Maine Argues State H-2A Law Is Narrow, Fits With Federal Statute

A Maine law restricting the employment of foreign workers in the logging industry narrowly addresses local labor eligibility and can exist alongside the federal Immigration and Nationality Act, an attorney for the state told the First Circuit.

During oral arguments Wednesday, Jason David Anton, Maine’s assistant attorney general, argued that the state law doesn’t conflict with the federal Immigration and Nationality Act because there’s no revocation of the foreign workers’ visas for workers already offered employment. The law is also consistent with federal law because it addresses local labor concerns within the context of the H-2A agricultural guestworker program, Anton ...