Monday, 04/23/07

Lawmakers speak loudly, act slowly on immigration
Despite campaigns that pledged change, few bills reach floor of state legislature

By JESSICA FENDER
Staff Writer


Midstate voters propelled to the November ballot box by strident campaign pledges to curb illegal immigration will probably watch with disappointment as lawmakers descend Capitol Hill in the next few weeks.

Despite the onslaught of bills aimed at making life more difficult for undocumented immigrants and the businesses that employ them, only a handful have made it as far as a floor vote in even one chamber.


Many are mired in partisan politics, lawmakers say. But legislators may have little incentive to push the kind of substantial changes that would upset business interests reliant on immigrant labor, one political scientist points out.

Whatever the holdup, Columbia auctioneer Norman Dean warned that he expects more than lip service from any politician hoping for his vote in the future.

"There's a lot of people that think about it and are worried about it, but nobody seems to do very much," said Dean, who added he was more hopeful just six months ago when anti-illegal immigration campaigning reached a fever pitch.

Immigrant advocates argue that legislative inaction is the right course, because stripping rights from undocumented residents causes bigger problems when illegal immigrants can't drive or seek help from authorities without fear of being deported.

Small towns and midsize cities like Nashville are starting to see more legal and illegal immigrants, one factor that both sides agree has inspired a spate of state-level initiatives across the country.

Statehouses are clocking a record number — 1,169 nationwide — of anti-illegal immigration bills, according to the National Conference of State Legislatures. That includes as many as 53 from Tennessee, which would cost taxpayers millions if all were enacted as law.

They won't be.

Tennessee lawmakers have signed off on an annual bluegrass day and the regulation of dental jewelry since the session started in January.

But only about five immigration bills — including one to prevent undocumented residents from receiving driver's licenses and another to punish employers of illegal immigrants — have found even part of that success. Those have survived the Republican-controlled Senate, but still face the Democrats in the House.

Tougher legislation that would allow local authorities to enforce immigration laws and make it a felony to knowingly employ illegal immigrants remain in limbo. Tries at requiring voters to prove their legal citizenship have failed.

Conflicting pressures felt

It may be that lawmakers are conflicted, said University of Tennessee political science professor Anthony Nownes, who studies special interest groups. On one hand, he said, there's political pressure to address illegal immigration and appease riled voters. On the other, there are the businesses that rely on immigrant labor and contribute hefty sums to political campaigns.

The Midstate Association of Builders and Contractors, for example, contributed nearly $20,000 to Midstate candidates in 2006, according to records from the Registry of Election Finance. Construction interests in total gave candidates from across the state more than $100,000 in 2006.

"They want to do something, but they don't know exactly what to do and they're not willing to go too far," Nownes said. "So you're seeing bills that don't really promise to change much. That's why you see people tinkering around the edges."

Some of the Midstate politicians who railed the loudest against illegal immigration in November have introduced few, if any, bills to address the issue. But they're adamant that they're fulfilling their campaign promises.

Rep. Debra Maggart, R-Hendersonville, said that while none of her proposals directly target undocumented immigrants, her votes in committees and subcommittees have kept key Republican immigration proposals alive.

She acknowledged that voters won't be wholly satisfied come the final gavel fall.

"I don't believe we're going to get everything we want," Maggart said. "I do believe we are making headway."

Tennesseans for Responsible Immigration Policy founder Theresa Harmon, who has followed the issue for seven years, gave her stamp of approval to Midstate lawmakers who campaigned on anti-immigration platforms.

"The ones that made a big deal out of it (during the election), they've been living up to it. They've been sponsoring bills … and supporting them," Harmon said.

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