CBS Denver.com

February 16, 2011 3:18 PM

DENVER (AP) – Colorado Republican senators are pushing for bills cracking down on illegal immigration, including one that would give police broad authority to arrest people suspected of being in the country illegally.

That bill is up for a committee hearing Wednesday afternoon at the State Capitol. Republican Sen. Kent Lambert says his proposal’s chances are not good given that the committee is one where Democrats have a 3-2 advantage.

Another bill up for a vote would require nongovernmental state employers to use the federal E-Verify program to confirm a worker’s legal status.

The two bills are among several that Republicans have proposed this session targeting illegal immigration.

A House bill that mimicked Arizona’s crackdown on illegal immigration was killed Monday at the request of its sponsor because he worried about costly court battles challenging his proposal’s constitutionality. Lambert says he doesn’t believe his bill is unconstitutional.

http://denver.cbslocal.com/2011/02/16/c ... ion-bills/