Florida may soon prohibit its public universities from hiring foreign faculty on H-1B visas for the next year. This potential ban, described as “devastating” to science departments, comes just months after Governor Ron DeSantis expressed his desire to end the use of these visas in state colleges and universities. The Florida Board of Governors is set to meet on Thursday in Tallahassee to vote on a proposed one-year hiring ban.
If the board approves the proposal, it will undergo two weeks of public comment before a final decision is made. The H-1B program allows U.S. companies and institutions to employ foreign professionals with at least bachelor’s degrees for specialized roles that are difficult to fill with domestic workers. Currently, nearly 400 employees at Florida universities hold H-1B visas.
In October, Governor DeSantis criticized foreign professors, including those from countries such as China, Argentina, and Canada, labeling them as “cheap labor” who take opportunities from qualified Floridians. This stance has raised concerns among academic professionals.
Kathryn Jones, a biological science professor at Florida State University, strongly disagrees with the proposed ban. She argues that faculty on H-1B visas are essential for filling specialized positions in science departments. “If you’re searching for someone who does cryo-electron microscopy or someone who works on a specific kind of genomics, there’s often not someone from a domestic background who comes up in that year as ready to go up for a job,” she stated.
A significant portion of university staff on H-1B visas are in critical fields such as computer science, engineering, physics, and chemistry—areas that have relatively few American candidates. According to the National Center for Science and Engineering Statistics, approximately 60% of those who earned Ph.Ds in computer science from U.S. institutions in 2023 were temporary visa holders rather than citizens or permanent residents.
Florida’s universities are prominent users of the H-1B program, with the University of Florida employing 150 staff on these visas. Other institutions also rely heavily on foreign faculty, including 72 at the University of South Florida, 69 at Florida State University, 28 at the University of Central Florida, and 13 at Florida Atlantic University.
Jones referred to her foreign colleagues as “highly valued,” explaining that many are already in the U.S. on student visas and use the H-1B visa as a pathway to citizenship. “They’re citizens now, and they are absolute contributors. I would just hate to think that we wouldn’t have access to those sorts of colleagues anymore,” she added.
The H-1B program impacts more than 7,200 employees in Florida, primarily in private companies. The program has become a point of contention among supporters of former President Donald Trump, with some, including Elon Musk, advocating for its continuation, while others align with DeSantis’s viewpoint.
In September, Trump announced an increase in fees for individual H-1B visas from $215 to $100,000. This fee is typically borne by employers and could restrict the program’s viability. Trump also signed a proclamation alleging “systematic abuse” of the H-1B program. His recent decision, which is expected to face legal challenges, mandates that employers pay the new fee for H-1B petitions filed after September 21, impacting future hires but not those already employed in the United States.
The agenda item for the board of governors’ meeting did not specify the rationale behind the proposed one-year ban. As the situation develops, updates will be provided.
