Legislature favors sanctions law changes
New bill addresses business owners' unease
Mary Jo Pitzl
The Arizona Republic
Mar. 28, 2008 12:00 AM

A package of changes to Arizona's employer-sanctions law appears headed for speedy approval in the Legislature, after a preliminary favorable vote Thursday in the House of Representatives.

The changes attempt to address concerns raised by business owners after the law was passed last summer. They also widen the reach of the law, extending state sanctions to independent contractors and employers who pay in cash.

The sanctions law targets Arizona employers who are found to have knowingly or intentionally hired illegal workers. It's been in force since Jan. 1. To date, no prosecutions have been brought under the law.





The bill could be on Gov. Janet Napolitano's desk by next week, said a confident Rep. Russell Pearce, R-Mesa, sponsor of House Bill 2745.

"We've worked long and hard to eliminate any unintended consequences," Pearce said.

The wide-ranging bill makes numerous fixes to the law, such as clarifying that it applies to workers hired as of Jan. 1 (as opposed to those hired earlier). It also stipulates that if an illegal worker is found to have been hired by a business with multiple locations, the sanctions apply only to the site where the hire occurred.

The bill extends the state's ability to suspend or revoke business licenses to employers who hire independent contractors, a loophole that Pearce said many business owners complained about. And it puts new requirements on employers who pay in cash only: They must comply with the state's tax-withholding laws, workers' compensation laws and other reporting requirements or face fines of up to $5,000.

In addition, the measure creates a voluntary program for employers who want to demonstrate they have only legal workers on their payroll.

"The employer says, 'I have nothing to hide,' " Pearce said. "It gives them a great good-faith argument."

Democrats tried to pepper the bill with various amendments, such as dropping a provision that allows anonymous complaints. They also wanted to remove a business' articles of incorporation from the list of business licenses that the state could revoke for having knowingly or intentionally hired an illegal worker.

Those attempts were beaten back, and the overall bill passed on a voice vote largely along partisan lines.

Rep. Theresa Ulmer, D-Yuma, complained that without some further changes, the bill still poses undue harm to businesses.

She objected to the part about anonymous complaints, noting that business owners convened in a special study group by House Speaker Jim Weiers had listed that measure as one of their key concerns.

Pearce, however, refused to budge. He noted that Silent Witness, a crime-reporting system, relies on anonymous complaints without trampling over people's rights.

A formal House vote on the bill is expected next week, with parallel action in the Senate. That strategy speeds up the bill and could put it before Napolitano in early April. Backers are hoping to get a two-thirds vote in each chamber. That would be enough to trigger an emergency clause, meaning the bill would take effect upon the governor's signature.

Lawmakers are hoping passage of the bill would convince backers of competing employer-sanction ballot measures to abandon their campaigns. Both sides - a strict immigration-enforcement camp and a coalition of businesses - have suggested they'd consider such a move, although the petition drives are still under way.

In addition to the sanctions bill, House members also gave preliminary approval to a bill that would make it a Class 4 felony for someone to rent, sell or otherwise engage in a property transaction when they know that the other party intends to use it as a drophouse.

The bill is sponsored by Rep. Adam Driggs, R-Phoenix.
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