Thread: Michigan CoC Urges House Committee, Reject E-verify Mandate

Michigan Chamber of Commerce Opposes Making Job Providers 'Immigration Police,' Urges House Committee To Reject E-verify Mandate
Posted : Tue, 18 Aug 2009 19:13:04 GMT










LANSING, Mich., Aug. 18

The Michigan Chamber of Commerce is urging the House Judiciary Committee to reject a series of bills on its agenda tomorrow to mandate that certain job providers use the federal e-verify system to check the employment eligibility of new hires online. The bills - House Bills 4355 and 4969 - were introduced by State Representative David Agema (R-Grandville).
"This legislation seeks to make Michigan employers the 'immigration police,'" said Wendy Block, Director of Health Policy and Human Resources for the Michigan Chamber. "Rather than place this mandate on employers, many of whom are ill-equipped to handle this requirement, we believe law enforcement agencies should continue to take primary responsibility of federal immigration laws."
"Congress intended for e-verify to be voluntary," said Jim Holcomb, Vice President of Business Advocacy and Associate General Counsel for the Michigan Chamber. "E-verify, or some other form of mandatory electronic verification, should only be mandated on the federal level in the context of federal immigration reform in order to avoid a piecemeal approach to the immigration issue and headaches for firms operating in multiple states."
"E-verify cannot detect many forms of document fraud or identity theft and is, by no means, foolproof," noted Block. "As a result, many employers and employees, who may have to wait days if not weeks to resolve a discrepancy or error, will be left in limbo if the system is mandatory."
Block concluded, "Although House Bills 4355 and 4969 mandate that all employment agencies and state contractors and subcontractors use e-verify, we are concerned that this legislation is one small step away from mandating that all Michigan job providers use the system."
The Michigan Chamber of Commerce is celebrating its 50th year as a statewide business organization, now representing more than 7,000 employers, trade associations and local chambers of commerce. The Michigan Chamber was established in 1959 to be an advocate for Michigan's job providers in the legislative, political and legal process. It is only one of four state chambers of commerce in the nation accredited by the U.S. Chamber of Commerce.

SOURCE Michigan Chamber of Commerce



http://www.earthtimes.org/articles/show ... 0467.shtml

What? Michigan state agencies have no computers and no Internet access? This is absolute hogwash, but leave it to the Chamber. What are they smoking during their meetings?

And, look at those unemployment numbers . . .

Oh, well. Americans don't want to work anyway, right?

Proposal To Limit Illegal Immigrants
Updated: Wednesday, 19 Aug 2009, 4:06 PM EDT
Published : Wednesday, 19 Aug 2009, 4:05 PM EDT


A new proposal would require some Michigan employers with public contracts to screen their new hires in an effort to prevent the hiring of illegal immigrants.
The House Judiciary Committee heard testimony but did not vote Wednesday on legislation offered by Republican Rep. David Agema of Grandville. The bills would require employers who contract with public agencies to verify eligibility of new employees through an Internet-based system called E-Verify. The program is operated through a division of the Department of Homeland Security.
The Michigan Chamber of Commerce opposes the legislation. The business group says the measure would force employers to be the "immigration police" and could lead to more mandates for employers.

www.myfoxdetroit.com