A group of 23 attorneys general filed an amicus brief against efforts by the Trump administration to curtail legal immigration and temporary work visa programs such as H-1B visas. Virginia Attorney General Mark Herring on Friday announced he and 22 other attorneys general filed the brief.

Herring cited two executive orders as concerns, including one in June that banned non-immigrant workers such as those on H-1B visas from entering the US. That order will be in effect until Dec. 31 but could be extended.

“Immigrants and other foreign-born workers play a crucial role in Virginia’s communities by adding billions of dollars to our economy every year,” Herring said.

One argument put forward in the amicus brief is that H-1B workers actually result in higher wages for all workers, not lower wages. “From the time H-1B visas began in 1990 to 2010, a 1% increase in foreign STEM workers’ share of a city’s total employment was associated with increases in wages of 7% to 8% for both STEM and non-STEM college-educated citizens, and 3% to 4% for non-college educated workers,” according to data cited by the amicus brief.

The amicus brief is available online.

Separately, Forbes contributor Peter Bendor-Samuel discusses how a Biden administration could affect the H-1B visa program and outsourcing.

print