University Leaders Eye H-1B Visas

By The News Service of Florida

State university leaders in January will tackle Gov. Ron DeSantis’ directive to end the use of H-1B visas that allow foreigners to be hired faculty, the university system’s Chancellor Ray Rodrigues said Thursday. Rodrigues told the Board of Governors that conversations are already underway with university presidents.

“We’ve heard the call to address it and we will continue to work with our universities and staff to answer the call,” Rodrigues told the board during a meeting at the University of South Florida.

DeSantis brought up the issue during an appearance at the school on Oct. 29. DeSantis’ proposal follows a restriction on H-1B visas issued by President Donald Trump’s administration that would require foreign-born individuals to pay a $100,000 fee for the visa. The cost is expected to be carried by the hiring institution. DeSantis has equated many H-1B employees as “cheap labor” intended to save costs.

“When you see in the news all these people being laid off by Amazon, UPS, all these companies, we need to make sure our citizens here in Florida are first in line for job opportunities,” the governor said last week. “We can do it with our residents in Florida or with Americans, and if we can’t do it, then, man, we need to really look deeply about what is going on with this situation,” he added.

The Florida Board of Governors are slated to meet Jan. 28-29 at Florida State University.