Issues and Answers

Any discussion of illegal immigration has to acknowledge that securing the integrity of our nation's borders is a federal responsibility. We must also acknowledge that in this regard, the federal government has totally abrogated its responsibility and has allowed the influx of illegals to become a plague on our society. Only now that states throughout the country (not just those with southern borders with Mexico) are being impacted by vast numbers of undocumented entrants has any attention been directed to the problem on a national level.

With the growing recognition of the impact in Arizona, the voters passed Prop. 200 in 2004. Implementation was delayed as various groups, and our Governor and Attorney General, debated its meaning and attempted to have it invalidated in the courts. But its basic provisions of proving citizenship in order to register to vote and cast a ballot, and before being provided certain state services, have prevailed.

In 2005 and 2006 sessions, the Arizona Legislature again attempted to pass laws that we believed would not only stop the illegals at the border, but also remove some of the incentives that drive them here. More than a dozen such laws were passed by both the House and Senate, but were vetoed by the Governor. Throughout this past year, we were told that what was needed was a "comprehensive" plan, and that the Governor would not sign anything but. So we crafted what was known as the "Immigration Omnibus Bill" that carefully put together 13 items, most of which had been included in the vetoed bills, but which also took into account the Governor's objections as put forth in her veto letters. She summarily vetoed that as well, leaving us with nothing to show for our efforts at trying to do what our constituents want.

The Omnibus Bill included some elements of employer sanctions that were worked out in conjunction with the business community. My personal feeling is that such sanctions cannot be utilized fairly until the federal government produces some sort of identification card that will provide adequate information as to whether an individual is entitled to work legally in this country. This card or document must be secure, tamper proof, not easily counterfeited, and it's use would have to be universal. Under our current system, documents that prove eligibility to work are easily available for purchase and many are hard to detect as forgeries. If an employer becomes too zealous in his inspection of these documents, he can be charged with harassment. If he denies employment to someone whose documents seem questionable but who turns out to be "legal," he can be sued for discrimination. This is an untenable situation for any business and must be clarified before stricter sanctions are contemplated.

Here are a few of the other provisions of the Omnibus bill, which I fully supported and will continue to support:

$10 Million for National Guard deployment to the border, conditional on their performing actual guard responsibilities.
$25M in each of next two fiscal years for border radar.
$10M to DPS for additional officers to be placed on the border.
Prohibition on punitive damage awards -- illegals would have no standing in Arizona courts.
No "sanctuary" -- requiring counties, cities and towns to support law enforcement's full compliance with Federal laws.

Please be assured that the Arizona legislature will continue its fight to protect our citizens from the many problems associated with illegal immigration. If only we could get cooperation from the Governor!