Utah Legislature Passes Series of Immigration Bills; Includes Amnesty
Last week the Utah Legislature passed three immigration bills causing uproar on both sides of the immigration debate. The bills range from a guest worker amnesty bill (H.B. 116), an Arizona-style enforcement bill (H.B. 497), and an agreement between Utah and a Mexican State to provide businesses with migrant workers (H.B. 466). (The Salt Lake Tribune, Mar. 11, 2011)
H.B. 116, would permit illegal aliens (and their immediate relatives) who entered the state of Utah before May 10, 2011 to continue living and working in Utah if the illegal alien:
1. obtains a work permit from the Utah Department of Public Safety; (§63G-12-201)
2. passes a state and FBI criminal background check; (§63G-12-205)
3. has a "driving privilege card" or provides evidence that he or she will not drive; (Id.)
4. use "best efforts" to become proficient in English; (§63G-12-209) and
5. pays a $2,500 fine (if entered the country illegally) or a $1,000 fine (if entered the country legally but overstays visa or work permit). (§63G-12-207)
The program also would require a waiver from the federal government before implementation. (§63G-12-202)
Republican State Rep. Bill Wright, sponsor of H.B.116 compared H.B.116 to granting a visa in one interview: "Is amnesty giving a visa? I think you would agree it is not. This guest worker permit is only for those that comply with the higher standards in participation . . . [M]aybe it's an extended visa . . . A visa's not amnesty. So why is a guest worker permit amnesty?" (NPR, Mar. 7, 2011) Rep. Wright also defended his bill on labor grounds, arguing that it is necessary to keep illegal aliens in Utah because they work harder than legal Utahans: "In certain fields, we're not as productive, that's why it's difficult for us to compete with them," Wright said. "We're spoiled rotten." (Fox News Latino, Mar. 8, 2011)
Utah State Rep. Chris Herrod, also a Republican,called Wright's comments "absolutely offensive to the average American worker." (Id.) "In Utah, we have 160,000 illegal aliens in the state, and we have roughly that amount of unemployment," he asserted. (Id.) Herrod also called H.B. 116 "a slap in the face, an atrocious kick in the face, to anyone who has tried, or is trying, to come into this country legally, or is trying to bring family into this country legally." (Id.) "Any behavior you reward you're going to get more of," he said. (Id.) "I've been outside U.S. embassies [in other countries], I've seen parents in tears when they get denied visas." (Id.)
If challenged, it is likely that a court would find H.B. 116 to be an unconstitutional regulation of immigration. In 1976, the U.S. Supreme Court reaffirmed the federal government's exclusive authority to "regulate immigration." (De Canas v. Bica, 424 U.S. 351, 354 (1976)) However, in doing so, the Court narrowly defined "regulation of immigration" as "essentially a determination of who should or should not be admitted into the country, and the conditions under which a legal entrant may remaim." (Id. at 355) Thus, by permitting those who have entered or stayed in the U.S. illegally the ability to remain in the country if they meet certain conditions such as paying a fine and obtaining a work permit, the State of Utah is usurping the federal government's authority to determine who enters the country and under what conditions they may remain.
H.B. 497, the Arizona-style enforcement-only measure introduced by Rep. Stephen Sandstrom, would require any law enforcement officer conducting a lawful stop, detention, or arrest, to check the immigration status of any person they arrest for a felony or class A misdemeanor if that person is unable to provide valid identification. (§76-9-1003) Police would have the discretion to ask those stopped for less serious misdemeanors about their immigration status and would be required to do so only if the person is arrested and booked.
Finally, H.B. 466 would allow the Governor of Utah to enter the state into a "memorandum of understanding" with the Mexican State of Nuevo Leon to create a pilot program to obtain foreign workers. (63G-12-301) Under the agreement, Nuevo Leon would provide migrant workers to Utah businesses claiming to need the trained labor, while the federal government would issue the nonimmigrant visas. (Id.) Participating businesses must certify that "there are not sufficient workers where that labor is to be performed who are able,willing, qualified, and available" and that employment of foreign workers will not adversely affect Utah wages and working conditions. (Id.)
Utah Attorney General Mark Shurtleff — who assisted lawmakers in drafting H.B. 466 — has already met with White House officials to talk about how Utah's approach to immigration can be integrated into a larger scheme. (The Salt Lake Tribune, Mar. 2, 2011; The Salt Lake Tribune, Mar. 11, 2011) "It's unprecedented that a state has come up with an idea about how to legalize illegal immigrants already living in the state," remarked Frank Sharry, Executive Director of the open-borders group America's Voice. (Bloomberg Businessweek, Mar. 10, 2011) "The Obama administration should take notice, support the program and start a dialogue with the state," he added. (Id.) The bills are awaiting Utah Governor Gary Herbert's signature. (Id.)
Last week the Utah Legislature passed three immigration bills causing uproar on both sides of the immigration debate. The bills range from a guest worker amnesty bill (H.B. 116), an Arizona-style enforcement bill (H.B. 497), and an agreement between Utah and a Mexican State to provide businesses with migrant workers (H.B. 466). (The Salt Lake Tribune, Mar. 11, 2011)
H.B. 116, would permit illegal aliens (and their immediate relatives) who entered the state of Utah before May 10, 2011 to continue living and working in Utah if the illegal alien:
1. obtains a work permit from the Utah Department of Public Safety; (§63G-12-201)
2. passes a state and FBI criminal background check; (§63G-12-205)
3. has a "driving privilege card" or provides evidence that he or she will not drive; (Id.)
4. use "best efforts" to become proficient in English; (§63G-12-209) and
5. pays a $2,500 fine (if entered the country illegally) or a $1,000 fine (if entered the country legally but overstays visa or work permit). (§63G-12-207)
The program also would require a waiver from the federal government before implementation. (§63G-12-202)
Republican State Rep. Bill Wright, sponsor of H.B.116 compared H.B.116 to granting a visa in one interview: "Is amnesty giving a visa? I think you would agree it is not. This guest worker permit is only for those that comply with the higher standards in participation . . . [M]aybe it's an extended visa . . . A visa's not amnesty. So why is a guest worker permit amnesty?" (NPR, Mar. 7, 2011) Rep. Wright also defended his bill on labor grounds, arguing that it is necessary to keep illegal aliens in Utah because they work harder than legal Utahans: "In certain fields, we're not as productive, that's why it's difficult for us to compete with them," Wright said. "We're spoiled rotten." (Fox News Latino, Mar. 8, 2011)
Utah State Rep. Chris Herrod, also a Republican,called Wright's comments "absolutely offensive to the average American worker." (Id.) "In Utah, we have 160,000 illegal aliens in the state, and we have roughly that amount of unemployment," he asserted. (Id.) Herrod also called H.B. 116 "a slap in the face, an atrocious kick in the face, to anyone who has tried, or is trying, to come into this country legally, or is trying to bring family into this country legally." (Id.) "Any behavior you reward you're going to get more of," he said. (Id.) "I've been outside U.S. embassies [in other countries], I've seen parents in tears when they get denied visas." (Id.)
If challenged, it is likely that a court would find H.B. 116 to be an unconstitutional regulation of immigration. In 1976, the U.S. Supreme Court reaffirmed the federal government's exclusive authority to "regulate immigration." (De Canas v. Bica, 424 U.S. 351, 354 (1976)) However, in doing so, the Court narrowly defined "regulation of immigration" as "essentially a determination of who should or should not be admitted into the country, and the conditions under which a legal entrant may remaim." (Id. at 355) Thus, by permitting those who have entered or stayed in the U.S. illegally the ability to remain in the country if they meet certain conditions such as paying a fine and obtaining a work permit, the State of Utah is usurping the federal government's authority to determine who enters the country and under what conditions they may remain.
H.B. 497, the Arizona-style enforcement-only measure introduced by Rep. Stephen Sandstrom, would require any law enforcement officer conducting a lawful stop, detention, or arrest, to check the immigration status of any person they arrest for a felony or class A misdemeanor if that person is unable to provide valid identification. (§76-9-1003) Police would have the discretion to ask those stopped for less serious misdemeanors about their immigration status and would be required to do so only if the person is arrested and booked.
Finally, H.B. 466 would allow the Governor of Utah to enter the state into a "memorandum of understanding" with the Mexican State of Nuevo Leon to create a pilot program to obtain foreign workers. (63G-12-301) Under the agreement, Nuevo Leon would provide migrant workers to Utah businesses claiming to need the trained labor, while the federal government would issue the nonimmigrant visas. (Id.) Participating businesses must certify that "there are not sufficient workers where that labor is to be performed who are able,willing, qualified, and available" and that employment of foreign workers will not adversely affect Utah wages and working conditions. (Id.)
Utah Attorney General Mark Shurtleff — who assisted lawmakers in drafting H.B. 466 — has already met with White House officials to talk about how Utah's approach to immigration can be integrated into a larger scheme. (The Salt Lake Tribune, Mar. 2, 2011; The Salt Lake Tribune, Mar. 11, 2011) "It's unprecedented that a state has come up with an idea about how to legalize illegal immigrants already living in the state," remarked Frank Sharry, Executive Director of the open-borders group America's Voice. (Bloomberg Businessweek, Mar. 10, 2011) "The Obama administration should take notice, support the program and start a dialogue with the state," he added. (Id.) The bills are awaiting Utah Governor Gary Herbert's signature. (Id.)
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