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A recent state budget fix and a federal rule reform to H-2A have resulted in some relief for farmers who use the guest worker program. Farm Bureau advocated for both. 

The H-2A program enables U.S. agricultural employers to hire foreign nationals for temporary or seasonal agricultural work when domestic workers are unavailable.

House Bill 184 was a corrections bill to Ohio’s state budget legislation passed in June 2025.  

“The fix we were able to get was ensuring that H-2A workers were not subject to new driver’s license laws that could have potentially required them to complete over 80 hours of driver’s training every year they come to the U.S. to work,” said Evan Callicoat, Ohio Farm Bureau director of state policy. “As long as they’re able to provide a driver’s license from their country of origin and pass the normal driver’s exam, they can get a driver’s license in Ohio.”

Callicoat noted that if an H-2A guest worker fails the test, he or she would be subject to the same requirements as everyone else in Ohio who fails a driving test.

At the federal level, farmers have long called for reform to the H-2A program, particularly the wage setting methods and nonwage costs of the program. The U.S. Department of Labor’s interim final rule (IFR) for H-2A guest worker Adverse Effect Wage Rates last fall made significant changes to the wage calculation for farm laborers nationwide.

Eagerly awaited by H-2A employers, the IFR went into effect as soon as it was posted to the Federal Register on Oct. 2, 2025.

The change “reduces overall labor costs for those who utilize this program,” said Brad Bales, Ohio Farm Bureau senior director of state and national policy.

H-2A employers will now pay wages based on tiers of job experience requirements and receive adjustments to offset the nonwage costs, such as housing, transportation and visa fees, of the H-2A program, lowering farmers’ employment costs for nearly all H-2A workers.

According to American Farm Bureau’s Market Intel, the H-2A guest worker program continues to grow with 398,258 positions certified in fiscal year 2025 across the country.

The primary requirement of any H-2A certification reaffirms that no domestic workers desire the position. Only 182 positions out of over 415,000 advertised (less than 0.04%) received a domestic applicant in fiscal year 2025.

Low unemployment, falling labor participation rates and general uninterest in agricultural work all continue to strain domestic labor shortages. 

Ohio Farm Bureau partners with Great Lakes Agricultural Labor Services to offer members with a full-service agent to help guide members through the H-2A process. Visit ofbf.org for more information.