “The new rates put further financial strain on farm operations of all sizes, and we urge you to include an H-2A wage freeze in fiscal year 2026 appropriations legislation.”
The AEWR, which is the required wage that farm employers must pay H-2A workers, more than doubled since 2005, making agricultural labor and its products more unaffordable, they wrote.
With the nation’s average AEWR reaching $18.12/hr in 2025 (more than a 3-percent increase year over year) on top of other input costs including fuel, housing, and fertilizer also rising, many farms are in danger of going out of business, according to their letter, which noted that a temporary wage freeze would be a reasonable way to alleviate the financial burden and give farmers a chance to compete and stay in business.
“If we do nothing, many of our constituents will be forced to shutter their businesses, despite good-faith efforts to ensure our national food security and feed families across our nation,” wrote the lawmakers.
The Michigan Farm Bureau, Michigan’s Vegetable Council, the Michigan Apple Association, the Michigan Asparagus Association, the Potato Growers of Michigan, the American Farm Bureau Federation, the International Fresh Produce Association, The North American Blueberry Council, the U.S. Apple Association, U.S. Custom Harvesters Inc., and the Texas Farm Bureau support the letter.
Among those joining Rep. Huizenga in signing the letter are U.S. Reps. Hillary Scholten (D-MI), Don Bacon (R-NE), Troy Balderson (R-OH), Andy Barr (R-KY), Mike Bost (R-IL), Vern Buchanan (R-FL), Kat Cammack (R-FL), Buddy Carter (R-GA), Gabe Evans (R-CO), Julie Fedorchak (R-ND), Randy Feenstra (R-IA), Pat Harrigan (R-NC), Kevin Hern (R-OK), Dusty Johnson (R-SD), John Joyce (R-PA), Mike Kelly (R-PA), Jennifer Kiggans (R-VA), Darin LaHood (R-IL), Bob Latta (R-OH), Laurel Lee (R-FL), Frank Lucas (R-OK), Michael McCaul (R-TX), Blake Moore (R-UT), Zach Nunn (R-IA), August Pfluger (R-TX), Maria Elvira Salazar (R-FL), Pete Sessions (R-TX), Adrian Smith (R-NE), Pete Stauber (R-MN), Glenn “G.T.” Thompson (R-PA), and Rudy Yakym (R-IN).