Addressing concerns about the ongoing border crisis, Arizona House Speaker Ben Toma, along with other GOP lawmakers, revealed a proposal to broaden and repurpose a federal employment verification program.
“Our border is being overrun by illegal aliens,” Toma declared alongside eight other House Republicans on Monday during a press conference. “It’s painfully clear at this point that our governor and our president are doing nothing about it.”
House Concurrent Resolution 2060, the measure he is proposing, would be “one of the toughest immigration laws ever written,” he claimed.
Toma, a Romanian immigrant who is a congressional candidate, and his allies intend to put the proposal on the ballot for voters in November.
In addition to requiring employers to utilize the federal E-Verify system when hiring independent contractors and subcontractors, it would force state, county, and municipal agencies to use it to verify the immigrant status of anybody applying for any form of license.
Employers are already required by state legislation from 2006 to utilize E-Verify when hiring new employees. Anyone caught aiding another individual in undermining the E-Verify process could be charged with a state felony.
“And creates large financial penalties for employers who violate the law,” he said, enabling inquiries into the use of E-Verify.
E-Verify, an online system that verifies an individual’s citizenship or immigration status, was initiated as a federal pilot program in 1997.
Despite a 2006 state law mandating its use, a 2020 article from the Cato Institute revealed that only approximately two-thirds of Arizona employers adhered to the E-Verify requirement over the years.
A 2011 law already dictates that government officials must request documentation of citizenship or work permits for licenses, such as food handler certificates.
While Republicans have long made illegal immigration a political focal point, recent data from Pew Research indicates that 80% of Americans, spanning both political parties, believe the federal government is handling immigration poorly.
This resolution adds to the increasing number of potential 2024 ballot referrals by Republicans since Democrat Katie Hobbs assumed office last year.
The legislation only needs a simple majority of lawmakers to proceed to the ballot, a plausible outcome given the Republicans’ one-vote majority in both legislative chambers. Hobbs’ signature is not required.
Immigration advocates view the plan as perilous and harsh, suggesting it could prompt boycotts similar to those following the signing of Senate Bill 1070 in 2010 by former Republican Gov. Jan Brewer.
This law aimed to empower police with immigration enforcement authority, and though parts of it were successfully challenged in court, Arizona police can still inquire about the immigration status of individuals they stop if they have reason to suspect they are in the country unlawfully.
Republicans like Toma claimed the measure would save the state money and that it was essential to deter illegal immigrants from settling in Arizona. Toma cited data from the right-wing Federation for American Immigration Reform indicating that the state provides benefits to unauthorized citizens at a cost of almost $2.3 billion annually.
After passing the committee 10-7, the resolution will be put to a vote by the entire House before going to the state Senate.
Toma stated he was unsure if the E-Verify technology could be utilized for state licenses rather than hirings and he lacked a breakdown of the projected costs. He maintained that the state had to make an effort to reduce the benefits, including employment.
According to a 2017 research by the organization, FAIR, the state of Arizona spends $2.4 billion on undocumented individuals, more than half of which goes toward K–12 expenses.
Nonetheless, the state public school system is required by law to enroll students without confirming their immigration status.
It might also be impossible to eliminate some of the other expenditures identified in the FAIR research, such as those associated with emergency medical care and immigration enforcement.
