Speech #980210725

I yield my self such time as I may consume. Mr. Chairman. it must be clearly understood that the sharp disagreement which H.R. 1510 has evoked throughout this body and this Nation results not from differences regarding need for immigration reform. but rather from strongly felt differences regarding the manner in which we address the recognized problem. I. for one. am fearful that in our haste to adopt H.R. 1510 merely because it has been proposed. as many of our media institutions have urged. we may fail to realize. or perhaps deliberately ignore the fact that it is a legislative solution which does not address the critical problem of illegal immigration and the health and economic hardships which it creats for American citizens. Our haste and willingness to rely on employer sanctions. which is at the very heart of the bill. as a mechansim by which to control the flow of illegal persons into this country should be of major concern to us. We race to enact legislation which is certain to institutionalize employment discrimination even while proclaiming that we are opposed as a Nation to discrimination in our national work place. Moreover. we do so without any firm evidence that imposition of sanctions is an effective way of reducing the employment of illegal workers and thereby the flow of undocumented persons into this country. Indeed. the August 1982 General Accounting Office study of 20 countries concluded that such laws were not an effective deterrent and the experience in this country is not significantly different. A recent review of 11 States with employer sanction laws revealed a pattern on nonenforcement.