My thanks to Chairwoman LOFOREN for yielding me time. I would like to acknowledge the many hours and hard work my friend from California and her staff have put into the many hearings they have had on our countrys history of immigration and the need for reforming our immigration laws. I would like to thank my fellow Blue Dog. Congresswoman GABRIELLE GIFFORDS. for drafting the bipartisan Employee Verification Amendment Act. and her leadership on addressing illegal immigration. I would also like to thank Social Security Subcommittee Chair MIKE McNULTY and Ranking Member SAM JOHNSON and their staffs for their work in ensuring we protect Social Security as we extend and improve EVerify. Due to their work. Social Security trust funds will not be raided. In contravention of current law. to fund the costs of the EVerify program. Our seniors and persons with disabilities should not and will not be burdened with these costs under our bill. This year. House committees have held hearings examining how EVerify works and how it might be improved. I am pleased we have reached the bipartisan compromise the House Is now considering. We must crack down on employers who knowingly hire and take advantage of undocumented workers. and this bill will help do that. This bill will continue EVerify without Interruption for 5 more years. which is very important. and will protect Social Security. The bill also requires the evaluation of the EVerify databases and the need to improve them. as well as the impact EVerify may have on small businesses. nonprofits. and municipalities. We need to address these and other legitimate concerns. like identity theft. so we can implement a far more effective and efficient mandatory employment verification system in the near future with other immigration reforms. I urge my colleagues to support this bipartisan legislation.
Keywords matched
illegal immigration EVerify immigration undocumented