Peri & Sons Farms, Inc. v. Acosta

374 F. Supp. 3d 63
CourtCourt of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit
DecidedMarch 18, 2019
DocketCivil Action No. 19-34 (TJK)
StatusPublished
Cited by3 cases

This text of 374 F. Supp. 3d 63 (Peri & Sons Farms, Inc. v. Acosta) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Peri & Sons Farms, Inc. v. Acosta, 374 F. Supp. 3d 63 (D.C. Cir. 2019).

Opinion

TIMOTHY J. KELLY, United States District Judge

This case is about the H-2A temporary agricultural labor program, which permits agricultural employers that face a shortage of domestic workers to meet their labor needs by hiring foreign workers on a temporary or seasonal basis ("H-2A workers"). To ensure that the employment of temporary foreign workers under this program does not adversely affect the wages of similarly employed domestic workers, the Department of Labor (the "Department") must publish an annual notice setting forth the next year's Adverse Effect Wage Rates (AEWRs). AEWRs set a wage floor that employers participating in the H-2A program must pay to all agricultural workers.

Peri & Sons Farms, Inc., and the National Council of Agricultural Employers (NCAE) (collectively, "Plaintiffs") have sued the Secretary of Labor and two Department *67officials ("Defendants"), alleging that the Department violated the Administrative Procedure Act (APA) in two ways. First, Plaintiffs contend that the Department lacked statutory authority to promulgate AEWRs without first making a finding on whether the employment of H-2A workers adversely effected the wages of domestic agricultural workers. Second, Plaintiffs allege that the Department acted arbitrarily and capriciously when it disregarded certain factors, such as differences in workers' geographic area, occupation, skills, and experience, in assessing any such adverse effect.

Before the Court is Plaintiffs' motion for a preliminary injunction. The parties have agreed to consolidate that motion with the merits, and to allow the Court to rule on the merits based on the current briefing and record. Defendants argue in their opposition that the Court does not have subject-matter jurisdiction over Plaintiffs' claims. As explained in more detail below, the Court agrees. Plaintiffs' claims present challenges to the 2010 regulation that established the methodology for determining AEWRs. Thus, because they fall outside the statute of limitations set forth in 5 U.S.C. § 2401(a), and because Plaintiffs have not shown that a narrow exception to that statute applies, the Court must dismiss the case for lack of subject-matter jurisdiction.1

I. Background

A. Statutory and Regulatory Background

The H-2A visa program was created by the Immigration and Nationality Act of 1952 (INA) and amended by the Immigration Reform and Control Act of 1986. 8 U.S.C. § 1101 et seq. Under the program, employers seeking to hire H-2A workers must first receive certification from the Department that (1) there are insufficient domestic workers available to perform the needed labor or services and (2) the employment of the H-2A workers "will not adversely affect the wages and working conditions of workers in the United States similarly employed." 8 U.S.C. § 1188(a)(1). To meet the second requirement, the Department sets annual AEWRs-wage floors for workers employed by an H-2A participating employer. 20 C.F.R. § 655.120. The stated purpose of the AEWR is "to neutralize any 'adverse effect' resultant from the influx of temporary foreign workers." See Labor Certification Process for the Temporary Employment of Aliens in Agriculture and Logging in the United States, 52 Fed. Reg. 20496-01, 20502 (June 1, 1987) (quoting Williams v. Usery , 531 F.2d 305, 306 (5th Cir. 1976) ).

The Department last updated the methodology by which it calculates AEWRs *68through notice-and-comment rulemaking in February 2010. See Temporary Agricultural Employment of H-2A Aliens in the United States; Final Rule, 75 Fed. Reg. 6884 (Feb. 12, 2010) ("2010 Rule"). Under the 2010 Rule, the Department determined that AEWRs are to be set at the "annual weighted average hourly wage for field and livestock workers," depending on the relevant state or region, based on the Department of Agriculture's "quarterly wage survey" ("USDA Average Wage"). 29 C.F.R. § 655.103(b). In accordance with § 655.120(c), the Department publishes annual notices in the Federal Register setting forth the upcoming year's AEWRs for each state. The Department published the AEWRs for 2019 through a notice in the Federal Register on December 26, 2018 ("2019 AEWR Notice"). See 83 Fed. Reg. 66306-01 (Dec. 26, 2018). On January 9, 2019, it went into effect. Id.

B. The Parties

Peri & Sons is a farming operation with about 15,000 acres in and around Yerington, Nevada, where it grows onions and leafy greens. Compl., Ex. 4 ¶ 3. Peri & Sons participates in the H-2A program to meet its need for agricultural laborers. Id. , Ex 4 ¶ 5. During its growing season in 2018, Peri & Sons employed 1,768 H-2A workers. Id. , Ex. 4 ¶ 6. When Peri & Sons filed its complaint, it employed 240 H-2A workers. Id. , Ex. 4 ¶ 7. As an H-2A participating employer, Peri & Sons is subject to the 2019 AEWR Notice, which set the 2019 AEWR for Nevada at $ 13.13 per hour. Id. , Ex. 4 ¶ 13. This rate for Nevada represented a 23% increase above the 2018 AEWR of $ 10.69 per hour. Id. , Ex. 4 ¶¶ 10, 13.

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374 F. Supp. 3d 63, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/peri-sons-farms-inc-v-acosta-cadc-2019.