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Proposal will force businesses to verify applicants' legal status

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PHOENIX — Arizona businesses would have to verify the legal status of every job applicant or face fines of up to $5,000 under the terms of legislation introduced Wednesday.

The proposal by Rep. Bill Brotherton, D-Phoenix, and Attorney General Terry Goddard mandates that companies use one of the services now available through the federal government that let employers verify that the name of the applicant and the Social Security number provide are, in fact valid.

Compliance would be monitored by Goddard's office through reports filed by the companies and, potentially, by having state investigators examine employers' books.

Brotherton complained that many measures introduced by other lawmakers have tried to deal with the problem of undocumented workers solely by penalizing those who cross the border illegally.

"If we're going to address this problem we need to address both the supply and demand aspect of it," he said.

The proposal — and a companion bill imposing $5,000 fines on companies for knowingly hiring illegal entrants — are being viewed with alarm by the Arizona Chamber of Commerce and Industry. Farrell Quinlan, an organization spokesman, said the online verification system set up by the U.S. Department of Homeland Security is only a pilot project and incapable of handling the flood of requests that would come if this measure becomes state law.

Chris Bentley, a spokesman for U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services, the arm of the federal agency that runs the program, acknowledged it is being used now only a voluntary basis by about 4,000 companies nationwide which are hiring from 20,000 locations. But Bentley said the system is designed to be able to accommodate far more requests.

Other systems are also available to employers.

The Social Security Administration has a toll-free number where companies can get instant response during business hours on up to five names. Lists of up to 50 can be faxed to the agency, with larger lists having to be submitted in electronic format.

Quinlan said Arizona employers are interested in ensuring the people they hire are here legally. But he said this proposal should be defeated.

"It would shut down hiring if these federal programs are incapable of servicing the rush of Arizona applications to it," he said. "The way the bill is written, you would not be able to hire any employees until you get the OK from one of these systems."

The chamber is no more pleased with another measure offered by Rep. Russell Pearce, R-Mesa, that would revoke any state license, permit or charter of any company found guilty by a federal agency of knowingly hiring undocumented workers. That measure also would deny state contracts and certain tax deductions to these firms.

Like Brotherton, Pearce also relies on federal verification. Companies that use the system would be immune from facing any state civil or criminal penalty if it turned out that an employee was not here legally.

Brotherton acknowledged that many industries have become dependent on undocumented workers to fill positions. He said that is because there is a "fundamental disconnect" between the number of work visas available to foreign workers and the actual demand for labor.

But he said an expanded guest worker program is not the only answer for many of these companies. "I guess they're going to have to pay people more," he said.

Quinlan said employers already comply with existing federal hiring laws. They must fill out a form, known as I-9, which requires companies to document what forms of identification they have obtained.

He conceded it is "admittedly flawed" because employers are not experts in verifying the veracity of the IDs presented to them. "They are not fraudulent document detectors," Quinlan said.

An aide to Gov. Janet Napolitano said she backs Brotherton's legislation.