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NEW APPROPRIATIONS LAW PROVIDES POSITIVE CHANGES FOR J-1, H-2B VISAS
On March 23, President Trump signed the 2018 but the provisions were not as beneficial as ski areas
Consolidated Appropriations Act, which will fund the would have liked. The act provides the Secretary of D-Line:
federal government through the end of September. the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) authority
The law includes key provisions positively impacting to raise the number of H-2B visas up to nearly 130,000, Welcome to first class
J-1 and H-2B visas—used extensively by ski areas— from the 66,000 allowed under current law. But the DHS
and both programs are subject to serious scrutiny by Secretary has full discretion whether to increase the
immigration hardliners in the Trump administration. number of H-2B visas or not; the law does not require Top design, perfect function, maximum ride comfort. The D-Line
Normally, such appropriations legislation would that the number of H-2B visas be increased. means innovation that is lived day in, day out. The next ropeway generation
not include “legislative” changes that do not directly Unfortunately, the returning worker exemption from Doppelmayr impresses all along the line.
relate to funding federal agencies. However, because (from the 66,000 cap on total H-2B visas, which had
Congress is so politically divided, these bills are been in place under a 2016 rule) was not included in
increasingly the only vehicles for making key legisla- this bill. As a result, if the DHS secretary does not
tive changes that otherwise would not receive major- exercise her authority to raise the visa cap, busi-
ity support. Now, lots of legislative enactments are nesses will be fighting for a tightly limited num-
snuck into appropriations bills instead of through the ber of H-2B visas. Because Congress effectively
traditional individual pieces of legislation. punted this authority on the number of H-2B visas
Fortunately, the J-1 visa program was a key ben- to DHS, now the lobbying effort shifts to persuading
eficiary of this dysfunctional process. As you may the DHS Secretary to raise the cap, instead of lobby-
recall (see “Trump Administration Threatens Future ing Congress. A similar provision was included in the
of J-1 Visa Program,” NSAA Journal, early winter 2017 appropriations law, but it took DHS nearly three
2017), NSAA lead an effort to incorporate a provision months to raise the cap, and even then, then-DHS
into the Senate’s appropriations budget for the State Secretary John Kelly only raised it by 15,000 instead
Department that would limit President Trump’s ability of by more than 60,000 as the business commu-
to make significant changes to the J-1 visa program. nity wanted.
Thanks to lead support from Alaska Senator Lisa But the new Appropriations law does include a pro-
Murkowski, the Senate Appropriations Committee vision that allows H-2B visa employers to use private
voted unanimously (31-0) to include a provision which industry wage surveys for purposes of setting prevailing
would require President Trump to first consult with wages for positions filled by H-2B visa immigrants. This
Congress and seek public comment before making is a key victory, because without private industry sur-
any changes to the J-1 visa program. This language veys, such as NSAA’s Annual Wage & Salary Survey, the
is critical, because prior to the passage of this new Labor Department would set artificially high wage rates
law, there appeared to be legal authority for Trump to that would not reflect the local wages for positions held
unilaterally eliminate or dramatically cut the J-1 visa by H-2B workers.
program through the use of an executive order. All in all, the ski industry and other seasonal and
To be sure, this does not mean that the White rural businesses significantly benefitted from these leg-
House cannot at least propose dramatic changes islative provisions in the Consolidated Appropriations
to the J-1 program. However, the Trump administra- Act, but it underscores a critical point about the con-
tion must first navigate the lengthy process of pub- stant ping-pong game of enacting laws through tem-
lic comment and Congress, buying key time to thwart porary appropriations bills. Our ski areas must remain
any changes that would undermine the J-1 visa pro- especially vigilant and vocal, and exert constant pres-
gram, which is politically popular in Congress as well sure on their local senators and representatives.
as within the business community, especially with Without pressure from the business community, even
seasonal and rural employers. seemingly small but critical changes like these involv-
Likewise, the H-2B visa program—which many ing J-1 and H-2B visas would not make it into law, even
larger ski areas use—also benefitted by key provi- under the current convoluted and irrational appropria-
sions in the same Consolidated Appropriations Act, tions process. –Dave Byrd
20 | NSAA JOURNAL | CONVENTION 2018
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