‘When people hear H-1B…’: Investigative journalist weighs in on immigration policy and displacement of local workers

Investigative reporter for The Dallas Express, Kellen McGovern Jones, is set to speak on Thursday evening about federal H-1B visa policy and its effects on Texas communities.

His presentation will be held for members and guests of the Coppell Republican Women from 6:15 p.m. to 8:15 p.m. at Spring Creek in Lewisville.

Jones’s appearances are part of an ongoing tour exploring how the H-1B visa program impacts local labour markets, universities, and public policy debates in the state. “When people hear ‘H-1B,’ they tend to think it’s a distant Washington issue,” Jones said ahead of earlier stops on the tour.




He added: “In reality, it affects who gets hired, who gets laid off, what wages look like, and how local tax dollars are spent in places like Coppell.”

In his talks, Jones examines how companies and academic institutions use the visa programme, as well as reforms proposed by lawmakers in Congress and the US President Donald Trump administration. Recent reporting by Jones showed new federal data on the companies receiving the most H-1B approvals in Texas. Cognizant Technology Solutions led the state with more than 50,000 approvals, followed by Infosys Limited with over 45,000. Other top recipients between 2020 and 2025 included Oracle America, Tesla, and KPMG.

Jones has also investigated how immigration intersects with federal housing programmes. A Freedom of Information Act request revealed that the US Department of Housing and Urban Development does not track the citizenship of recipients for certain Federal Housing Administration–insured loans, even though H-1B visa holders are not eligible.

His reporting has also covered historical use of the H-1B programme, including claims that convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein sponsored visas for associates in the 1990s. Notably, Ghislaine Maxwell first obtained long-term US status through an H-1B sponsorship linked to Epstein.

Jones’s coverage of higher education visa filings showed that Texas A&M University spent over $3.25 million sponsoring H-1B workers, primarily for lower-level instructional positions in 2025.

“This isn’t just about immigration policy in the abstract,” Jones said.

He added: “It’s about whether communities are subsidizing labor decisions that displace local workers or suppress wages, and whether taxpayers are getting an honest accounting of where their money is going. The program has legitimate tradeoffs, and we should be truthful about what those are.”

The Lewisville event will conclude with a question-and-answer session, allowing attendees to engage directly with Jones on the H-1B programme and its local impact.