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Saturday, January 20, 2007 — Time: 2:46:47 AM EST
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Cape to put businesses on notice concerning hiring of illegal aliens

By RYAN REITERMAN, reiterman@breezenewspapers.com


It’s very rare that city council receives a standing ovation after passing a resolution.

That’s what council got Monday night when it passed a resolution outlining state and federal laws regarding the hiring of illegal aliens for new and local businesses.

The statutes will be given to businesses when they apply for a local business tax receipt or a building permit.

Americans Standing Tall, a group of local citizens who for months have petitioned council to enforce state laws on illegal immigration, stood up and cheered when council passed the resolution 7-1. Councilmember Mickey Rosado voted against it.

“The council took a giant step forward,” said Anthony Maida, co-founder of Americans Standing Tall. “It puts companies on notice.”

The group started petitioning council in the summer, asking the board to pass illegal immigration ordinances similar to ones passed in other states. Those ordinances punish companies for hiring illegal immigrants, and property owners from renting to illegal immigrants.

But several groups, including the American Civil Liberties Union, are challenging the ordinances in court.

Council maintained illegal immigration was a federal-government issue, and it would be up to them to enforce the laws. Police Chief Rob Petrovich said his department was doing everything it could to enforce the laws.

Americans Standing Tall began meeting with individual council members to see if there was something, anything, they could do. One option was making sure businesses knew exactly what the laws are regarding the hiring of illegal immigrants.

The resolution was drafted, and council voted on it Monday night during its first meeting of 2007. Before council voted, Americans Standing Tall was unhappy with the language of the resolution.

The original resolution stated businesses simply had to sign that they received a copy of the laws. Nothing stated they were in compliance with the laws, or would adhere to the laws.

“If you pass it, it’s a worthless piece of paper,” Maida said. “It doesn’t do anything.”

Council agreed to add the compliance language, but some council members still questioned the effectiveness of the resolution.

“What does it do to stop the existing problem?” said Councilmember Alex LePera. “Enforcement is what our problem is. What does this actually do?”

“It won’t solve the problem of illegal immigration, but it does send out the right message,” said Mayor Eric Feichthaler.