A coalition of 13 Republican state attorneys general is backing a proposed federal rule that would significantly increase the minimum wages employers must pay foreign workers under the H-1B visa program, arguing that the change would help curb what they describe as widespread abuse of the system at the expense of American workers.
The coalition, led by Idaho Attorney General Raúl Labrador, submitted formal comments to the U.S. Department of Labor supporting its proposed rule, “Improving Wage Protections for the Temporary and Permanent Employment of Certain Foreign Nationals in the United States.”
According to the attorneys general, raising prevailing wage requirements is the most effective administrative action available to reduce employers’ incentives to hire lower-cost foreign labor instead of qualified American workers.
“The H-1B visa program was originally intended to bring in foreign workers only when Americans aren’t available. Instead, corporations have exploited it to replace American workers with cheaper foreign labor,” Labrador said.
“I’m urging the Department of Labor to raise the wage floors that make this abuse profitable. When the financial incentive disappears, so does the scheme,” he added.
The H-1B program was created to allow U.S. employers to hire highly skilled foreign professionals for specialty occupations when domestic talent is unavailable. However, the coalition argues that the program has drifted far from that purpose and has increasingly become a tool for labor cost reduction.
In their filing, the attorneys general pointed to a number of major corporations that have conducted large-scale layoffs while continuing to file thousands of H-1B petitions. Companies including Amazon, Apple, Google, Meta, Disney, and Deloitte were cited as examples of employers that have reduced portions of their American workforce while continuing to seek foreign workers through the visa program.
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The coalition highlighted one of the most widely discussed examples of alleged H-1B abuse involving Southern California Edison. In 2015, the utility company drew national attention after replacing hundreds of information technology workers with employees supplied through outsourcing firms that relied heavily on H-1B visa holders.
According to the attorneys general, studies found Southern California Edison reduced labor costs by as much as 40 percent through the transition. Many of the displaced employees were reportedly required to train the workers who would eventually replace them before losing their jobs.
The coalition argues that such cases demonstrate how existing wage requirements fail to protect American workers from displacement. By increasing prevailing wage levels, they say, employers would be less likely to use the program primarily as a cost-saving measure.
The attorneys general also raised concerns about the use of H-1B visas within higher education. Because universities are exempt from the annual H-1B visa cap, they can hire foreign workers without many of the restrictions that apply to private employers.
The filing cites examples from Purdue University and Indiana University, arguing that institutions often recruit foreign workers for positions that recent American graduates could potentially fill. The coalition said the practice is particularly troubling at a time when many young Americans continue to face challenges entering the workforce after graduation.
The attorneys general further argued that the program may be discouraging some Americans from pursuing careers in technology and other high-demand fields. If employers can consistently access lower-cost foreign labor, they contend, domestic workers may see fewer opportunities and weaker wage growth in those industries.
Beyond economic concerns, the coalition framed the issue as one of national security.
The attorneys general noted that some of the largest users of H-1B visas are technology companies working on advanced software, artificial intelligence systems, cloud computing infrastructure, and other strategically important technologies. According to the filing, approximately one in eight H-1B visas issued in recent years went to Chinese nationals.
Given that China is classified as a foreign adversary under various federal and state laws, the coalition argued that the scale of participation by Chinese nationals in sensitive sectors warrants greater scrutiny.
The filing also points to recent state-level efforts to address perceived vulnerabilities linked to foreign influence. Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton recently launched investigations into dozens of businesses suspected of abusing the H-1B program, while several states have enacted laws restricting certain business relationships involving foreign adversaries.
In addition to policy concerns, the attorneys general argue that the Labor Department’s current wage-setting methodology may not be legally defensible.
READ: New US bill proposes 3-year H-1B visa freeze (April 26, 2026)
According to the coalition, the existing prevailing wage system was developed through agency guidance and informal agreements rather than through the formal notice-and-comment rulemaking process typically required under federal administrative law. The attorneys general contend that federal officials never adequately explained why the current wage calculations accurately reflect compensation levels for specialty occupations.
As a result, they argue the current system may violate the Administrative Procedure Act because it lacks a clear legal and economic justification.
The coalition praised the Labor Department’s proposal as both a policy reform and a corrective legal measure. They argue that higher wage thresholds would help ensure that employers use the H-1B program for genuinely high-skilled positions rather than as a source of lower-cost labor.
The attorneys general acknowledged that broader reforms may ultimately require congressional action. Among the ideas mentioned in the filing are requiring employers to actively recruit American workers before hiring H-1B employees, strengthening enforcement mechanisms, applying stricter oversight to staffing companies, and potentially restructuring the visa program altogether.
Still, they described the proposed wage increase as the most significant change that can be made through executive action alone.
“The Department’s proposed increase in the prevailing wage levels is an important measure and the Department is right to prioritize it,” the coalition wrote in its comments.
The proposal is now under consideration by the Department of Labor as the Trump administration continues to pursue broader immigration and workforce policies centered on prioritizing American workers and reducing reliance on foreign labor programs.