Thread: Dorchester considers penalties for hiring illegal immigrants

http://www.charleston.net


Dorchester considers penalties for hiring illegal immigrants
Wednesday, January 03, 2007



By DAVE MUNDAY



Dorchester County officials are set to get back to work on a proposal to crack down on businesses that hire illegal immigrants.

"I can tell you it's a high priority," said Councilman Larry Hargett, chairman of the safety committee that will study an ordinance introduced in November.

Beaufort County got the ball rolling last year with a proposal to revoke the business license of any company that knowingly hires illegal workers. Dorchester County is considering a similar ordinance.

Beaufort County finalized its Lawful Employment Ordinance last week, and it takes effect in 2008. Enforcement will rely on regular audits, County Administrator Gary Kubic said. Businesses are already required to get papers verifying citizenship when they hire workers. County inspectors will check those papers against other records to make sure the papers are valid. If not, the business will have 60 days to comply or lose its license.

"The whole idea is that an employer can be deceived as well (by workers who submit fake papers)," Kubic said. "We will work with the employer to help them out."

The ordinance encourages but does not require businesses to check workers' papers against a federal online database of Social Security numbers.

"This is just a reinforced effort to check I-9s (papers affirming citizenship)," Kubic said. "It's more than just accepting them at face value."

Beaufort County will have to hire several new inspectors to enforce the ordinance. Auditing one-fourth of the county's 5,000 businesses each year will cost about $210,000 a year, Kubic estimated. A recent increase in business license fees will pay for it, he said.

Dorchester County hasn't talked about how to pay for extra inspections to enforce the ordinance, Hargett said.

It's possible council's safety committee could start talking about the ordinance again Monday - council's next meeting - but the proposal is more likely to be on the agenda at the following meeting, Hargett said. The safety committee is likely to get new members after council elects a new chairman Monday, he said.

Councilman Richard Rosebrock, who introduced Dorchester County's proposed ordinance, said he expects to end up leading the safety committee and will make passing the ordinance a top priority.

"We've got to keep this a country of laws, or we're going to have a fiasco as far as security is concerned," Rosebrock said.

Reach Dave Munday at 745-5862 or dmunday@postandcourier.com.

Added to Home Page
http://www.alipac.us/modules.php?name=N ... e&sid=1808

Migrant proposal advances

DAVE MUNDAY, The Post and Courier
The Post and Courier (Charleston, SC)
January 9, 2007
Copyright 2007 The Post and Courier (Charleston, SC) All Rights Reserved

SUMMERVILLE - A proposal to crack down on businesses that hire illegal immigrants in Dorchester County took a halting step forward Monday.

The County Council gave the ordinance second-reading approval on the condition that the cost of enforcing the measure is calculated before the council gives it final approval.

"I don't want to rush into this without knowing the cost," said Councilman Mike Murphree, who made the motion for the conditional approval.

The ordinance would require companies getting a business license to sign an affidavit swearing they don't hire illegal workers and would revoke the business license of companies that knowingly hire them. The county would rely on audits for enforcement. The county has not done an estimate on what it might cost to hire extra inspectors.

Dorchester County is modeling its ordinance after a similar one that Beaufort County passed last month.

Only one person spoke against the ordinance. "Local governments shouldn't be worrying about undocumented workers," said Diana Salazar of North Charleston, who described herself as an activist for the Latino community.

Salazar, an interpreter, is an American citizen. Her great-grandmother came to the United States from Mexico without the proper papers, but her parents were born here. She helped organize the rally at Marion Square this spring urging Congress to give amnesty to immigrant workers.

Also Monday, the council voted to send a resolution to President Bush and leaders of the U.S. House and Senate urging them to do whatever is necessary to secure borders against illegal immigrants.

In other business Monday, council unanimously elected Larry Hargett as chairman and Willie Davis as vice chairman.

Reach Dave Munday at 745-5862 or dmunday@postandcourier.com.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

http://www.wcsc.com/news/state/5129416.html

Dorchester County Cracking Down On Illegal Immigrants
Hatzel Vela, Live 5 News

Dorchester county is one step closer to passing an ordinance to crack down on illegal immigrants. The proposed law passed second reading on Monday night. If it passes its final reading, the county will hire inspectors to double check the paperwork of businesses to make sure they are hiring only legal workers who have proper documentation.

If the county finds a business knowingly hires illegal workers, they will take away their license. But, hiring inspectors would mean coming up with the cash to pay for them, which is why the law is going back to committee before it goes for a third and final reading. Councilman Mike Murphree says some of the funding could come out of increased business license fees.

Diana Salazar with the Latino Coalition was the only person to verbally oppose the ordinance. Salazar says local governments should let the feds take care of the immigration problem.

Story Created: Jan 9, 2007 at 8:05 AM EST

Story

http://www.charleston.net/assets/webPag ... =1/20/2007

Dorchester to weigh growth issue
Historic overlay district in spotlight

SATURDAY, JANUARY 20, 2007 7:26 AM

By DAVE MUNDAY
The Post and Courier


SUMMERVILLE - A proposal to limit how many houses can be built near Charleston's historic plantations is expected to resurface Monday.

Dorchester County Council will resume discussion of the historic overlay district, according to the agenda that was posted Friday.

Council also is scheduled to give final approval to an ordinance allowing the county to revoke the business license of anybody who employs illegal aliens.

Council will drop previous versions of the historic overlay ordinance and start over, Chairman Larry Hargett said. Council has been debating a proposed historic overlay district between S.C. Highways 61 and 165 for almost two years. At least two versions have been submitted. The latest version has been in the planning committee since last summer.

The new version is similar to the last version but drops buffer requirements along S.C. 165 and narrows the buffer along S.C. 61 from 300 to 200 feet, Hargett said. That means houses could be built closer to the road.

Concern about a proposed 300-foot buffer is one of the reasons council sent the ordinance back to the planning committee last summer. Charleston County's buffer along S.C. 61 is only 200 feet, Hargett said.

In other business, the lawful employment ordinance would authorize the county to audit the papers that employers are required to get verifying immigration status. Officials have not said how much it might cost to hire extra workers for the audits.

The ordinance has generated little local public opposition. Phillip Ford, executive director of the Charleston Trident Home Builders Association, said most builders think it's unnecessary but don't plan to fight it.

"This is all political," Ford said. "If they try to enforce it beyond federal law, they're going to get sued. Let them adopt it and let them try to enforce it. If they catch somebody, more power to them. I just think they need to be concentrating on what their responsibilities are and let the federal government worry about their responsibilities."

Council is also scheduled to pass a resolution urging the federal government to enforce immigration laws.

Council meeting

What: Dorchester County Council meeting
When: 7 p.m. Monday
Where: Council chambers, North Main Street and East Fifth Street North in Summerville, with the entrance in the rear off Cedar Street.

Reach Dave Munday at dmunday@postandcourier.com or 745-5862.