AgJOBS Act of 2009
Latest action · Jun 12, 2009 Referred to the Subcommittee on Immigration, Citizenship, Refugees, Border Security, and International Law.
Progress
Where this bill reached, and when. A stage with no date was not reached; one that failed a vote and later carried shows the date it carried.
- IntroducedMay 14, 2009
- Passed HouseNot reached
- Passed SenateNot reached
- To the PresidentNot reached
- Became lawNot reached
Summary
Agricultural Job Opportunities, Benefits, and Security Act of 2009 or the AgJOBS Act of 2009 - Directs the Secretary of Homeland Security (DHS) to confer "blue card status" upon an alien who: (1) has performed agricultural employment in the United States for at least 863 hours or 150 work days during the 24-month period ending on December 31, 2008, or earned at least $7,500 from U.S. agricultural employment; (2) applied for such status during the 18-month application period beginning on the first day of the seventh month that begins after the date of enactment of this Act; (3) is otherwise admissible to the United States; and (4) has not been convicted of any felony or a misdemeanor, an element of which involves bodily injury, threat of serious bodily injury, or harm to property in excess of $500.
Limits the number of blue cards that may be issued during the five-year period beginning on the date of the enactment of this Act.
Directs the Secretary to adjust a blue card alien (and spouse and minor children) to permanent resident status if the alien has fulfilled specified periods of agricultural employment.
Amends the Social Security Act to exempt blue card aliens from prosecution for social security-related identity or payment false statements if such conduct occurred prior to the granting of blue card status.
Amends the Immigration and Nationality Act to revise H-2A visa (agricultural labor or temporary or seasonal services) provisions. Replaces the existing labor certification requirement with a labor attestation requirement containing: (1) a description of the nature and location of the job; (2) the job's expected beginning and ending dates; (3) the number of jobs; and (4) specified labor assurances respecting job opportunities covered by collective bargaining agreements and non-covered job opportunities.
Cosponsors 66
Members who signed on, in the order they did. Signatures ran from May 14, 2009 to Nov 29, 2010; 26 are original cosponsors, there from the day it was introduced.
| Seat | Cosponsor | Signed on | |
|---|---|---|---|
| R-FL | Adam H. Putnam | Original | May 14, 2009 |
| D-FL | Alcee L. Hastings | Original | May 14, 2009 |
| D-FL | Allen Boyd | Original | May 14, 2009 |
| R-NY | Christopher J. Lee | Original | May 14, 2009 |
| D-MN | Collin C. Peterson | Original | May 14, 2009 |
| D-CA | Dennis A. Cardoza | Original | May 14, 2009 |
| R-MT | Denny Rehberg | Original | May 14, 2009 |
| R-CA | Devin Nunes | Original | May 14, 2009 |
| D-NY | Eric J. J. Massa | Original | May 14, 2009 |
| R-CA | George Radanovich | Original | May 14, 2009 |
| D-MP | Gregorio Kilili Camacho Sablan | Original | May 14, 2009 |
| D-TX | Henry Cuellar | Original | May 14, 2009 |
| R-FL | Ileana Ros-Lehtinen | Original | May 14, 2009 |
| R-AZ | Jeff Flake | Original | May 14, 2009 |
| D-CA | Jim Costa | Original | May 14, 2009 |
| R-NY | John M. McHugh | Original | May 14, 2009 |
| R-FL | Lincoln Diaz-Balart | Original | May 14, 2009 |
| D-IL | Luis V. Gutierrez | Original | May 14, 2009 |
| R-FL | Mario Diaz-Balart | Original | May 14, 2009 |
| D-CA | Mike Thompson | Original | May 14, 2009 |
| R-WI | Paul D. Ryan | Original | May 14, 2009 |
| D-AZ | Raúl M. Grijalva | Original | May 14, 2009 |
| D-CA | Sam Farr | Original | May 14, 2009 |
| D-GA | Sanford D. Bishop, Jr. | Original | May 14, 2009 |
| D-VA | Thomas S.P. Perriello | Original | May 14, 2009 |
| D-CA | Zoe Lofgren | Original | May 14, 2009 |
| D-CO | Betsy Markey | May 19, 2009 | |
| D-TX | Silvestre Reyes | Jun 2, 2009 | |
| D-TX | Ciro D. Rodriguez | Jun 3, 2009 | |
| D-OR | David Wu | Jun 3, 2009 | |
| D-NY | Michael A. Arcuri | Jun 3, 2009 | |
| D-NC | Brad Miller | Jun 8, 2009 | |
| D-NY | Daniel B. Maffei | Jun 8, 2009 | |
| D-CA | Lynn C. Woolsey | Jun 8, 2009 | |
| D-CA | George Miller | Jun 9, 2009 | |
| D-VT | Peter Welch | Jun 9, 2009 | |
| R-OH | Steven C. LaTourette | Jun 9, 2009 | |
| D-NY | Charles B. Rangel | Jun 10, 2009 | |
| D-NY | Louise McIntosh Slaughter | Jun 12, 2009 | |
| D-CA | Lois Capps | Jun 19, 2009 | |
| D-WA | Rick Larsen | Jun 19, 2009 | |
| D-WI | Ron Kind | Jun 19, 2009 | |
| R-WI | Thomas E. Petri | Jun 19, 2009 | |
| D-CA | Bob Filner | Jun 23, 2009 | |
| D-OR | Earl Blumenauer | Jun 23, 2009 | |
| D-CA | Jerry McNerney | Jul 9, 2009 | |
| D-NJ | Steven R. Rothman | Jul 9, 2009 | |
| D-FL | Debbie Wasserman Schultz | Jul 28, 2009 | |
| D-WI | Steve Kagen | Jul 29, 2009 | |
| D-NY | Brian Higgins | Sep 8, 2009 | |
| D-CA | Judy Chu | Sep 8, 2009 | |
| D-NY | Maurice D. Hinchey | Sep 8, 2009 | |
| D-NC | David E. Price | Sep 10, 2009 | |
| D-AZ | Ed Pastor | Oct 8, 2009 | |
| D-TX | Lloyd Doggett | Oct 8, 2009 | |
| D-CO | Jared Polis | Nov 6, 2009 | |
| D-CO | Diana DeGette | Dec 1, 2009 | |
| D-NY | William L. Owens | Mar 9, 2010 | |
| D-NY | Edolphus Towns | Apr 14, 2010 | |
| D-CA | Laura Richardson | Apr 14, 2010 | |
| D-CA | Doris O. Matsui | Apr 27, 2010 | |
| D-OR | Kurt Schrader | Apr 27, 2010 | |
| D-RI | Patrick J. Kennedy | May 18, 2010 | |
| D-MI | John Conyers, Jr. | Sep 28, 2010 | |
| D-FL | Alan Grayson | Nov 29, 2010 | |
| D-MI | Sander M. Levin | Nov 29, 2010 |
Committees 1
Where it was sent and what each committee and subcommittee did with it, in order.
| Chamber | Committee | What it did |
|---|---|---|
| House | Judiciary Committee | Referred May 14, 2009 |
| Immigration Integrity, Security, and Enforcement Subcommittee | Referred Jun 12, 2009 |
Actions 3
Everything that happened, newest first.
- Jun 12, 2009Referred to the Subcommittee on Immigration, Citizenship, Refugees, Border Security, and International Law.
- May 14, 2009Introduced in House
- May 14, 2009Referred to the House Committee on the Judiciary.
Research
What has been written about this bill: committee reports, cost estimates, the sponsor’s authority statement, printed hearings and the Congressional Research Service’s work.
Printed hearings 3
Hearings whose printed record names this bill, newest first: hearings on it, and wider hearings where it came up.
| Number | Hearing | Committee | Held |
|---|---|---|---|
| Serial No. 111-57 | HEARING TO REVIEW SPECIALTY CROP AND ORGANIC AGRICULTURE PROGRAMS IN ADVANCE OF THE 2012 FARM BILL68 pages | Agriculture Committee | Jul 21, 2010 |
| Serial No. 111-48 | HEARING TO REVIEW U.S. AGRICULTURE POLICY IN ADVANCE OF THE 2012 FARM BILL, PART 2 (Final)920 pages | Agriculture Committee | Apr 30, 2010–Jun 28, 2010 |
| Serial No. 111-47 | HEARING TO REVIEW DAIRY POLICY88 pages | Agriculture Committee | Apr 20, 2010 |
CRS reports 1
Congressional Research Service work that CRS links to this bill or the law it became, newest first.
Cite it 1
Products on other subjects that cite it, usually among other measures.
| Product | Title | Kind | Published |
|---|---|---|---|
| RL32044 | Immigration: Policy Considerations Related to Guest Worker Programs Archived | Report | Mar 16, 2010 |
Related bills 1
Companion bills and other measures the record links to this one.
| Bill | Title | Relationship | Latest action |
|---|---|---|---|
| S 1038 | AgJOBS Act of 2009 | Related bill | May 14, 2009 |
Titles 3
Every title it has carried, official and short, at each stage.
- Official Title as Introduced
- To improve agricultural job opportunities, benefits, and security for aliens in the United States, and for other purposes.
- Short Titles as Introduced
- Agricultural Job Opportunities, Benefits, and Security Act of 2009
- AgJOBS Act of 2009
Subjects
Assigned by the Library of Congress. Policy area: Immigration.
- Administrative law and regulatory procedures
- Administrative remedies
- Alternative dispute resolution, mediation, arbitration
- Congressional oversight
- Department of Homeland Security
- Foreign labor
- Fraud offenses and financial crimes
- Immigration
- Immigration status and procedures
- Migrant, seasonal, agricultural labor
- Travel and tourism
- Visas and passports
Text 1
Each version as it was printed, newest first.
- May 14, 2009Introduced in House
Everything here is as published by Congress: the summary is the Congressional Research Service's, the action wording is the clerks', and the subjects are the Library of Congress's. How far it got is read from the actions themselves, taking the most recent one of each kind, so a bill that failed a vote and later passed is shown as having passed. Records come from this bill on Congress.gov and govinfo.gov; cost estimates are the Congressional Budget Office's, and the hearings are the printed hearings GovInfo publishes, which can appear months after the hearing.
