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Unpacking the H-2A Proposed Rule

As reported last time, the Department of Labor has published a proposed rule seeking to modernize and improve the H-2A agricultural visa program. Many of our nursery and greenhouse producers use the program, and others are evaluating it as the labor situation worsens. As AmericanHort prepares to officially comment on the proposal, we are sharing a “side […]

FMCSA Seeks Guidance on Agricultural Commodities

After a two-year effort to urge the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) to address the opaqueness of the “agricultural commodity” definition used for transportation policy, the agency has finally issued an advance notice of proposed rulemaking (ANPRM) seeking public comment on what should be considered an “agricultural commodity.” Via a press announcement on July 29, both Transportation Secretary […]

House Votes to Raise Minimum Wage

On July 18, the U.S. House of Representatives voted to raise the $7.25 federal minimum wage to $15 per hour by 2025. The bill would increase the minimum wage in steps until it reaches the $15 level. After that, the wage floor would be indexed according to growth in median wages. According to the Congressional […]

Long-awaited H-2A Modernization Proposal Unveiled

The Department of Labor (DOL) has posted on its website a copy of the long-awaited H-2A modernization proposed rule. The official version should appear in the Federal Register during the week of July 22. The rulemaking intends to streamline the process by which DOL reviews employers’ applications for temporary agricultural labor certifications. Proposed changes to current regulations […]

Scalia for Labor Secretary, Trump Announces

On July 18, President Donald Trump announced his plan to nominate Eugene Scalia to serve as Secretary of Labor. The post was vacated following the resignation of Alexander Acosta earlier this month. Scalia, son of the late Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia, has a strong business-friendly record, but is expected to draw fierce criticism from […]

EPA Issues Final Order on Chlorpyrifos

Meeting the July 18 deadline set by the Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced a decision against a ban of chlorpyrifos, citing insufficient evidence to warrant discontinuation of the product. Agricultural uses of chlorpyrifos have been challenged in the U.S. court system since 2007, several years following the […]

I-9 Audits, and New H-2 Bills in the News

Local reports from Minnesota’s Twin Cities metro area suggest a cluster of I-9 audits affecting horticulture businesses is now underway, much like the June, 2018 audits and a high-profile raid that impacted businesses and workers in northern Ohio.  AmericanHort has collaborated with our Minnesota Nursery & Landscape Association partner to provide compliance advice.  Member employers […]

AmericanHort Advocacy Team Supports State Partner Events

The AmericanHort advocacy team was out and about during the month of June supporting our state association partners’ key events across the country. MNLGA Field Day | Glen Arm, Md. We joined the Maryland Nursery, Landscape and Greenhouse Association at The Perennial Farm and Manor View Farm for MNLGA’s Summer Field Day.  Craig Regelbrugge gave […]

Your Input, Please, on Flatheaded Borers

A collaboration of researchers, led by Dr. Karla Adesso at Tennessee State University, needs your insight into flatheaded borer impacts to production. To that end, they created a survey aimed at estimating the incidence and severity of flatheaded borers in fruit, nut, and ornamental tree and shrub production. Ideally, researchers are hoping to pinpoint gaps […]