Zach Wendling
LINCOLN — Nebraska lawmakers moved one step closer Tuesday to clarifying that seed corn producers in Nebraska should hire local youths for detasseling before using temporary, nonimmigrant workers.
Legislative Bill 844, introduced by State Sen. Steve Erdman of Bayard, would clarify in the Farm Labor Standards Act that seed corn producers are required to solicit bids from contractors who seasonally employ largely younger workers who are recruited locally before H-2A workers.
Erdman said this would protect young people who want to detassel but cannot find work.
“This is an opportunity for us to protect the local workforce,” he said during floor debate.
Federal law stipulates that H-2A workers, or temporary, nonimmigrant workers allowed to perform seasonal agricultural labor, may be hired when “there are not sufficient workers who are able, willing and qualified.”
Erdman said LB 844 is “very simple, straightforward” and would help workforce development, while requiring the state to follow federal law.
Under the bill, the Nebraska Department of Agriculture website would post a directory listing information for exempt detasseling and roguing contractors. The department would annually distribute a list of such contractors to seed corn producers by Jan. 15 each year, beginning in 2026.
State Sen. Steve Halloran of Hastings, chair of the Agriculture Committee, which advanced Erdman’s bill 7-0, said it has been particularly exciting to see the enthusiasm of the youths who testified in favor of LB 844. He said they want to continue to work hard and have similar opportunities in the future.
“I think it’s an opportunity for the young people in Nebraska to understand that we’ve taken their concerns to heart and we’ll make it available to them to work hard,” Erdman said of his bill.
LB 844 advanced to second-round debate 36-0.