About 150 people rallied at the Iowa State Capitol on Saturday to protest a bill that would stop Iowa universities and community colleges from hiring people on H-1B visas if they come from one of seven countries. HF 2513’s prohibition applies to any H-1B visa holder “who is also a citizen of a nation designated as a foreign adversary by regulation of the United States secretary of commerce or designated as a state sponsor of terrorism by the United States secretary of state,” according to the bill’s text. But the bill is really aimed at H-1B visa holders from one country: China.
When HF 2513 was first introduced as HSB 536 in January it didn’t mention the foreign adversary or state sponsor of terrorism designation. Instead, it just prohibited Iowa’s state universities from hiring any H-1B visa holder “who is also a citizen of the People’s Republic of China.”
H-1B visas are highly competitive visas that allow a citizen of another country who can fill a job the federal government considers a “speciality occupation” to work in the United States for up to three years. Federal law defines speciality occupations as those that require “theoretical and practical application of a body of highly specialized knowledge.” In addition to being able to fill such a job, an applicant for an H-1B visa must have at least a bachelor’s degree or the equivalent.
The visa may be extended for an additional three years, and while working on an H-1B visa, a person can begin the process of applying for permanent resident status if they choose to do so.
During the subcommittee hearing on HSB 536, concerns were raised that because the bill just banned the hiring of H-1B visa holders from China, it might violate federal laws prohibiting discrimination on the basis of national origin. During the House Higher Education Committee hearing on the bill, it was amended to remove the reference from China and substitute the language on federally designated foreign adversary nations and state sponsors of terrorism.
The bill’s language changed, but its focus did not. Seven countries are designated either foreign adversaries or sponsors of terrorism: China, Cuba, Russia, Iran, North Korea, Syria and Venezuela. The Iowa Board of Regents reports that the state’s three public universities currently employ 117 H-1B visa holders. According to the regents, 104 of the 117 employees are from China, nine are from Iran, three are from Russia and one from Venezuela.
The amended bill was passed by the Higher Education Committee on a party-line vote, and was renumbered HF 2513. On March 3, it was approved by the House, 68-27.
“This bill enhances national security and protects sensitive research at Iowa’s public universities by preventing potential risks from espionage or intellectual property theft associated with hires from adversarial nations such as China, aligning with broader U.S. concerns over foreign influence in academia while prioritizing American or allied talent,” Rep. Skyler Wheeler, a Republican from Hull and the bill’s sponsor, said during the House floor debate on HF 2513.
Democratic Rep. Timi Brown-Powers from Waterloo argued lawmakers were “chasing a problem that doesn’t exist.” She pointed to President Trump’s assertion last year about the H-1B visa program being abused, but said, “I have not seen any abuse in the state of Iowa, nor have I heard today of any instances that have happened in the state of Iowa for us to be concerned about.”
After passing the House, HF 2513 advanced to the Senate. Four days later, it was approved by a Senate subcommittee and two days after that it was passed by the Senate Workforce Committee on a party-line vote.
The bill is now eligible for a final vote in the Senate. If approved, it goes to Gov. Reynolds to be signed into law.
Signs bore phrases like “Education not discrimination,” “Fear is not a policy” and “We can be another Alyssa Liu” at Saturday’s rally against HF 2513, the latter referring to the U.S. figure skating gold medalist whose father is a Chinese dissident. Many of the people protesting had personal experience as H-1B visa holders.
“If this bill had been in place years ago, I would not have been able to come to Iowa and serve as an educator,” Zengyi Shao, a professor at Iowa State University, told the people gathered outside the Iowa Capitol.
Shao, who is a naturalized citizen, told the crowd about getting an H-1B visa that permitted her to work in the U.S. after she completed her Ph.D. in Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign in 2009. Shao has taught at ISU since 2013, and is now a Hershel B. Whitney Professor in the Department of Chemical and Biological Engineering. She also works with the National Science Foundation Center for Biorenewable Chemicals and the U.S. Department of Energy Center for Advanced Bioenergy and Bioproducts Innovation.
“What worries me is it will also push those who are already here, not including many current or even previous H-1B visa holders, to live in other states that are more welcoming,” Shao said. “So if this happens, basically the spirit of Iowa nice will likely become a thing of the past.”
Dongwong Liu expressed similar concerns when he spoke to Little Village. Liu came to Iowa for graduate study at ISU, where he earned his Ph.D., and first worked in the U.S. as an H-1B visa holder. While on that visa, he began the process of getting permanent resident status. Liu has worked at the University of Iowa for over 25 years. He is associate director of UI’s Center for Asian and Pacific Studies. Liu is also the president of the Iowa City Area Chinese Association, a cultural organization, and a member of Iowans for a Brighter Future, a group that was formed in response to HF 2513 and helped organize Saturday’s protest.
If HF 2513 passes “it will hurt the reputation of the state of Iowa, the economy and the universities,” Liu said. “It will stop people from coming to the state who can make good contributions.”
Liu told Little Village that members of Iowans for a Brighter Future have been in touch with senators, explaining the damage HF 2513 can do, and urging them to oppose it.
Persuading Republican members of the Senate to reject HF 2513 may prove difficult. Imposing restrictions on H-1B visa holders at the state level and on students and scholars from China have emerged as culture war issues for conservatives. Both Texas and Florida, states whose examples Iowa Republican leaders often follow when it comes to culture war legislation, have already enacted restrictions on H-1B visa holders at their public universities. It’s worth noting, however, that those restrictions do not go as far as HF 2513, and are temporary.
In Texas, Gov. Greg Abbott signed an executive order in January that stops state agencies and universities from hiring anyone on a H-1B visa until the state completes a review of the program. Earlier this month, the board that supervises Florida’s universities approved a one-year pause on H-1B hiring at the urging of Gov. Ron DeSantis.
Only three organizations registered in support of HF 2513: the Iowa Faith and Freedom Coalition, VALOR Iowa and State Shield. The first organization is longtime fixture in Iowa politics, and is influential among conservative Christians. VALOR Iowa is a nonprofit incorporated in December 2021 that originally focused on opposing vaccine mandates during the pandemic, and has since expanded its scope to support other priorities popular with rightwing Iowans, such as anti-transgender legislation. State Shield is a Texas-based nonprofit that does not disclose the names of its donors. State Shield works with state legislators and provides model bills in its effort to restrict relations with China and the World Health Organization.
HF 2513 may come to a floor vote in the Iowa Senate this week. If it passes and the governor signs it, the bill’s restrictions on the hiring of H-1B visa holders from China and six other countries will go into effect on July 1.
