Immigration Reform Caucus

Bilbray Praises Bush Administration for Requiring
Federal Contractors to Verify Legal Status of Employees

 

June 9, 2008

washington, D.C. — Congressman Brian Bilbray, Chairman of the Immigration Reform Caucus, issued the following statement in response to today’s announcement by Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff that all federal contractors will now be required to verify the legal status of all employees by using the federal government’s E-Verify system.

“If we are going to stop the flow of illegal immigration, then we must eliminate the
very magnet that attracts illegal immigrants to our country in the first place – jobs.
With today’s announcement by Secretary Chertoff, we are diminishing the ability of
illegal immigrants to find employment in the United States with companies that do
business with the federal government.”

“By using E-Verify, these employers will no longer be expected to be document
experts. The liability of determining the legal status of an employee is placed on
the government, not the business owner.”

“While I have co-authored a bill (H.R. 4088) that would require all U.S. employers
to use E-Verify, I am very pleased to see this first step taken and commend President
Bush and Secretary Chertoff for acting to prevent illegal immigration. Making E-Verify
mandatory will protect American workers and law-abiding businesses from the unfair
competition created by a massive illegal workforce.”

E-Verify is a quick, easy, and free web-based system that cross-references Social Security numbers and other pertinent information to ensure that a worker is legally entitled to be employed in the U.S.  It is now being successfully used by 56,000 American employers on a voluntary basis.

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