Thread: Pennsylvania (2010)

Pennsylvania (2010) Session

Bill: - HB1502
An Act amending Title 62 (Procurement) of the Pennsylvania Consolidated Statutes, in contracts for public works, providing for verification of the Social Security numbers of all employees for purposes of wage reporting and employment eligibility; prescribing penalties; and establishing good faith immunity under certain circumstances.

Summary:
House Bill 1502 would require state contractors and subcontractors that work on public projects to verify the employment eligibility of their employees

Bill- HB 1503
An Act requiring construction industry employers to verify the Social Security numbers of all employees for purposes of wage reporting and employment eligibility; providing for the powers and duties of the Department of Labor and Industry; prescribing sanctions; and establishing good faith immunity under certain circumstances.

Summary:
H.B. 1503 would require all contractors in the construction industry to verify the employment eligibility of their employees. Both bills would require use of the Social Security Number Verification Service to verify existing employees, and the E-Verify Program for newly hired employees. Contractors who violate these rules could be debarred from state projects or, in the case of private construction work, may face forfeiture of state licenses or certifications.

Mission: (support) HB 1503 and HB 1503

Task: Call, Fax, e-mail

Message: (Example)

To the Honorable Senator/Representative ___________,

I'm writing / calling to ask Senator/Representative __________ } Please support and help pass HB 1502 and HB 1503, According to the Center for Immigration Studies, there are 18,000-35,000 illegal workers in Pennsylvania. It is also estimated that up to 18 percent of the construction workforce in this state is made up of illegal workers, this is outrages.

These jobs should be preserved for Americans, not people who are working here illegally. Ten other states have passed mandatory E-Verify bills and three others have issued executive orders.

Thank you,
XXXXXXX

Bill Text: HB 1502
http://www.legis.state.pa.us/CFDOCS/Leg ... 02&pn=2982

Bill Text: 1503
http://www.legis.state.pa.us/CFDOCS/Leg ... 03&pn=2983

Introduced by Rep. John T. Galloway

History
These bills were introducded gy Galloway in 2009, he is reindroducing them again this year.

Contact Information

State Website:
http://www.state.pa.us/

Governor
Gov. Edward G. Rendell
http://www.governor.state.pa.us/portal/server.pt?
225 Main Capitol Building
Harrisburg, Pennsylvania 17120
Phone: (717) 787-2500
Fax: (717) 772-8284

Contact Webmail Form: http://sites.state.pa.us/PA_Exec/Governor/govmail.html

State Senate:
http://www.legis.state.pa.us/cfdocs/leg ... cfm?body=S

House of Representatives:
http://www.legis.state.pa.us/cfdocs/leg ... cfm?body=H

Legislature in Process:
http://www.legis.state.pa.us/cfdocs/leg ... .cfm#bills

Session Information
The General Assembly meets at noon on the first Tuesday of January and then regularly throughout the year. Both houses adjourn on November 30 in even numbered years, when the terms of all members of the House and half the members of the Senate expire. Neither body can adjourn for more than three days without the consent of the other.

The Governor of Pennsylvania may call a special session in order to press for legislation on important issues.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

State Rep. John T. Galloway
D-Bucks
www.pahouse.com/Galloway
Galloway's Job Protection Bills Advance in the House

HARRISBURG, Dec. 8 – A pair of bills sponsored by state Rep. John Galloway, D-Bucks, targeting dishonest contractors who deliberately hire illegal workers to gain an unfair competitive advantage, was voted unanimously from the House Labor Relations Committee today.

House Bills 1502 and 1503 are now poised for consideration by the full House.

"These bills are about saving Pennsylvania jobs," Galloway said. "By penalizing unscrupulous contractors who hire and abuse illegal workers, we can level the playing field for honest contractors who do the right thing and hire American workers and those legally authorized to work here."

House Bill 1502 would require state contractors and subcontractors that work on public projects to verify the employment eligibility of their employees, and H.B. 1503 would require all contractors in the construction industry to verify the employment eligibility of their employees. Both bills would require use of the Social Security Number Verification Service to verify existing employees, and the E-Verify Program for newly hired employees. Contractors who violate these rules could be debarred from state projects or, in the case of private construction work, may face forfeiture of state licenses or certifications.

"Too many good-paying jobs are being lost and many trades are being decimated by illegal and unfair practices that have afflicted the construction industry," Galloway said. "Illegal workers, because they are willing to work under the radar and for less pay, are taking construction trades jobs from well-trained and dedicated Pennsylvania workers. These bills are designed to help reverse this trend."

Galloway also said E-Verify may help to reduce current employment-related discrimination.

According to the Center for Immigration Studies, there are up to 175,000 illegal workers in Pennsylvania. It is also estimated that up to 18 percent of the construction workforce in this state is made up of illegal workers.

Both bills have bipartisan support in the House.
http://www.pahouse.com/PR/140120809.asp
http://www.alipac.us/ftopict-181593.html

Overview
Several states have passed legislation requiring employers to use E-Verify. E-Verify is an employment verification tool managed by the Department of Homeland Security that uses information from the Social Security Administration and United States Citizenship and Immigration Services to determine an applicant's eligibility to work.


Visit your Action Buffet to take action!

Related Issues
Workplace Verification
State/Local Policies
Email this page Printer-friendly version

Update
Pennsylvania Lawmaker Proposes Statewide E-Verify Mandate
Monday, February 8, 2010, 3:39 PM EST - posted on NumbersUSA



Pennsylvania State House
A Democratic Pennsylvania lawmaker is proposing an E-Verify mandate for state and private contractors. Rep. John Galloway says it's a way to protect jobs and reduce the state's 8.9% unemployment rate.

Rep. Galloway believes the mandate will immediately open up jobs for unemployed workers in the Keystone state.

"These bills are about saving Pennsylvania jobs," Galloway said. "By penalizing unscrupulous contractors who hire and abuse illegal workers, we can level the playing field for honest contractors who do the right thing and hire American workers and those legally authorized to work here."

During a hearing on the legislation, the Center for Immigration Studies' Jessica Vaughan estimated that there were 18,000-35,000 illegal aliens in the Pennsylvania workforce.

Ten other states have passed mandatory E-Verify bills and three others have issued executive orders. See a map of states that have enacted E-Verify laws.
http://www.numbersusa.com/content/node/5243

Pennsylvania Bill Aims to Keep Contractors from Hiring Illegal Immigrants

Bill requires contractors to check employees' immigration status

Craig Layne Multimedia Journalist

5:18 PM EDT, June 7, 2010

HARRISBURG - State lawmakers from both sides of the aisle are pushing legislation that would make building contractors check the immigration status of their employees.

If the contractors hire illegals, they could lose state contracts or their licenses and certifications.

Backers of the House Bills 1502 and 1503 said the measures would punish contractors who exploit cheap, illegal labor.

"The illegal alien invasion can only be stopped one way, and that's for our government to shut down the economic faucet that draws them here in the first place," Pa. Rep. Daryl Metcalfe (R - 12th District) said.

Metcalfe in May introduced an immigration bill based on Arizona's controversial immigration law.

Opponents claim the bills targeting the construction industry are more government regulations being forced on businesses that are having enough problems in the struggling economy.

"They should be passing legislation that we favor to reduce our costs, and not be moving legislation that increases our costs and our burdens," Louis Biacchi, director of government affairs for the Pennsylvania Builders Association, said.

Biacchi said he also worries about the accuracy of E-Verify, the federal government's system that checks immigration status using social security numbers.

Pa. Rep. John Galloway, sponsor of the bills, insisted E-Verify was accurate and was improving in its ability to find illegal immigrants.

Galloway said 14 states had similar laws to the ones he has proposed.

The Center for Immigration Studies estimated in April there were between 18,000 and 35,000 illegal construction workers in Pennsylvania.

http://oneoldvet.com/

www.fox43.com


as taken from this ALIPAC post in the NEWS section
http://www.alipac.us/ftopict-202131.html

Pa. House OKs crackdowns on illegal workers
Tuesday, June 08, 2010
By Tom Barnes, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette

HARRISBURG -- The state House today overwhelmingly approved two bills aimed at cracking down on construction companies that employ undocumented immigrants who have entered the country illegally.

House Bill 1502, which bars companies that hire illegal aliens from entering into state construction contracts, was passed 188 to 6. A companion bill, House Bill 1503, which could cost a company its state license and bar it from entering into construction contracts with other private firms, was passed 188 to 7.

Rep. John Galloway, D-Bucks, said some contractors, apparently in an effort to lower costs, are hiring illegal immigrants for construction jobs and paying them less than legal wages and not providing health benefits. The illegal aliens also aren't paying state and federal taxes, he said. This situation is hurting unemployed Pennsylvanians who are seeking work, he said.

Some business groups, including chambers of commerce, oppose the bills, which may cause them to face a difficult time in the Republican-controlled Senate. Under the measures, which Mr. Galloway said 14 other states have already enacted, companies would have to use a system called E-Verify, which includes millions of Social Security numbers in a federal, online database, to ensure that each of its workers has a legal Social Security number or the proper papers showing he or she has entered the U.S. legally.


Read more: http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/10159/10 ... z0qHmZeWdV

http://www.alipac.us/ftopict-202166.html