Hearing: E-Verify law not enforced

Mississippi lawmakers who support an Arizona-style immigration bill say they want to deter illegal immigrants from coming here, having already targeted the businesses that hire them.

"I hate that we're here again, having to talk about this again," said Rep. Becky Currie, R-Brookhaven. "The (E-Verify) bill was good. They're just not following the law."

The Legis-lature passed the Mississippi Employment Protection Act, also referred to as the E-Verify law, in 2008. It has taken effect in phases, based on company size.
All companies in Mississippi with more than 30 workers have had to use the Internet-based E-Verify system since July 1 to check the legal status of potential employees. Those with fewer than 30 workers have another year to comply.

During a two-day immigration hearing at the Capitol this week, lawmakers heard there have been no investigations into whether companies are conducting the required checks.

Investigation and enforcement falls on the Department of Employment Security, State Tax Commission, secretary of state, Department of Human Services and attorney general's office, according to the law.
"I think where we failed was we didn't say 'You are in charge (of enforcing it),' " Currie said.

Jan Schaefer, spokeswoman for the attorney general's office, said Wednesday the office has received no formal complaints concerning the Mississippi Employment Protection Act.

"We would be glad to work with any agency that may have received a report," Schaefer said, even though the office has received no additional funding to handle the responsibility.

Sam Atkinson, who works in the state auditor's office, said his office has referred eight calls to the attorney general's office in the past year.

"Five of them called back and said they received no help," she said. "No one knew how to handle their calls."

It's unknown what happened to those callers or their complaints. But several who testified at hearings this week said they agree that the focus should be on the companies, not the workers

"If you curb the enticement for the individual to come here, you will fix the problem," NAACP President Derrick Johnson said. "We are targeting individuals who simply want to make a living."

It's unknown how many people are in Mississippi illegally, but estimates put it at about 50,000, Atkinson said.

The Arizona law making its way through the court system because of legal challenges gives state and local law enforcement authority to check the status of people they suspect are in the country illegally. It also restricts some forms of aiding illegal immigrants.

Several Mississippi lawmakers said they will support a similar bill during the 2011 legislative session, but most opponents argue it could foster racial profiling and harassment, particularly toward Hispanics.

"We know how this is going to play out on the street," ACLU of Mississippi executive director Nsombi Lambright said. "How else is a police officer going to form a suspicion that someone is here unlawfully?"

Sen. Lee Yancey, a Republican from Brandon who co-authored the E-Verify legislation, said he disagrees with those who say the issue is about race.

"I'm not a racist, and I don't want to be lumped into that group," he said. "We need to know who's in our country legally and who's not."

Nearly all who testified at the two-day hearing described some problems with the federal government's immigration policies.

Those who favor the Arizona-style bill for Mississippi say it would provide back-up enforcement where the federal government has been weak.

"It's a shame we are even sitting here to debate this," said Sen. Briggs Hopson, R-Vicksburg. "If the federal government is not handling these issues ... is it not incumbent upon the state to take over?"

Those who oppose the proposed bill say the discussion on state legislation is masking a flawed legal immigration system and would force possibly untrained state and local law enforcement to step in where they don't belong.

"Let's let the federal government do its job. Our officers have enough on their plates without another unfunded mandate," Lambright said.

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