http://www.rockymountainnews.com/drmn/l ... 25,00.html

Immigration laws leave employers confused, defiant
By Myung Oak Kim, Rocky Mountain News
September 22, 2006
Come January, all employers in Colorado must follow stricter procedures to document that new workers are in the country legally.
Firms that get state contracts, grants, loans and economic incentives will be affected even earlier.

The requirement is part of a package of state immigration laws passed since the spring.

But there's evidence that employers are widely confused about how to comply with the new laws and what to do when the laws conflict with existing federal regulations.

One business consultant even predicts the Colorado laws will be struck down in court.

In the meantime, employers are worried about the new government scrutiny. A federal raid Wednesday at a construction site in Aurora only worsens their anxiety, said Tony Milo, executive director of the Colorado Contractors Association.

"There's nervousness out there as to how far is this going to go," said Milo, whose association represents about 350 firms statewide that do highway construction.

The new laws "are troublesome because they're vague and sometimes they conflict with current federal law," Milo added.

Greg Ritscher agrees. He's director of domestic operations of the Federation of Employers and Workers of America, a nonprofit trade association representing businesses and employees hired through the federal guest-worker program.

He contends that the new state laws include tougher rules and penalties than federal employment law, which isn't allowed.

Ritscher predicts the first company fined by the state will challenge in court. "And I bet you the state doesn't win," he said.

Of the 17 immigration laws passed by the legislature and signed by the governor, three directly affect employers:

• House Bill 1343, which took effect last month, requires employers who receive state contracts to use a federal online database called the Basic Pilot Program to check whether new hires are legally in the country.

• HB 1001, which takes effect Oct. 1, requires employers to prove they don't have illegal immigrant workers in order to qualify for state economic development grants, loans or incentives.

• HB 1017, which takes effect Jan. 1, requires employers to keep documentation that attests that their new hires are in the country legally and that the employer has not altered or falsified an employee's ID documents. The State Department of Labor and Employment can fine an employer up to $5,000 for the first violation and up to $20,000 for subsequent violations.

State Rep. Angie Paccione, a co-sponsor of HB 1017, said the law is meant to put employers on notice that they must hire workers who are legally in the country.

But union advocates don't expect the new laws to change hiring of illegal immigrants in industries such as construction.

Robert Greene, a labor consultant and lobbyist, said employers aren't going to follow the law unless they're forced to.

"I think they'll just ignore it just as they've done in the past," Greene said. "It's getting worse all the time. The legitimate contractors can't compete, so pretty soon they go out of business."