Thread: Butler builders may face immigration pledge

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Butler builders may face immigration pledge
BY JENNIFER EDWARDS | ENQUIRER STAFF WRITER
HAMILTON - Home builders in Butler County should be required to sign written pledges not to hire illegal immigrants, according to a proposal made Thursday by Butler County Commissioner Mike Fox.

The potentially controversial and hard-to-enforce concept adds to other recent calls by local officials for a crackdown on illegal immigration.

Fox is proposing new rules in the county's building code requiring home builders to promise that they - and all subcontractors they hire for projects - won't hire illegal immigrants.

Signing the pledge would be required to get a county building permit.

Fox contends that many illegal immigrants are working on home construction sites throughout fast-growing Butler County, where as many as 1,800 homes a year are being built.

Home builders and their contractors "are violating the law and doing it knowingly," Fox said. "You can go to virtually any subdivision in this county and see the vans. ... It is directly affecting the ones who are playing by the rules. It prevents them from competing. Why should we create a building market where we reward the people who break the laws?"

Under his plan, home builders also would be required to sign another written promise, stating that they lived up to the original pledge, once their projects are complete.

Those papers must be signed before the county Building Department issues the certificate of occupancy.

If the Building Department suspects that a home builder is employing illegal immigrants, building officials could conduct random checks by asking for tax records showing that their workers are legal, Fox said.

If the proposal becomes law in Butler County, violators could be subject to a $100 fine for each violation and misdemeanor charges of falsification, which carry punishments up to six months in jail and $1,000 fines, Fox said.

Last year, several county officials openly criticized the federal government for not stopping illegal immigration. They have urged state lawmakers to create a state trespassing law to allow local authorities to depart illegals.

Butler County Sheriff Rick Jones also has drawn national attention for billing the federal government $125,020 since last fall to cover costs of jailing illegal immigrants charged with crimes.

Butler leaders have said their efforts don't target Hispanics but note that 90 percent of the illegal immigrants in the United States are from Mexico. The Hispanic population in the city of Hamilton, the Butler County seat, has grown by 500 percent since 1990, to about 4,000 people. Overall in the county, the Hispanic population has increased from 4,796 to 6,891, or by 44 percent, in the past five years, according to the U.S. Census Bureau.

Scott Robbins, a Fairfield Township man who owns a landscaping business, L & R Enterprises, applauded Fox's proposal. He says he loses business to competitors that hire cheap illegal labor.

"It's just real frustrating because you know what is going on," Robbins said. "They wouldn't be able to bid the jobs like they do otherwise. They have Mexicans they pay $5 or $6 an hour under the table, and it kills people who are trying to do legitimate business."

Butler County Commissioners Mike Jolivette and Chuck Furmon agreed with Fox's idea in theory Thursday, but objected to the Building Department enforcing it via random checks.

Bill Balsinger, Butler County's chief building official, questioned how his 14-member Building Department could enforce Fox's idea.

"My people are not police officers," Balsinger said. "I don't want to profile people."

Greg Palmore, spokesman for Immigration and Customs Enforcement's operations in Ohio and Michigan, said only that agency can enforce U.S. immigration laws.

Dan deStefano, president of the Home Builders Association of Greater Cincinnati, was surprised Thursday by Fox's suggestion. The organization would not support it, he said.

Home builders follow immigration laws to the best of their abilities, he stressed, and do not hire illegal immigrants.

"Our hiring practices require us to hire subcontractors that are registered at the state and have certificates of insurance," he said. "Therefore, the people who we hire legally have to be here legally. We just don't go down to the docks and pick out four or five guys to start laying brick."

E-mail jedwards@enquirer.com.

What's next
Monday, Butler County Auditor Kay Rogers plans to announce a plan to crack down on illegal immigrants.

She said Thursday that people applying for vendors' licenses should be required to show two forms of identification and prove that they are legally permitted to be in the country. There are currently no such requirements.

Business operators also will be asked to sign documents stating that they won't hire illegal immigrants. If they refuse, they won't receive licenses to operate. The Auditor's Office would enforce the rule by conducting random checks of businesses throughout the county.

Butler County should be the role model for the rest of the country.

http://www.middletownjournal.com

Plan aims to stop hiring of illegal aliens
Fox wants to charge construction firms hiring illegal workers
Another official is taking aim at illegal aliens in Butler County.



Commissioner Michael Fox on Thursday proposed criminal charges against construction companies who employ undocumented workers, a proposal that drew opposition from the local home builders association.

His move comes days after county Sheriff Richard K. Jones earned national attention for his policy of billing the federal government to house suspected illegal aliens in the county jail.

Companies that hire undocumented workers, which Fox said is a common business practice, avoid paying health insurance and workers’ compensation for such employees.

“It’s not fair to the business that abides by the law when his competitors are able to put prices on the table and bids that he can’t possibly meet,â€

“It is the INS’ job — not a builder’s job — to enforce legal immigration.

Correct sir. However it is the builder's job to only hire legal workers.

Don't you "just love" the way it is ALWAYS someone's job?
I sure wish all AMERICAN'S would help with getting rid of the illegals instead of using this cop out.