Speech #1090142897

Electronic verification is the way. It has been tested for more than 10 years. and an independent review of the program. the socalled basic pilot program. found that 96 percent of participating employers believe the electronic verification system is an effective tool for employment verification. The Senate immigration bill improves upon the current paperbased system and requires an expansion of the electronic verification system. But the Department of Homeland Security Secretary Chertoff told me personally that he has problems with some of the provisions in the Senate bill and that. as drafted. he considers it unworkable. In my capacity as chairman of the Immigration. Border Security and Citizenship Subcommittee of the Senate Judiciary Committee. I intend to hold a hearing in the coming weeks on this critical issue of employment verification to make sure we get it right. Twenty years ago Congress sold Americans a bill of goods. They said if you will accept the amnesty. then we will have workable worksite verifications and sanctions against employers who cheat. Yet today. here we are wrestling with the problem. not of 3 million undocumented workers but 12 million. Obviously. the amnesty without worksite verification and employer sanctions is merely a magnet for future illegal immigration. I believe Americans are a forgiving people. If someone makes a mistake and repents. asks forgiveness and says. Ill try better next time. they are pretty forgiving. But if we are viewed as merely repeating the same mistakes and attempting to trick the American people into accepting another amnesty without actually trying to solve the problem. the consequences for our society and for our national security and for our economy will be too great. I will. therefore. continue to work with my colleagues diligently during the conference with the House to develop an employment verification system. along with a temporary worker program. that reduces employer burdens and protects workers rights. but which will allow us finally. once and for all. to come to grips with our broken immigration system.