State Legislatures Forge Ahead on Immigration Laws

Twitter went aflutter last night, at least the corner of Twitter where I was hanging out, when President Obama mentioned immigration reform and the DREAM Act during his third State of the Union address. To quote, he called on congress to:

“take on, once and for all, the issue of illegal immigration.
“I know that debate will be difficult and take time. But tonight, let’s agree to make that effort. And let’s stop expelling talented, responsible young people who can staff our research labs, start new businesses and further
enrich this nation.”

There was a smattering of applause after that, partially due, perhaps, to the fact that the reds and the blues didn’t have their homies sitting next to them to back them up in their enthusiastic ovation or dead-pan disapproval. Maybe they felt guilty for their inaction on the immigration front and wanted the moment to quickly fade. The fact is that it’s been Washington’s inaction that has given politicians at the state level the opportunity to make waves saying that the state’s would have to move where the feds hadn’t.

Whether immigration reform gains traction on Capitol Hill is yet to be seen (the DREAM Act recently showed promise but was shot down in a partisan vote). Meanwhile states across the union are moving forward on their own more local efforts to enforce their versions of federal statues.

• In Colorado, the Huffington Post reports, Republican’s have upped the immigration ante: “Senate Bill 54, introduced last week by Senator Kent Lambert, differed from Arizona’s controversial Senate Bill 1070 in that it allowed, but did not require, local law enforcement officers to arrest anyone they believe to be an illegal immigrant.
  On Friday, a bill introduced by Representative Randy Baumgardner in the House Agriculture, Livestock and Natural Resources Committee comes much closer to the Arizona bill. House Bill 1107 proposes that local law enforcement officers “must make a reasonable attempt to determine the immigration status” of anyone they deem suspicious of being an illegal alien. Like the Arizona law, the Colorado bill would make ‘willfully failing to complete or carry an alien registration document’ a crime.”
• In Georgia, according to the Atlanta Journal Constitution, a bill intriduced by Rep. Matt Ramsey, R-Peachtree City, co-chairman of a special legislative study committee on immigration, would: Punish people who encourage illegal immigrants to enter Georgia and then transport and conceal them when they get here; Require private businesses with more than five employees to use a federal program called E-Verify. That program aims to verify newly hired employees are eligible to work in the United States; Seek to provide incentives for state and local police to apply to participate in federal immigration enforcement programs, including one called 287(g). That program empowers local officials to investigate the immigration status of people arrested and jailed for other crimes.
• In Nebraska, Bloomberg.com reports that “A federal judge on Tuesday scheduled a trial in a legal fight over an eastern Nebraska city’s ordinance that bars businesses from hiring and landlords from renting to illegal immigrants. The Fremont ordinance would require employers to use a federal online system that checks whether a person is permitted to work in the U.S.
  It also would require people seeking to rent property to apply for a $5 permit at City Hall. Those who said they were citizens would receive a permit and would not have to provide documents proving legal status. Those who said they weren’t citizens would receive permits, but their legal status would be checked. If they were found to be in the country illegally and were unable to resolve their status, they would be forced to leave the property.
  Landlords who knowingly rent to illegal immigrants could be subject to $100 fines.
• In Washington state, according to KNDO.com, “Several dozen people in central Washington are voicing their support for Latino residents who were arrested during an immigration raid in Ellensburg.
  More than 50 people, many of them high school students, chanted and carried signs Tuesday as they marched in front of Yakima’s federal courthouse.Thirteen women face charges of using false documents, and three face an additional charge of falsely claiming U.S. citizenship. A man, who is a longtime pastor, has been charged with re-entry into the U.S. after deportation.
  Another 16 people have been held on immigration violations at a detention center.
• In Minnesota, MPR tell us “Last week, Minneapolis police arrested eight people who chained themselves to each other in a Chipotle restaurant on Nicollet mall. Many were upset that the company had deprived the workers of their livelihoods.
  Chipotle dismissed the workers after a federal immigration audit of its worker documents. The company’s woes are the latest and most visible example of the federal government’s stepped-up efforts to monitor whether businesses are employing immigrants who are not legally in the United States.”
• In Georgia, the sunjournal.com reports “The Legislature will soon join more than a half-dozen states debating the merits of an anti-illegal immigration bill modeled after the controversial Arizona law.
  Rep. Kathleen Chase, R-Wells, has submitted a bill request that would require immigrants to carry their alien registration documents at all times and would allow local law enforcement agencies to ask whether the individuals are in the United States illegally. Chase said the bill was similar to the so-called ‘show-me-your-papers’ Arizona law.”