NTF issue paper: illegal133.doc. 8-19.
NEBRASKA TAXPAYERS FOR FREEDOM ISSUE PAPER:
TIME TO REQUIRE E-VERIFY FOR EMPLOYMENT.
BACKGROUND. Hundreds, perhaps thousands of Nebraskans are seeking employment but cannot find a steady job at a livable wage. Particularly pressed are those looking for construction and service jobs. Some, depressed, have abandoned the search and the goal of becoming productive, independent citizens. We understand that our NE economy is more productive, if jobs filled by our fellow citizens rather than by unskilled workers from foreign nations, which leaves our fellow Nebraskans dependent on government welfare and charity. The bloating of our state labor supply directly stems from permitting the deluge of illegal aliens to enter our country, where unscrupulous employers fill job slots with these illegal workers at low wages, at the expense of lawful qualified citizens seeking employment. Now, a California congressman is trying to rectify this situation.
E-VERIFY. The immigration service operates this system by checking the SS numbers of new employees against records maintained by the Social Security Administration and Dept. of Homeland Security to ensure work eligibility. The system helps stop fraudulent use of SS cards. The program quickly confirms 99.8% of work-eligible employees and takes less than 2 minutes per person to use. About 750,000 American employers currently use E-Verify.
THE BILL. Cong. Ken Calvert (CA.) has introduced HR 250 that would require most employers to use the E-Verify system within 3 years as phased in. Large employers with more than 10,000 workers, federal, state, and local agencies, and those with federal and state contracts must comply within 6 months. Within 12 months of enactment, businesses having 500 to 9,999 employees must use E-Verify. Employees performing agricultural labor or services would need an E-Verify check within 30 months. Required for those contracted at day labor sites and referral and recruitment agencies. His legislation would make E-Verify permanent and reinstate the no-match program to help identify 7 million illegal aliens working at non-ag jobs. Employers could use a phone verification system as an alternative to the current online system. The program would replace the current unreliable paper-based I-9 system. Businesses that use the method in good faith would win protection from liability, if the system errs on eligibility. E-Verify currently boasts only a miniscule error rate. The law would protect state and local authority to revoke business licenses of employers who fail to use E-Verify. Penalties for businesses that refuse to utilize the system or that intentionally attempt to thwart it would suffer stiffer penalties. Fines levied up to $25,000 for illegal workers and a minimum 1-year prison sentence for those who engage in a pattern of violations. The bill also creates a penalty for employees who knowingly submit false information to the E-Verify system. E-Verify would notify an employer, if there is a suspicious, multiple use of the same SS number and require the re-use of E-Verify. Rep. Calvert in 1996 authored the law that created the E-Verify program and has worked diligently since then to expand the system and make it mandatory. The bill now is in the House Judiciary Committee Subcommittee on Immigration and House Ways & Means Committee.
THE RATIONALE. “By requiring the use of E-Verify, we can send a strong and clear message that people looking to come to America to improve their economic outlook must do so legally if they want to work here,” Rep. Calvert said.
“Fixing our broken immigration system is long overdue and requires solutions like HR 250. We want and need immigrants to come to our nation to contribute to our success, but we must also remain a sovereign nation governed by the rule of law,” he added.
SUPPORT. 16 GOP congressmen have signed on as co-sponsors.
TAKE ACTION NOW. Use of E-Verify in Nebraska would have 2 distinct advantages. It would open job slots to currently unemployed Nebraskans who wish to work for a living. Also, it would give incentive for illegal aliens to self-deport, having no employment opportunities, and remove their families, many of whom collect welfare. Using the information above, contact your congressman today to co-sponsor and vote for HR 250.
Email netaxpayers@gmail.com for Capitol Hill contact information and to join our NTF Project Immigration.
Research, documentation, and analysis for this issue paper done by Nebraska Taxpayers for Freedom. This material copyrighted by Nebraska Taxpayers for Freedom, with express prior permission granted for its use by other groups in the NE Conservative Coalition Network. 8-19. C