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By ESEC at 3:50 pm, Feb 24, 2020

asilington, /IT 20515

VIA ELECTRONIC TRANSMISSION
February 21, 2020
The Honorable Chad F. Wolf
Acting Secretary
United States Department of Homeland Security
3801 Nebraska Avenue, NW
Washington, DC 20528
Dear Acting Secretary Wolf:
We write today on behalf of North Carolina employers to request that the Administration
expeditiously release all 64,716 H-2B visas which it is authorized to release for the upcoming
season. As you know, the Fiscal Year 2020 Department of Homeland Security Appropriations
provides the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) with the authority to lift the existing H2B visa cap. DHS has exercised its authority to release additional visas during the past three
years, including 30,000 additional visas in Fiscal Year 2019.
Since 2010, North Carolina's population has grown 8.5%, and between 2017 and 2018, North
Carolina's population grew 1.1%, adding around 113,000 people. Unemployment currently
stands at 3.8%. North Carolina is in the top-10 states for H-2B workers with 5,074 positions
being certified for FY 2019. This is a nearly 47% increase in certifications for North Carolina
businesses compared to only 5 years ago in FY 2014.
By providing relief to employers through the H-2B visa program, the Administration has the
opportunity to create jobs for more North Carolinians and Americans. Each H-2B worker
supports approximately 4.6 U.S. workers. This means that, in FY 2019, the 5,074 H-2B workers
certified for North Carolina could have supported 23,340 North Carolina workers.
At the end of the filing deadline for Foreign Labor Application Gateway System, the Office of
Foreign Labor Certification received 5,677 H-2B applications that requested 99,362 workers. In
January 2017, shortly before President Trump took office, the Department of Labor received
2,993 H-2B applications requesting 53,220 workers. This represents a 46% increase in demand.
With the unemployment rate at a 50-year low, and in the midst of the longest economic
expansion in U.S. history, these employers are struggling to find seasonal workers in this
booming economy.
Without supplemental cap relief, two thirds of these businesses will not receive critically needed
seasonal workers. By releasing all 64,716 H-2B visas available, this Administration can ensure
that the needs of North Carolina's economy are met, and vacant jobs are filled.

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Riasilington, EC 28515

Your swift release of these additional visas will provide the certainty and the security these
businesses need to continue the work of strengthening our economy.
Thank you for your acute attention to this critical concern. If you have any questions, please do
not hesitate to contact us.
Sincerely,

Senator Thom Tillis

Senator Richard Burr

Congressman Dan Bishop

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Congressman Greg Murphy, M.D.

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Congressman David Rouzer

Congressman Ted Budd

C gressman Patrick McHenry

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