Illegal workers on state agenda

Six bills target illegal immigration in Florida as national efforts stumble.

By JOSE CARDENAS

In the two years since immigration reform legislation stalled in Congress, many states have passed their own laws targeting illegal immigrants.

And soon Florida could join them.

Legislators have filed six bills that would, among other things, penalize farms and government contractors that hire undocumented immigrants or require local officials to report their arrests to federal authorities.

Come spring, legislators could debate whether to make it harder for an estimated 850,000 undocumented immigrants to live and work in Florida.


“Our federal government, in my opinion, has failed our citizens in dealing with the crisis of illegal immigration,â€