27-Feb-09 7:00 AM CST

More Than 150 Rally Capitol Hill for H-2B Fix

A few more representatives signed on as co-sponsors of bills in the House and Senate after the fly-in.

More than 150 H-2B guest-worker program users representing more than 20 states attended a Save Our Small Business fly-in on Capitol Hill Feb. 25. The attendees were from a cross section of industries including hospitality, seafood, landscaping, pool and masonry.

Led by the organization Save Small Business, employers urged their representatives in Congress to pass an extension to the returning-worker exemption which would mean returning guest workers wouldn't count against the annual H-2B cap of 66,000.

Since the meeting, Senate co-sponsors of Senate Bill 388 now total of 29 (including chief Sponsor Sen. Barbara Mikulski)Save Small Business reports. The newest Senate Co-Sponsor is Sen. Charles Schumer (N.Y.)

As for the House of Representatives' HR 1136 : The co-sponsor list has a total of 54 names (including chief Sponsor Rep. Stupak).

Newest House Co-Sponsors:

·         Rep. Elijah Cummings (MD-7)
·         Rep. Joe Gerlach (PA-7)
·         Rep. Pete Hoekstra (MI-2)
·         Rep. Eddie Bernice Johnson (TX-30)
·         Rep. Donald Manzullo (IL-16)
·         Rep. John Murtha (PA-12)
·         Rep. Jared Polis (CO-2)

The organization encourages H-2B users to call, e-mail and/or send faxes to the Members of Congress, Senators and staff that they met with and thank them for their support.

The general number for Members of Congress and Senators is 202-225-3121. You can find the fax numbers for your elected officials (and the addresses of their local offices in your State where you can visit with them) at www.House.gov or www.Senate.gov. Each elected official has a Web site that can be accessed through these larger sites.