Aligning Federal Contracting and Hiring Practices With the Interests of American Workers

The order directs the head of every federal agency that awards contracts to review fiscal years 2018 and 2019 contract and subcontract performance, assessing whether contractors used temporary foreign labor or offshored work previously done in the United States, and whether either practice harmed opportunities for American workers or posed national security risks. Agencies must also review their own hiring policies for compliance with Executive Order 11935 (citizenship requirements) and Section 704 of the Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2020. Within 120 days, each agency head must submit a report to the OMB Director summarizing findings and recommending corrective actions. Separately, within 45 days, the Secretaries of Labor and Homeland Security must take action to protect American workers from wage and working-condition harm caused by H-1B visa holders at job sites, including ensuring secondary employers comply with existing Immigration and Nationality Act requirements.

The order does not itself reclassify visa categories, change immigration law, terminate any contracts, or create enforceable rights for private parties. All directed actions must be consistent with applicable law and are subject to appropriations availability.

Federal agencies that award contracts, their contractors and subcontractors who have used temporary foreign labor or offshore labor, American workers who may have been displaced, H-1B visa holders and their primary and secondary employers, and the Departments of Labor and Homeland Security as directed enforcers.

Federal contractors that have relied on temporary foreign workers or offshored jobs face scrutiny, and H-1B employers — including secondary job-site employers — face potential new enforcement actions. American workers in regions heavily dependent on federal contracting could see better access to those jobs if corrective measures follow.

Agencies conduct internal contract reviews independently, then coordinate with OPM on hiring-policy compliance, and funnel all findings into written reports to OMB within 120 days. OMB receives the reports but the order does not specify what OMB must do with them; corrective actions depend on agency discretion and subsequent Presidential direction. In parallel, Labor and DHS have 45 days to act on H-1B job-site enforcement — the two tracks run concurrently but do not formally depend on each other. No severability or sunset clause is included.