Bennet, Colorado Business Leaders Urge President to Resume H-2B Visa Program

Press Release

Colorado U.S. Senator Michael Bennet today joined 18 Colorado business leaders who urged the President to quickly find a path forward to resume processing and issuing H-2B visas.

Earlier this month, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) suspended the program following a federal court ruling that the Department of Labor does not have the legal authority to make regulations for the program's labor certification requirements.

In a letter to the President, Bennet and the Colorado business leaders wrote, "Businesses in Colorado do not suddenly or arbitrarily decide to use the H-2B visa program. The decision to pursue an application for one or more H-2B visas is often made months in advance, after it becomes too clear that the local labor market will not accommodate the business need. The abrupt suspension of the program has left no time for businesses to adapt, leaving many without a secondary option to mitigate the challenges that have arisen."

Last week, Bennet urged Homeland Security Secretary Jeh Johnson and Labor Secretary Thomas Perez to resume processing visa requests as soon as possible in order to help hundreds of tourism and outdoor recreation businesses in Colorado that rely on foreign workers. Yesterday, the Administration filed a motion to delay the decision that forced the suspension of the H-2B visa program while the Department of Labor and Department of Homeland Security prepare a joint rule to address the labor certification requirement.

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