Speech #1040190245

For that reason. after debate on the rule. Mr. Speaker. we shall move to defeat the previous question so that we may amend the rule to make the following three additional amendments in order: An amendment that would delete the H1B foreign temporary worker provisions in the bill and replace them with provisions that protect American workers. an amendment that would promote selfsufficiency for refugees and make the Federal Government. not the States or local communities. assume the cost for refugees. and an amendment that would increase civil penalties for already existing employer sanctions. Mr. Speaker. one of those amendments in particular lies at the heart of this debate. the third amendment. the one that would increase the civil penalties for already existing employer sanctions. The amendments intent is to finally stop employers from knowingly hiring illegal immigrants by making the existing employersanction law truly effective and meaningful. While H.R. 2202 includes increased penalties for document fraud by immigrants. it does not include any increased penalties for employers who knowingly violate the law prohibiting the hiring of individuals who are here illegally. Enhanced employer enforcement penalties have bipartisan support. They were advocated by the Speakers congressional task force on immt.jration reform. by the late Congresswoman Barbara Jordans U.S. Commission on Immigration Reform. and by the administration. They were Included also in the immigration bill reported to the Senate Immigration Subcommittee. These increased penalties are essential to reducing the incentive employers have for hiring illegal aliens and the lure of employment that brings illegal immigrants to this country. If we have learned anything at all from the failures of the 1986 immigration laws. it must be that weak sanctions are meaningless and will do little to prevent illegals from seeking jobs and employers from hiring illegals for those jobs. The need for this amendment is underscored not only by the lack of any increased penalties on employers in the bill but also by the rules selfexecuting provision that makes the Judiciary Committees modest worker verification system voluntary instead of mandatory as the committee itself had recommended. While the Gallegly amendment to restore the committeereported language will be considered. it is obvious that if we think it is necessary to get tougher on employers who break the law by hiring illegals. we must also have the opportunity to consider an amendment increasing penalties on them. In order to reduce the employment magnet for illegal immigrants. penalties for knowing violations of the law should be more than merely a nominal cost of doing business. In addition. while some illegal aliens obtain employment through the use of fraudulent documents. others are employed in the underground economy by businesses that do not even check documentation. Many of those businesses violate other labor standards as well. The presence of unauthorized workers too fearful of deportation to complain about working conditions may be the very factor that enables those employers to break other labor laws. Thus. increased penalties and effective enforcement are critical not only to reducing illegal immigration but also to protecting the workers themselves from unfair labor practices. Importantly. Mr.