http://www.lcsun-news.com/news/ci_5247689 -

House vote gives guest worker bill a big boost
By Walter Rubel Santa Fe Bureau Chief
Article Launched: 02/17/2007 01:00:00 AM MST


SANTA FE — The House of Representatives voted 65-1 Friday in support of a memorial that would urge the U.S. Congress to establish a guest worker program for immigrants.

The memorial was part of a package of legislation introduced by freshman Rep. Jeff Steinborn, D-Las Cruces, that is designed to deal with border issues. Others would create a new law defining terrorism, appropriate funding for border law enforcement and create a legislative interim committee on border issues.

Steinborn said at the time that all of the issues are related.

"Our state desperately needs an immigration worker program," Steinborn said Friday. "As we secure our border, and I do strongly support our efforts to secure the border, but it ends up drying up some of our immigrant labor that is vital to our economy."

Steinborn said he spoke to chile growers before debate on the memorial, who told him their industry was being harmed by a drop in the labor pool.

The bill had bipartisan support, with Republicans Candy Spence Ezzell, R-Roswell, and Don Tripp, R-Soccoro, joining with Majority Floor Leader Ken Martinez, D-Grants, in voicing support.

"Its vital to our agricultural areas, especially in our chile fields," Ezzell said. "Also


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keep in mind, this frees the hands of our border agents to be able to focus on the ones who are doing wrong."
While a memorial does not carry the same weight as a bill, it would send a message to the state's Congressional delegation as to the wishes of the state legislature.

President Bush first urged Congress to pass a guest worker program in 2004, stating, "As a nation that values immigration, and depends on immigration, we should have immigration laws that work and make us proud. Yet today we do not," Bush said. "Instead, we see many employers turning to the illegal labor market. We see millions of hard-working men and women condemned to fear and insecurity in a massive, undocumented economy."

So far, however, Congress has been unable to agree on a program.

The memorial now moves to the Senate. A joint memorial to create a new interim legislative committee focused on border affairs passed unanimously Friday.

Other bills in Steinborn's package are not moving through the process as quickly. House Bill 653 to establish new antiterrorism laws is scheduled for its first committee hearing today. House Bill 633 to appropriate funds for border law enforcement was endorsed by its first committee and is now backed up in the Appropriations and Finance Committee. House Joint Memorial 26 to create a new interim legislative committee has cleared its only committee.


Walter Rubel can be reached at wrubel@lcsun-news.com.