Senate Bill 495
117th Congress(2021-2022)
Prioritizing Help to Businesses Act
Introduced
Introduced in Senate on Mar 1, 2021
Origin Chamber
Senate
Type
Bill
Bill
The primary form of legislative measure used to propose law. Depending on the chamber of origin, bills begin with a designation of either H.R. or S. Joint resolution is another form of legislative measure used to propose law.
Bill Number
495
Congress
117
Policy Area
Immigration
Immigration
Primary focus of measure is administration of immigration and naturalization matters; immigration enforcement procedures; refugees and asylum policies; travel and residence documentation; foreign labor; benefits for immigrants. Measures concerning smuggling and trafficking of persons may fall under Crime and Law Enforcement policy area. Measures concerning refugees may fall under International Affairs policy area.
No Senate votes have been held for this bill.
Summary
Prioritizing Help to Businesses Act
This bill authorizes additional H-2B visas for temporary nonagricultural workers in states with relatively low unemployment. Currently, such visas are capped nationally at 66,000 a year.
For positions in states that had a seasonally adjusted unemployment rate of 3.5% or lower in at least three of the six most recent Bureau of Labor Statistics monthly reports issued in the previous fiscal half year, a certain number of H-2B visas may be issued that do not count against the 66,000 per year cap. For such exempted H-2B visas, a state may receive each year no more than 125% of the number of visas for aliens working in the state in the last completed fiscal year or 2,500, whichever is less.
March 1, 2021
03/01/2021
Read twice and referred to the Committee on the Judiciary. (text: CR S956)
03/01/2021
Introduced in Senate
Public Record
Record Updated
Jan 11, 2023 1:47:52 PM