Report MSS-2026-01

We read every H-1B filing in America. All 4.2 million of them.

Seven years of Department of Labor disclosures, joined to green-card filings, petition outcomes and federal wage data, then read line by line by an evaluation model. It found who files, what they pay, and who bears the cost. It named names.

Cover of The State of the H-1B Program: 2026 Report
  • 4.2 millioncertified H-1B filings, fiscal 2020 to 2026
  • 361,353employer-months read line by line
  • 39 of 39pre-registered effects replicated on sealed data

Independent media for the people doing the work.

We follow technology, money, and power into the workplace, then ask who gains and who pays. Based in Arizona.

Josh C. Simmons in a black and white portrait
Josh C. Simmons, founder and host

I know what it means to work for a living.

I grew up in the Rust Belt. I've built technical systems, led teams, and watched institutions make decisions that other people have to live with. The Dr. J Show follows those decisions into the money, the engineering, and the consequences for working people.

Meridian is the company I'm building around that work, with plans for a Phoenix-area production base and room for more voices. We cover what gets built, who does the building, and whether the promises hold up.

Josh C. Simmons, PhDFounder, Meridian Strategic Systems

30,249 subscribers on YouTube, verified in YouTube Studio on September 7, 2026.

A check does not buy coverage.

Meridian keeps editorial control. Sponsors and investors do not choose our subjects or conclusions.

Read our editorial policy

A home for more of the work.

We are planning a Phoenix-area production base. Flexible space comes first; a dedicated studio follows when the work justifies it.

Building Meridian