Parts of Georgia, South Carolina immigration laws go into effect today

By Nicolas Mendoza | 07.01.11 | 10:48 am

Although two of the more controversial provisions of Georgia’s new immigration enforcement were blocked by a federal judge on Monday, other provisions that were not overturned go into effect today. It is now a criminal offense to apply for a job with a false I.D. in Georgia, punishable by up to $250,000 in fines and 15 years in jail.

There have been reports of immigrants, Hispanics and others who may be affected by the new law fleeing the state before it goes into effect. This has resulted in serious labor shortages, leaving crops to rot in fields and forcing farmers to raise prices to pay for new workers. It’s unclear which parts of the law were of greatest concern to the people leaving the state, but anecdotal accounts reported by the Atlanta Journal-Constitution suggest the judge’s decision was a relief to some of the immigrants thinking about leaving:


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