National Journal
July 18, 2012
Sens. Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa, and Dick Durbin, D-Ill., are among the harshest critics of the H-1B program, yet companies in their jurisdictions are among the highest requestors of H-1B workers in the United States, according to a new Brookings study released on Wednesday. The H-1B visa program is the largest, and one of the most contentious, temporary-worker programs for admitting high-skilled foreigners.
The states represented by these two senators contain 10 of the 106 high-demand metropolitan areas. Illinois and Iowa are ranked fifth and 26th among states for the number of requests for H-1B visas per 1,000 workers in 2010-11. Their metro areas are also ranked in the top four in the nation for having the highest demand for science, technology, engineering, and mathematics H-1B workers.
