The Latest Attempt at Immigration Reform in Minnesota

Igbanugo Partners International Law Firm
Published 02/06/2008 - 3:08 p.m. GMTRate This Article:

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The failure of the federal government to pass comprehensive immigration reform has led state and local governments to take this issue into their own hands. At a news conference on Jan. 7, Minnesota Gov. Tim Pawlenty jumped back into the immigration fray, unveiling his new plan to crack down on illegal immigration. The governor’s plan includes a mix of orders and proposals that reflect some of the steps taken by other states throughout the country.

At the start of 2007, the passage of major immigration legislation at the federal level seemed likely. Both President George W.Bush and the newly Democratic-controlled Congress appeared eager to come to an agreement on immigration issues. Ultimately, the federal efforts at reform were unsuccessful. The topic of immigration, however, has not faded from the public forefront. Many decision makers at the state and local level believe that immigration must be left up to the federal government. At the same time, others are unwilling to wait for action from Washington D.C. As a result, a number of states and cities have enacted measures to address immigration. While some states adopted pro-immigrant measures, such as protecting undocumented workers from exploitation and extending education and health care to their children, most of the state laws serve to limit employment of undocumented workers and to make it harder for them to obtain driver’s licenses and other state identification documents.

Arizona, for example, approved the Legal Arizona Workers Act, which states that employers who knowingly hire undocumented workers may have their business licenses suspended for the first offense, and permanently lose their licenses for a second offense within three years. In Tennessee, employers who “recklessly employâ€