Cherokee to tackle illegal immigration

By NANCY BADERTSCHER

Atlanta Journal-Constitution

Sunday, November 16, 2008

The Cherokee County Commission is making another stab at cracking down on illegal immigrants with an ordinance that makes renters prove their citizenship and threatens to suspend the business licenses of companies with undocumented workers.

The commission tried something similar in 2006, with an ordinance on renting that put a bigger burden on landlords.
If you go
What: public hearing on a new Cherokee County ordinance "to prohibit harboring of illegal aliens and suspension of business licenses of business entities that knowingly employ unauthorized aliens"
When: Monday at 7 p.m.
Where: Cherokee County Administrative Complex, 1130 Bluffs Parkway, Canton

The first ordinance was immediately challenged in court and never enforced, and the same groups that objected to it will be in the audience Monday night when the new ordinance is presented to the public.

The latest ordinance would require prospective renters to pay a $5 fee for an occupancy license and provide personal information to the county, including their country of citizenship. The county then could check their immigration status and ultimately force them out by revoking their occupancy permit.

The second provision gives the county the right to suspend the business license of any company found to be employing undocumented workers. Exceptions are made for independent contractors.

Buzz Ahrens, chairman of the Cherokee County Commission, said the new ordinance is meant to send a strong message on a problem that the federal government has failed to address.

“Something needs to be done, and this is a bottom-up approach,â€