The Farm Credit Associations of New York said dairy, fruit and vegetable production in the state suffered due to raids seeking illegal workers. It was the first estimate of losses since Congress deadlocked on immigration reform this year.
'In some cases, farmers have been unable to harvest or market crops as a result of these disruptions,' the lenders said in a statement supporting immigration-law reform.
'If this continues, we conservatively estimate that New York state will lose in excess of 900 farms, $195 million in value of agricultural production and over 200,000 acres in production in agriculture over the next 24 months.'
Dairy and other farms would account for the largest losses, 522 farms and $144 million in output, they said. Once out of production, the lenders said, the 200,000 acres of land was not likely to return to farm use.
Three farmer-owned cooperatives comprise the Farm Credit Association of New York. Together, they have 8,500 members and more than $1 billion in loans.
'When Congress returns from its recess, it is critical ... that comprehensive immigration reform with appropriate farm worker provisions be adopted,' the lenders said. They called for 'reasonable and effective' farm worker programs.
The U.S. Senate approved comprehensive immigration legislation that would have created a guest worker program backed by President George W. Bush. It also would have given some of the estimate 12 million illegal immigrants a chance to become U.S. citizens.
The House of Representatives enacted legislation focusing only on border control and enforcement.
The two sides were unable to compromise on a single bill and it appears unlikely final legislation will emerge from a session planned after the November 7 congressional elections.
Up to 70 percent of U.S. farm workers, or some 500,000 people, are undocumented, by most estimates.
John Young, co-chair of the Agriculture Coalition for Immigration Reform, said reform was needed so the sector could 'obtain a legal, stable and reliable labor force.'
A study this year by the American Farm Bureau federation estimated U.S. agriculture could lose up to $9 billion a year if there were no guest worker program.
ACIR supports a plan that would allow workers to qualify for temporary status to be in the United States by showing a significant amount of work in agriculture in the previous 2 years. They could move to permanent status after an additional 3 to 5 years of farm work.
Under the so-called AgJobs plan, workers also would have to pay a fine to qualify for legal status and pay taxes during the transition to legal status.
Bush told reporters on Wednesday 'a temporary worker plan, to me, makes sense.'
(c) Reuters 2006. All rights reserved. Republication or redistribution of Reuters content, including by caching, framing or similar means, is expressly prohibited without the prior written consent of Reuters. Reuters and the Reuters sphere logo are registered trademarks and trademarks of the Reuters group of companies around the world.
Join M&C's relaunched forums for extended discussion...its free!
Please fill out our anonymous survey, it helps us improve the site and get to know more about our readers.
© 2003 - 2006 by Monsters and Critics.com, WotR Ltd. All Rights Reserved. All photos are copyright their respective owners and are used under license or with permission. * Note M&C cannot be held responsible for the content on other Web Sites.
Arts - Books - DVD - Forums - Home - Movies - Music - People & Celebrity - Science - Soundtracks - Sport - Tech - TV - World News
About Us - The Team - Advertise - Contact - Join the Team - Privacy - RSS Feeds - Site Map - Terms & Conditions - Webmasters
Servers supplied by Servint
