NEBRASKA TOWN TABLES IMMIGRATION BILL AND REFERENDUM
The Fremont City Council has decided to indefinitely postpone consideration of a bill and a referendum that would bar hiring illegally present immigrants. City leaders argued that the measure is barred under federal law.
WHITE HOUSE GEARING UP FOR EMPLOYER IMMIGRATION COMPLIANCE CRACKDOWN
The New York Timesreports that tomorrow Immigration and Customs Enforcement will be sending instructions to agents in field offices aimed at changing their enforcement focus from work site raids that largely resulted in mass arrests of workers to I-9 audits and undercover investigations mainly targeting employers. However, workers will still be subject to arrest.
MISSOURI SENATOR EMBRACES TARGETING EMPLOYERS OF ILLEGALLY PRESENT IMMIGRANTS
The Houston Chronicle reports that Missouri Senator Claire McCaskill is bakcing the White House plan to crack down on illegal immigration by targeting unscrupulous employers rather than the immigrant workers.
Sholom Rubashkin, the manager of the Iowa meatpacking plant in Postville, Iowa that was the subject of one of the largest work site raids ever in the US, is seeking dismissal of 20 criminal counts.
LAW.COM ANALYZES IMPACT OF ASSET FORFEITURES ON AMERICAN EMPLOYERS
Great analysis on a subject that doesn't get a lot of attention. ICE frequently seizes millions of dollars of assets in prosecutions of employers accused of knowingly hiring illegally present workers. Is the punishment being doled our fairly?
GEORGIA LEGISLATURE SENDS E-VERIFY BILL TO GOVERNOR
Georgia's Legislature has passed House Bill 2 which would require state employers and all businesses contracting or subcontracting with the state to use E-Verify.
The Atlanta Journal Constitution reports that Governor Sonny Perdue has not made up his mind yet whether he'll sign the bill.
TEXAS EMPLOYERS PUSH BACK ON PROPOSED SANCTIONS BILL
A Texas television station reports on industry groups fighting Senate Bill 357 which would sanction companies that hire illegal immigrants and pay them in cash.
SC COUNTY ORDINANCE STALLS WHEN IMMIGRATION SANCTIONS ARE ADDED
The Greenville News (SC) reports on efforts to pass a county ordinacne that would require all businesses outside municipal limits to pay a $15 annual fee to register with the county. An attempt by Councilman Sid Cates to add a provision that would revoke a business license if a business employs illegally present immigrants and requiring businesses to sign a statement under penalty of perjury stating that they don't has drawn substantial opposition and the bill has now stalled.
Elizabeth Billmeyer, a human resources manager at the Iowa meatpacking plant that was the site of one of the nation's largest immigration work site raids, has pleaded guilty to conspiracy to harbor undocumented aliens and for knowingly accepting false green cards.
A Colombia County, Oregon judge has thrown out a county ordinance that allows the county to fine or shut down businesses caught hiring illegally present immigrants. Judge Ted Grove found that the measure was unenforceable because it conflicts with federal and state law.
NINTH CIRCUIT DENIES REHEARING OF ARIZONA SANCTIONS LAW CASE
The 9th Circuit has ruled again that the Arizona employer sanctions law is not pre-empted by federal law nor is the state barred from mandating the use of E-Verify on employers. I'll be posting the decision shortly.
Nebraska Governor Dave Heineman has signed LB403, a bill that will require public employers and businesses with state contracts to electronically verify workers for identity and legal status.
COURT SIDES WITH RHODE ISLAND GOVERNOR IN E-VERIFY POLICY
A superior court in Providence, Rhode Island has ruled that Governor Carcieri's order requiring employers doing business with the state use E-Verify is legal. The state's ACLU chapter filed the suit sayign the governor acted outside his gubernatorial authority. The ACLU has vowed to appeal the decision to the state's Supreme Court.
OREGON HOUSE COMMITTEE OKAYS FEE TO SUPPORT COMPLIANCE INVESTIGATIONS
The Oregon House Committee on Consumer Protection has passed House Bill 2815, a bill that would impose a $7 extra fee on employers incorporating in the state and filing other reports with the Oregon Secretary of State. The money would be used to investigate employers that pay in cash and is aimed at rooting out illegal workers.
BREAKING NEWS: E-VERIFY CONTRACTOR REGULATION POSTPONED AGAIN
The government has agreed to postpone the rule's implementation date from next month to June 30, 2009. The rule is the subject of a lawsuit and the government has agreed to postpone while the suit is pending. Also, the Administration has yet to clearly state its position on the subject.
DHS SUCCESSFULLY DEFENDS ITSELF IN SWIFT RAIDS SUIT
A lawsuit filed by workers against DHS relating to the conducting of a raid of a Swift & Co. meatpacking plant in Worthington, Minnesota has been dismissed. The suit claimed that DHS' search warrant did not establish a sufficient basis for questioning workers about their citizenship.
A bill likely to pass the General Assembly this week gives the state more power to force local compliance with a 2006 anti-illegal-immigration law. Supporters say the bill is needed because the previous law wasn’t enforced.
The measure would require local governments, state agencies and companies that do public business to show they are using federal databases to make sure they don’t hire illegal workers or provide them with public benefits. If they don’t, local governments would face cuts in state road funding and other penalties, and companies could have contracts revoked.
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H.B. 2, initially sponsored by Rep. Tom Rice (R-Norcross), passed the House and was approved by the Senate Public Safety Committee last week with no opposition.
Senate Majority Leader Chip Rogers (R-Woodstock) told the committee that the bill was necessary because the Georgia Security and Immigration Compliance Act, which Rogers sponsored in 2006, was being ignored by local governments.
Incidentally, Siskind Susser Atlanta office managing attorney Karen Weinstock is quoted in the story.
Since the AJC published the article, the bill passed in the Senate. The bill must now go back to the Georgia House or go to a conference committee since the bill passed in the Senate is not identical to the one previously passed in the House.
ANTIS URGING E-VERIFY BE MANDATED FOR EMPLOYERS WORKING ON STIMULUS PROJECTS
Anti-immigrant groups are still complaining that Congress failed to mandate that using e-Verify be a condition to winning a contract funded by the federal stimulus program.
USCIS Reminds all U.S. Employers of Requirements to Use Revised Form I-9, Employment Eligibility Verification
WASHINGTON, April 3, 2009 — U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) issued a reminder that the revised Form I-9, Employment Eligibility Verification (Rev. 02/02/09), goes into effect today for all U.S. employers. The revision date is printed on the lower right-hand corner of the form.
The interim final rule, published Dec.17, 2008 in the Federal Register, revised the list of documents acceptable for the Employment Eligibility Verification (Form I-9) process. Employers may no longer use previous versions of the Form I-9.
The revised list improves the security and effectiveness of the Form I-9 process. The list specifies that expired documents are no longer acceptable forms of identification or employment authorization. Allowing for expired documents makes it more difficult for employers to verify an employee’s identity and employment authorization and compromises the Form I-9 process.
USCIS also updated the Handbook for Employers – Instructions for Completing Form I-9 to reflect the requirements of the revised Form I-9.
Employers who do not have computer access can order Forms I-9 by calling our toll-free forms line at 1-800-870-3676.
USCIS forms and information on immigration laws, regulations, and procedures can also be requested by calling the National Customer Service Center toll-free at1-800-375-5283.
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