DELPH INTRODUCES IMMIGRATION BILL Sen. Mike Delph (R-Carmel) has introduced SB 590, a sweeping attempt to address at the state level illegal immigration and many associated issues. Among the many provisions of the bill are: employers who hire illegal immigrants could be penalized and eventually shut down; state and local law enforcement officers who stop anyone for violating a law or ordinance are to ask for proof that the person is here legally if the officers have “reasonable suspicion” that the person is not a citizen or legal visitor; government transactions, documents and meetings are required to be exclusively in English; employers doing business with the state would be required to use the federal E-Verify system; the state would be directed to bill Congress for the costs incurred by the state as a result of illegal immigrants; local units of government would be prohibited from limiting the enforcement of federal immigration law.
The bill, which is scheduled for a February 2 hearing in the Senate Pensions and Labor Committee, has been criticized by business groups, social groups and the media. In an editorial opposing the bill, The Indianapolis Star commented, “Frustration over Washington's failure to deal with immigration is behind this and other state-level initiatives. The impatience is warranted. The hodge-podge of legally questionable ‘solutions’ is not, especially in light of the limited resources and myriad other challenges states face. “
Indiana Farm Bureau policy very clearly states that immigration is a federal issue and should be dealt with in Washington. At its recent convention in Atlanta, the American Farm Bureau Federation reaffirmed its very comprehensive policy which calls for the strengthening of present immigration and naturalization laws in a manner that will adequately address agriculture’s unique needs for a legal workforce by recognizing that agricultural jobs are arduous, and often seasonal and migratory.
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