Obama Announces Plan for Immigration Reform; Proposes Modifications to E-Verify
Friday, May 13, 2011(American Meat Institute)
President Obama this week announced his plan
for comprehensive immigration reform. The
administration’s plan includes four
parts: increased border security,
accountability for businesses who hire
undocumented workers, reforming the visa system
to expand the legal immigration system and a
plan for bringing those in the U.S. illegally
into the legal system.
The
plan also proposes several modifications to the
current E-Verify system
including:
• Phasing in
mandatory use of the E-Verify system over a
multi-year period in conjunction with a program
that requires the undocumented population to
get right with the law. Employers with more
than 1000 employees would be required to join
the system first, with additional phases that
add more employers in succeeding years. Some
small businesses could be exempt from using the
E-Verify system;
• Establishing a
standardized process for efficiently reviewing
cases when the E-Verify system is unable to
confirm a worker's authorization status, giving
employees prompt notice of the problem and
adequate time to correct their records;
• Revising and expanding
anti-discrimination provisions of immigration
law and providing more comprehensive
anti-retaliation protections;
• Increasing civil penalties for
employers who knowingly hire unauthorized
workers, violate anti-discrimination
provisions, and engage in retaliation against
employees;
• Providing a
“safe harbor” for employers who employ
undocumented workers, if the E-Verify system
inaccurately confirmed their work
authorization;
• Improving
administration and coordination between the
Social Security Administration (SSA) and
Department of Homeland Security (DHS), the two
federal agencies managing the E-Verify
system;
• Providing clearer criminal
provisions and more comprehensive penalties for
fraudulent use or acquisition of a Social
Security card;
• Continuing to improve Social Security
cards to make them fraud or wear-resistant. SSA
would need sufficient resources and time to
prepare for a multi-year phased-in approach
given the additional work caused by expansion
of the program. Additionally, any changes
should not be paid for by drawing from SSA
trust or benefit funds; and
• Piloting the development
of a biometric identifier that could be
potentially used for employment verification in
the future.
“The meat
industry has been involved in the E-Verify
program since its inception and supports
efforts to achieve a practical and functional
worksite electronic employment verification
system and the necessary tools to secure our
nation’s borders,” said AMI President and CEO
J. Patrick Boyle. “AMI has supported the
E-Verify program and has advocated for
improvements to strengthen the system. We are
encouraged by the president’s recent statements
to improve this important tool and we look
forward to continuing our work with the
administration on this issue.”
For
more information on the president’s proposal,
go to http://www.whitehouse.gov/issues/immigration.
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