WASHINGTON, DC – Today, the Farm Workforce Modernization Act passed the United States House of Representatives on a bipartisan vote. This legislation would build a stable agricultural workforce while creating an earned path to legal status for longtime U.S. agricultural workers. FWD.us President Todd Schulte issued the following statement:

“The Farm Workforce Modernization Act is an important bipartisan step forward, both for the growers and for workers whose labor has helped put food on our tables. This bill will not only ensure growers have the necessary labor to ensure our food supply but improve working conditions for agriculture workers and protect families from deportation, resulting in a more stable farm labor force. Everyone across America will be better off when the agricultural workers who are vital to our nation’s food supply are provided with a path to earned legal status, which is both critical for the U.S. economy and is a recognition of their significant contributions to this country.

“The Farm Workforce Modernization Act illustrates how bipartisan compromise can help fix other parts of our broken immigration system by simplifying and modernizing necessary immigration programs that benefit all Americans, while recognizing the critical contributions of America’s farmworkers and the importance of keeping their families together. We applaud the bipartisan efforts of Chairwoman Zoe Lofgren (D-CA), Representative Dan Newhouse (R-WA), and the rest of the bill cosponsors to address the labor crisis facing American agriculture.

“We urge the Senate to quickly take up this bipartisan legislation and send it to the President’s desk for his signature.”