Posted: 3:15 p.m. Sunday, Dec. 30, 2012
By Jeremy Redmon
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution

Hundreds of local and state government agencies must file reports by the end of this year certifying they are complying with Georgia’s laws aimed at preventing illegal immigrants from getting jobs and public benefits here.

As of Dec. 20, 545 of the 2,311 agencies that state auditors are tracking have either filed their documents or said they have nothing to report or are exempt from the requirements, state records show.

Due by Dec. 31, one of the reports is meant to confirm an agency is not issuing business licenses to employers who are not using a federal work authorization program. Called E-Verify, that program helps ensure new hires are eligible to work in the United States.

State lawmakers passed the Illegal Immigration Reform and Enforcement Act last year with an eye toward blocking one of the magnets for illegal immigrants in Georgia: jobs. The Pew Hispanic Center estimated that 325,000 illegal immigrants held jobs in Georgia in 2010. The state’s unemployment rate stands at 8.5 percent, above the national rate of 7.7 percent.

Under Georgia’s immigration law, companies with 500 or more employees were required to start using E-Verify by Jan. 1 of this year. Employers with 100 or more employees but fewer than 500 were required to start by July 1 of this year. Those with between 11 and 99 employees must start on July 1 of next year. Smaller companies are exempt.

Also by Dec. 31, government agencies must file a second report certifying that they and their contractors are using E-Verify.

An Atlanta Journal-Constitution investigation this year revealed that nearly 1,200 city and county government agencies did not file reports by last year’s Dec. 31 deadline, putting them at risk of losing access to state loans and grants. Many later filed reports or said they had nothing to report or were exempt because they had fewer than two employees. As of Dec. 8, 94 cities and 370 local authorities had not reported anything for 2011, state records show.

To boost compliance this year, state officials sent out letters and led workshops about the reporting requirements.

“My expectation is that our percentage of entities complying will be higher this year,” State Auditor Greg Griffin said.

At the same time, the Georgia Chamber of Commerce has been informing employers about the E-Verify law.

“We have provided information to our members about the new requirements,” Joselyn Baker, a spokeswoman for the chamber, said in an email, “and will continue to do so as various parts of the law go into effect.”

The law requires government agencies to file a third annual report by Jan. 1 with the state Department of Community Affairs identifying the public benefits they each issue. That report must also list each public benefit for which they have not received authorization to use the Systematic Alien Verification for Entitlements program. That online program helps determine the immigration status of people so only those entitled to those benefits receive them.

Meanwhile, the Association County Commissioners of Georgia has urged state legislators to amend the immigration law so local governments may combine all three reports and submit them to one state agency.

One Old Vet

Immigration-related reports coming due in Georgia | www.ajc.com