Thread: TX: Lawmakers file slew of bills on immigration

Lawmakers file slew of bills on immigration

Daily Sentinel
January 23, 2011
By Jason Lawrence

The state budget and redistricting are supposed to be the top two issues during the 82nd legislative session. Immigration likely will run a close third.

At least 25 bills addressing immigration have been filed. While some of the bills overlap, they include issues ranging from law enforcement to voter ID to health care to employment.

Language in five of those bills sounds similar to Arizona's law, which made it a crime not to carry immigration documents and gave law enforcement officers broad powers to detain anyone they suspected of being an illegal immigrant.

The Arizona law sparked demonstrations across the county, but Texas Sen. Chris Harris, an Arlington Republican, says his legislation is clear-cut.

"Senate Bill 259 is a common-sense measure that will require a peace officer to inquire as to a person who is already under arrest about their citizenship status and report that individual to U.S. officials if the officers determines that the person in custody is not a citizen, he said. "It is a basic measure of asking those people who are already in custody for a separate offense whether or not they are a U.S. citizen."

Although he doesn't want to comment much on the pending legislation, Nacogdoches County Sheriff Thomas Kerss said he's been forewarned about a possible new law similar to Arizona's.

"It's not really going to come as any surprise to us along the Southern states," he said.

Kerss said he's been meeting with both Arizona and federal officials in anticipation of the new requirements, but he is waiting on the final measure to come out of the Legislature.

Those immigration bills actually are drawing praise from one Hispanic advocacy group's leader.

Joey Cardenas III, Texas director of the League of United Latin American Citizens, says law enforcement officials need to be asking those questions if a person is arrested. It's not about racial profiling, he says.

"Once somebody commits a crime, they are subject to questioning," Cardenas said.

There could be protections for victims or witnesses of a crime. A bill filed by state Rep. Jessica Farrar, a Houston Democrat, would exempt the victims or witnesses from being asked about their immigration status.

The work force

State Rep. Jim Jackson says illegal immigrants are driving down wages.

Jackson has filed a bill requiring all employers to verify a new employee's immigration status through the federal "E-verify" program.

"I think we have a major problem with illegal immigration in Texas," the Republican from Carrollton said. "I think it's important employers hire people who obey the laws of the U.S. and are in the country legally."

Jackson says people are scrambling for jobs they would have turned down 10 years ago, before the economic downturn.

"I'd rather have the citizens of Texas on a decent wage than have them on welfare," Jackson said.

That's a sentiment Cardenas, the LULAC state leader, agrees with. He says employers are supposed to be doing those checks now.

"Greedy businesses want cheap labor. That's it," he said.

The public might be surprised by what LULAC stands for, Cardenas says.

"It's in the best interests of all Americans and immigrants for the borders to be secure."

Jason Lawrence can be reached at jlawrence@dailysentinel.com.

http://dailysentinel.com/news/article_c ... 03286.html

added to homepage
http://www.alipac.us/article6020.html

This is an interesting pg.
http://www.ncsl.org/default.aspx?tabid=21857

Track the bills introduced in Texas here

http://www.alipac.us/ftopict-225029.html