Contact: Karen Gefvert, 608.828.5713

MADISON – The Wisconsin Farm Bureau Federation supports the New American Economy’s (NAE) National Day of Action and immigration reform campaign.

The campaign kicks off today with the launch of the Map of Impact that includes updated immigration statistics by state and congressional district and is available at newamericaneconomy.org/locations. This campaign highlights the power of immigrants in communities across the country and shows the need for immigration reform.

Immigrants play a crucial role in the U.S. agriculture industry providing labor for various types of farms. A 2015 study by the Partnership for a New American Economy found that more than 50 percent of laborers on U.S. dairy farms were immigrants.

“Our current immigration system is broken. We are relying on outdated laws that do not address the challenges we face, especially in the agriculture community,” said Wisconsin Farm Bureau President Jim Holte. “Farm Bureau continues to advocate for an agriculture long-term guest worker visa program.”

Immigrants also play a vital role in Wisconsin’s economic success as taxpayers and consumers. More than 274,000 immigrants call Wisconsin home.

The newly-released Wisconsin immigration statistics can be found here: newamericaneconomy.org/locations/wisconsin. You can participate in the campaign by sharing your #ReasonforReform on social media and by contacting your congressional office.

Wisconsin Farm Bureau is the state’s largest general farm organization representing farms of all sizes, commodities and management styles.

New American Economy (NAE) brings together more than 500 leaders who support immigration reforms that will help create jobs for Americans today. NAE members include mayors of more than 35 million people nationwide and business leaders of companies that generate more than $1.5 trillion and employ more than 4 million people across all sectors of the economy, from Agriculture to Aerospace, Hospitality to High Tech and Media to Manufacturing. Learn more at www.NewAmericanEconomy.org.

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