In light of the current discussions at the White House and in Congress regarding reforming the nation's immigration laws, leadership from the Agriculture Coalition for  Immigration Reform (ACIR) and United Farm Workers (UFW) will meet in Washington Tuesday to discuss the prospects of Congress moving immigration legislation this year. The group was also joined by staff from the White House and key congressional leaders during the day-long summit.

"It is clear that there is positive momentum around immigration reform on the heels of the president's commitment to seeking a solution to a broken immigration system, the announcement of bi-partisan legislative framework in the Senate, and the hundreds of thousands of immigration reform advocates who marched on D.C. this past weekend," said Robert Guenther, senior vice president of public policy for United Fresh and a executive committee member of ACIR.  "We know have to develop an appropriate political and policy strategy that can guide a path to realizing legal and stable workforce for the fresh produce industry."

United Fresh strongly supports the Agricultural Job Opportunities, Benefits and Security Act, or AgJOBS, which has been introduce by Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D-CA) and Rep. Howard Berman (D-CA). Both bills have bipartisan support and represent a major agreement between farmworker advocates (led by UFW) and major agricultural employers (members of ACIR) to address the agricultural immigration crisis.

For more information, contact Robert Guenther at 202-303-3400 ext. 409.