I 
109TH CONGRESS 
1ST SESSION 
H. R. 793
To revise certain requirements for H–2B employers and require submission 
of information regarding H–2B nonimmigrants, and for other purposes. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
FEBRUARY 14, 2005
Mr. GILCHREST (for himself, Mr. DELAHUNT, Mr. BASS, Mr. STUPAK, Mr. 
BRADLEY of New Hampshire, Mr. ALLEN, Mr. SIMMONS, Mr. POMEROY, 
Mr. CANNON, Mr. SERRANO, Mr. JONES of North Carolina, Mr. VAN 
HOLLEN, and Ms. BORDALLO) introduced the following bill; which was 
referred to the Committee on the Judiciary 
A BILL 
To revise certain requirements for H–2B employers and re-
quire submission of information regarding H–2B non-
immigrants, and for other purposes.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 
This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Save Our Small and 
Seasonal Businesses Act’’.
SEC. 2. NUMERICAL LIMITATIONS ON H–2B WORKERS. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—Section 214(g) of the Immigra-
tion and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1184(g)) is amended 
by adding at the end the following: 
‘‘(9) An alien counted toward the numerical limita-
tions of paragraph (1)(B) during any one of the 3 fiscal 
years prior to the submission of a petition for a non-
immigrant 
worker 
described 
in 
section 
101(a)(15)(H)(ii)(b) shall not be counted toward such lim-
itation for the fiscal year in which the petition is ap-
proved.’’. 
(b) EFFECTIVE DATE.—
(1) IN
GENERAL.—The amendment in sub-
section (a) shall take effect as if enacted on October 
1, 2004, and shall expire on October 1, 2006. 
(2) IMPLEMENTATION.—Not later than the date 
of enactment of this Act, the Secretary of Homeland 
Security shall begin accepting and processing peti-
tions filed on behalf of aliens described in section 
101(a)(15)(H)(ii)(b), in a manner consistent with 
this Act and the amendments made by this Act. 
SEC. 3. FRAUD PREVENTION AND DETECTION FEE. 
(a) IMPOSITION OF FEE.—Section 214(c) of the Im-
migration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1184(c)), as 
amended by section 426(a) of division J of the Consoli-
dated Appropriations Act, 2005 (Public Law 108–447), 
is amended by adding at the end the following: 
‘‘(13)(A) In addition to any other fees authorized by 
law, the Secretary of Homeland Security shall impose a 
fraud prevention and detection fee on an employer filing 
a petition under paragraph (1) for nonimmigrant workers 
described in section 101(a)(15)(H)(ii)(b). 
‘‘(B) The amount of the fee imposed under subpara-
graph (A) shall be $150.’’. 
(b) USE OF FEES.—
(1) FRAUD PREVENTION AND DETECTION AC-
COUNT.—Subsection (v) of section 286 of the Immi-
gration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1356), as 
added by section 426(b) of division J of the Consoli-
dated Appropriations Act, 2005 (Public Law 108–
447), is amended—
(A) in paragraphs (1), (2)(A), (2)(B), 
(2)(C), and (2)(D) by striking ‘‘H1–B and L’’ 
each place it appears; 
(B) in paragraph (1), as amended by sub-
paragraph (A), by striking ‘‘section 214(c)(12)’’ 
and inserting ‘‘paragraph (12) or (13) of sec-
tion 214(c)’’; 
(C) in paragraphs (2)(A)(i) and (2)(B), as 
amended by subparagraph (A), by striking
‘‘(H)(i)’’ each place it appears and inserting 
‘‘(H)(i), (H)(ii),’’; and 
(D) in paragraph (2)(D), as amended by 
subparagraph (A), by inserting before the pe-
riod at the end ‘‘or for programs and activities 
to prevent and detect fraud with respect to peti-
tions under paragraph (1) or (2)(A) of section 
214(c) to grant an alien nonimmigrant status 
described in section 101(a)(15)(H)(ii)’’. 
(2) CONFORMING AMENDMENT.—The heading 
of such subsection 286 is amended by striking ‘‘H1–
B AND L’’. 
(c) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendments made by 
subsections (a) and (b) shall take effect on October 1, 
2005. 
SEC. 4. SANCTIONS. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—Section 214(c) of the Immigration 
and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1184(c)), as amended by 
section 3, is further amended by adding at the end the 
following: 
‘‘(14)(A) If the Secretary of Homeland Security 
finds, after notice and an opportunity for a hearing, a sub-
stantial failure to meet any of the conditions of the peti-
tion to admit or otherwise provide status to a non-
immigrant worker under section 101(a)(15)(H)(ii)(b) or
a willful misrepresentation of a material fact in such peti-
tion—
‘‘(i) the Secretary of Homeland Security may, 
in addition to any other remedy authorized by law, 
impose such administrative remedies (including civil 
monetary penalties in an amount not to exceed 
$10,000 per violation) as the Secretary of Homeland 
Security determines to be appropriate; and 
‘‘(ii) the Secretary of Homeland Security may 
deny petitions filed with respect to that employer 
under section 204 or paragraph (1) of this sub-
section during a period of at least 1 year but not 
more than 5 years for aliens to be employed by the 
employer. 
‘‘(B) The Secretary of Homeland Security may dele-
gate to the Secretary of Labor, with the agreement of the 
Secretary of Labor, any of the authority given to the Sec-
retary of Homeland Security under subparagraph (A)(i). 
‘‘(C) In determining the level of penalties to be as-
sessed under subparagraph (A), the highest penalties shall 
be reserved for willful failures to meet any of the condi-
tions of the petition that involve harm to United States 
workers. 
‘‘(D) In this paragraph, the term ‘substantial failure’ 
means the willful failure to comply with the requirements
of this section that constitutes a significant deviation from 
the terms and conditions of a petition.’’. 
(b) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendment made by 
subsection (a) shall take effect on October 1, 2005. 
SEC. 5. ALLOCATION OF H–2B VISAS DURING A FISCAL 
YEAR. 
Section 214(g) of the Immigration and Nationality 
Act (8 U.S.C. 1184(g)), as amended by section 2, is fur-
ther amended by adding at the end the following new para-
graph: 
‘‘(10) The numerical limitations of paragraph (1)(B) 
shall be allocated for a fiscal year so that the total number 
of aliens who enter the United States pursuant to a visa 
or other provision of nonimmigrant status under section 
101(a)(15)(H)(ii)(b) during the first 6 months of such fis-
cal year is not more than 33,000.’’. 
SEC. 6. SUBMISSION TO CONGRESS OF INFORMATION RE-
GARDING H–2B NONIMMIGRANTS. 
Section 416 of the American Competitiveness and 
Workforce Improvement Act of 1998 (title IV of division 
C of Public Law 105–277; 8 U.S.C. 1184 note) is amend-
ed—
(1) by striking ‘‘Attorney General’’ each place 
that term appears and inserting ‘‘Secretary of 
Homeland Security’’; and
(2) by adding at the end the following new sub-
section: 
‘‘(d) PROVISION OF INFORMATION.—
‘‘(1) QUARTERLY
NOTIFICATION.—Beginning 
not later than March 1, 2006, the Secretary of 
Homeland Security shall notify, on a quarterly basis, 
the Committee on the Judiciary of the Senate and 
the Committee on the Judiciary of House of Rep-
resentatives of the number of aliens who during the 
preceding 1-year period—
‘‘(A) were issued visas or otherwise pro-
vided 
nonimmigrant 
status 
under 
section 
101(a)(15)(H)(ii)(b) of the Immigration and 
Nationality 
Act 
(8 
U.S.C. 
1101(a)(15)(H)(ii)(b)); or 
‘‘(B) had such a visa or such status expire 
or be revoked or otherwise terminated. 
‘‘(2) ANNUAL SUBMISSION.—Beginning in fiscal 
year 2007, the Secretary of Homeland Security shall 
submit, on an annual basis, to the Committees on 
the Judiciary of the House of Representatives and 
the Senate—
‘‘(A) information on the countries of origin 
of, occupations of, and compensation paid to 
aliens who were issued visas or otherwise pro-