A dearth of picked crab meat can lead to an increased supply of crabs being sold by the bushel, driving up the price of local meat and reducing prices for steamed crabs.

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The visa shortage stems from a surge in demand for temporary help at landscaping companies and golf courses, as well as in the seafood industries along the Atlantic and gulf coasts. The Labor Department received applications for nearly 100,000 visas in a lottery in January, but only 33,000 are available for the spring and summer seasons. H-2B visa recipients also have to be cleared through the Department of Homeland Security.

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The Wall Street Journal reported recently that the Trump administration was expected soon to release 45,000 more visas, including 20,000 that would be available immediately and 25,000 in June. Last year, the administration allowed an extra 30,000 visas.

Maryland politicians and industry leaders are pleading for President Trump to double the number of seasonal workers allowed under the H-2B program this year and to find a permanent solution to relieve the overwhelming demand for the visas.

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Dozens of watermen, seafood processors and state and local officials gathered at the seafood company A.E. Phillips & Son on Monday and stressed that without more stability in their workforce, the industry and communities that surround it are at risk.

Crab season begins in Maryland waterways April 1 and continues through the fall.

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“This is more than a jobs issue,” said Aubrey Vincent, the sales manager at Lindy’s Seafood. “It’s an American community issue.”

Generations ago, Eastern Shore women and girls largely staffed what are known as “picking houses,” but the industry began relying on foreign workers in the 1990s.

But a visa shortage first hit the state’s seafood industry hard in 2018, and some seafood companies went through that crab season with significantly smaller-than-normal workforces. Demand for the types of nonagricultural temporary work allowed under the H-2B program had increased dramatically, prompting the Department of Homeland Security to begin awarding the visas through a lottery.

This year, for the first time, the labor department also held a lottery for its portion of the visa process, meaning that recipients of H-2B visas have to get lucky twice to get the workers they need.

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That has only compounded frustrations for seafood companies, most of which go back several generations on Hoopers Island in southern Dorchester County.

“How in the hell you going to run your business on a lottery?” said Steve Phillips, the chief executive of A.E. Phillips. “It doesn’t make any sense for our government to act this way.”

U.S. Sens. Ben Cardin and Chris Van Hollen, both Maryland Democrats, have been urging the Trump administration to allow more visas, but representatives for the lawmakers said Monday they are still awaiting a response. Gov. Larry Hogan, a Republican, has also urged officials in Washington to find a solution.

“I was hoping I would have some magical announcement for you all this morning,” said Kimberly Kratovil, Cardin’s Eastern Shore field representative. “Unfortunately, I don’t.”

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Representatives for the federal departments of labor and homeland security could not immediately be reached for comment.

In a survey sponsored by the state agriculture department and the Chesapeake Bay Seafood Industries Association, most of the crab processing companies said they could be forced to shut down their operations for the season if they don’t get the visas.

Russell Hall Seafood, Old Salty’s Restaurant and J.M. Clayton Seafood all expect to receive the visas they requested through the Labor Department’s lottery. Others are less likely to, unless the government allows for more visas.

The processors surveyed said they paid 416 watermen nearly $19 million for 14 million pounds of crabs last year. And the companies combined for about $37 million in sales to retailers and restaurants. They reported employing 123 U.S. workers in addition to the foreign workforce.

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The dockside value of all crabs caught in Maryland totaled about $47 million in 2017, according to state data. That includes the larger crustaceans sold at top prices at crab houses, whereas smaller crabs are more likely to end up in picking houses.

Without enough crab pickers in 2020, companies said they expect those figures to decline. That could have trickle-down effects on retailers and restaurants.

Pete White of Captain White’s Seafood City in Washington said customers frequently ask where the crab meat they’re buying comes from, if they don’t specifically ask for Maryland crab.

“Most of the time, I get to say, ‘Hoopers Island,’ ” White said. But if Captain White’s market has only meat imported from Asia or South America to offer, he said he expects his sales to go down.