March 19, 2025
www.gfb.org
Vol. 7 No. 6
LABOR, TARIFFS KEY ISSUES DISCUSSED IN GFB TRIP TO WASHINGTON, D.C. Georgia Farm Bureau members visited Washington, D.C, March 11-13, meeting with the Georgia congressional delegation and sharing concerns about agricultural labor, the farm bill, and disaster and economic assistance. GFB members went to the offices of eight of Georgia’s 14 districts and both senators. The group also heard presentations from the European Union Delegation to the U.S. The GFB group emphasized the onerous farm labor costs under the U.S. Department of Labor’s Adverse Effective Wage Rate (AEWR). For 2025, the AEWR for Georgia is $16.08. Fred Wetherington of Lowndes County noted that administrative and logistical expenses pushed the actual cost of foreign laborers up by more than $3 per hour. “It's way out of control and it makes no sense,” said Wetherington, who volunteers as the Lowndes County Farm Bureau legislative director. He came away encouraged that congressional staff acknowledged the problems that come with using the H-2A agricultural labor visa program. “I feel like both sides of the aisle, folks I've talked to on this trip, it seems like compared just a few years ago that there's a lot of recognition that the program is broken,” Wetherington said. On March 11, GFB members received briefings from American Farm Bureau Federation staff on international trade, labor and the national political landscape. AFBF Senior Director for Government Affairs Dave Salmonsen walked GFB members through a timeline of tariff-related actions dating back to Feb. 10. Here is the timeline Salmonsen presented: Feb. 10 - The U.S. announced a 25% tariff on all steel and aluminum imports. Feb. 13 - The “fair and reciprocal plan” for tariffs was ordered by President Donald Trump, who tasked the office of the U.S. Trade Representative and the Commerce Department to develop the plan, which they are required to submit by April 2. March 4 - The U.S. placed tariffs on Canada, Mexico and China. Canada implemented a 25% tariff on approximately $21 billion worth of U.S. products. AFBF has noted that this includes $5.8 billion worth of Canada-bound U.S. ag products. March 6 - The tariffs on Canada and Mexico were delayed until April 2. March 7 – The U.S. announced potential tariffs on Canadian lumber and dairy products. -continued on next page