UNEMPLOYMENT
INSURANCE / SOCIAL SECURITY
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Without the enactment of comprehensive immigration reform at the federal level, legislators in 31 states have introduced 179 employment-related immigration bills during the first quarter of 2008, according to an April 24, 2008 report released by the National Conference of State Legislatures (NCSL). Founded in 1975, the NCSL is a bipartisan organization serving legislators and staffs of the nation's 50 states, its commonwealths and territories that provides research and technical assistance on pressing state issues.
As of March 31, at least 1,106 bills have been considered in 44 states this year and 26 states have enacted 44 laws and adopted 38 resolutions or memorials, according to the report. The level of activity is comparable to last year, the report confirms, when 1,169 bills and resolutions had been introduced (as of April 13, 2007). At this time last year, 18 states had enacted 57 laws related to immigrants and immigration. State legislatures had also adopted at least 19 resolutions and memorials.
Employment continues to be in the top three areas of immigration reform, with law enforcement and identification documents being the other two. The 31 state legislatures introducing employment-related immigration bills during the first quarter of 2008 were: Alabama, Alaska, Arizona, California, Colorado, Florida, Idaho, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana Maryland, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, Mississippi, Nebraska, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, Oklahoma, Rhode Island, South Carolina, South Dakota, Tennessee, Utah, Virginia, Washington and West Virginia.
According to the report, state legislatures dealt with a variety of issues in the employment arena, including employer sanctions for hiring undocumented workers and addressing the use of federal employment eligibility verification systems (i.e., E-Verify) by public agencies, private employers or state contractors. Other bills related to immigrants' unemployment compensation, identity theft legislation specific to employment, wage withholding for non-resident aliens and state guestworker programs in Arizona and Colorado. E-Verify is a voluntary, Web-based system operated by US Citizenship and Immigration Services in partnership with the Social Security Administration that allows participating employers to electronically verify the employment eligibility of their newly hired employees. More information on E-Verify can be found at the following website.
The report was prepared by NCSL's immigration policy project and covers provides legislation in the areas of education, health, IDs/drivers licenses, public benefits and voting in addition to employment. The report can be found in its entirety at the following website.
For more information on this and other topics, consult CCH Employment Practices Guide or CCH Labor Relations.
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