Posted on 03/11/2004 4:39:52 PM PST by JackelopeBreeder
PHOENIX - The state's largest business organization is crafting a policy calling for the United States to legalize the status of 10 million or more people who have crossed into the country illegally.
The move comes as the Arizona House of Representatives is set to consider penalizing businesses that knowingly hire illegal immigrants. The legislation could put errant companies out of business. The Arizona Chamber of Commerce hopes its pending policy, though it has no force of law, will undermine support for that bill, said spokesman Farrell Quinlan.
At this point the chamber's best hope rests not with House Republicans who generally support business interests, but with Democrats, who hold the swing votes here.
That is because many Republicans back HB 2595 despite the chamber's opposition.
The chamber wants to maintain a supply of workers for the economy while keeping the state out of the business of enforcing immigration laws.
At issue is the proposal by Rep. Russell Pearce, R-Mesa, to impose penalties on any employer found to have violated federal immigration laws. These carry their own penalties, ranging from fines to prison terms for employers who have a pattern of violating the statute.
Pearce's legislation would impose what amounts to a warning for any firm found guilty of a single violation.
A second offense would result in a six-month suspension of any state license, certification, permit or charter. And a third offense would mean permanent revocation.
The chamber's board is set to vote on its policy Friday, just days before Pearce's bill would come to the House floor. But Quinlan said the chamber's plan has been in the works since last summer.
The chamber also opposes an initiative drive, dubbed Protect Arizona Now, which aims to reduce illegal border crossing by denying public services to those not citizens or legal residents.
But the business group likes the January proposal by President Bush for a new guest-worker program.
The timing of chamber action is crucial for Democrats who had provided the votes to get the Pearce measure approved by the first committee it faced.
"We passed it out … to get the chamber to sit down and have a serious talk about their positions on immigration," said House Minority Leader John Loredo, D-Phoenix. "We have done that and we are confident that they are moving in the right direction."
Loredo called the chamber's positions on immigration very favorable.
A key point of that policy is saying the United States should not try to deport those already here. Instead the draft policy says these people should be identified and registered.
"They need to be brought in from out of the shadows," said Quinlan.
At the same time, the chamber wants "additional legal avenues for those who wish to work in our economy." That includes a new temporary-worker program to match employees with employers and a defined path to permanent residency for these workers as well as their dependents.
The chamber opposes anything that could put employers out of business for what it sees as a law enforcement problem. Business people are not experts at spotting forged documents, Quinlan said. Pearce isn't convinced.
"Nobody's going to get caught 'accidentally,' " he said. Pearce said only those companies that "continually, flagrantly violate the law" will be at risk under his bill.
He also said the chamber is out of step with many of its own members who do not hire illegal entrants and find themselves being underbid by firms that do.
IIRC, Russ Pearce's legislation has been in the news for well over a month. The Arizona Repulsive had an article last Sunday about Hispanic groups teaming up with a pair of Democrat legislators in the Arizona House to force a vote on this subject...hoping that Republicans would kill it in the interest of protecting 'big business.'
Looks like they've miscalculated.
There is the loop-hole, proving they "knowingly" hired is going to be the hard part to prove.
Mrs. HJ ran the HR shop for a major retail outlet for 7 years...she could spot a bad apple in a heartbeat and generally had no problem telling them they weren't getting a job. It boils down to whether or not the corporate (or store level) ethic allows for the hiring of illegals.
Again, proving it is the hard part. Reasonably authentic looking documents aren't that hard to obtain, not when you can afford over $1500 for the coyote to bring you across the border.
One of the main problems in a hutshell.
Allowing 10 million illegal aliens to cross our border without any scrutinization by the Border Patrol goes way beyond the authorized job of any President. It fits the job of a traitor and terrorist much better.
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