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  1. #1
    Senior Member Brian503a's Avatar
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    Tougher immigration laws will raise food costs

    http://www.recordonline.com/archive/200 ... 12-15.html

    December 15, 2005

    Tougher immigration laws will raise food costs

    By Jim Allen

    A growing debate is under way in Congress on a proposal to stiffen immigration laws and to impose larger fines on employers who hire unlawful workers.

    It is estimated that close to 9 million illegal workers are employed in the United States, doing work that U.S. citizens usually shy away from. Although U.S. agriculture relies on manual labor and is heavily dependent on migrant or offshore labor, it is not the only U.S. industry that thrives on the same source of labor. The food service or restaurant business, the lodging industry and practically the entire service industry also rely on migrant and offshore labor.

    It doesn't take an economist to recognize the reason that these industries would suffer if the U.S. government does not pass immigration reform that addresses illegal immigrants already working in the country to provide them an avenue to become legal residents of the United States.

    I am not suggesting amnesty; I am suggesting the bill that was introduced in 2003 by Sens. Larry Craig and Ted Kennedy. This legislation reflects years of negotiations on complex and contentious issues among employer and worker representatives and leaders in Congress.

    Recent articles in newspapers across the country reported the push in the House to stiffen the penalties and the fines imposed on companies that hire illegal workers. This enforcement-only approach would be a disaster to all employers who hire in good faith hardworking laborers who have seemingly legal documentation and identification.

    The Illegal Immigration Enforcement and Social Security Protection Act of 2005 would place the penalties and the costs to remove illegal aliens from the U.S. squarely on the backs of the employers.

    Those costs would be passed directly to consumers. It is simple economics - U.S. workers will not harvest U.S.-grown crops, and if they did the cost of food at the grocery store would rise significantly.

    The real truth is, if tougher laws are imposed, the United States will not be able to harvest its crops and your food will be coming from Central America, South America, India and China. It is for the same reason that most of our clothing and all of our cameras and appliances are now imported.

    This plea for the passage of immigration reform is not to provide cheaper labor for U.S. industries; it is a plea for labor and a plea to provide those folks the ability to become legal citizens and to lead productive lives in the United States.

    New York Reps. Engle, Kuhl, Walsh, Boehlert, McHugh, Reynolds and Velazquez have joined 38 other Congress members as co-signers of this important legislation. We appreciate their continued support and urge them to reach out to other state representatives to join this fight. Both New York senators, Hillary Rodham Clinton and Chuck Schumer, are also in support.

    Consumers have enjoyed relatively cheap food costs in the United States for decades. As fuel and energy costs skyrocket, health insurance and health care costs increase, along with education and taxes, food costs have not risen at the same rate.

    Despite increased production costs that are directly tied to energy, taxes and labor, food is still a bargain. If the labor supply in the United States is deported or if employers are forced to pay exuberant fines, U.S. agriculture as we know it will become history.
    Support our FIGHT AGAINST illegal immigration & Amnesty by joining our E-mail Alerts at http://eepurl.com/cktGTn

  2. #2
    Senior Member Scubayons's Avatar
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    B.S Big business says that to keep Cheap Labor, but then will still raise the prices to make even more profits.. For example, Why is gas prices back up to 2.48 today. Was there another Hurricane somewhere.
    http://www.alipac.us/
    You can not be loyal to two nations, without being unfaithful to one. Scubayons 02/07/06

  3. #3
    Senior Member JohnB2012's Avatar
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    For example, Why is gas prices back up to 2.48 today.
    Yowwww! Its gone up to 2.05 to 2.10 or so in Raleigh.

    I'm going to look again today but the last time I checked, it seemed like a lot of the produce at the grocery store was from out of the country anyway. So I agree the price in food hike is bogus.

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