AZ immigration bills pass late session

PHOENIX - An Arizona Senate committee late Tuesday narrowly approved a sweeping bill that would target illegal immigrants in public housing, public benefits and the workplace.

Republican Sen. Russell Pearce is the sponsor of the bill that the Appropriation Committee approved on a 7-6 vote. It now advances to consideration by the full Senate after a legal review and discussions by party caucuses.

Pearce also authored a controversial illegal immigration law enacted last year. The law touched off a nationwide debate on whether states can enforce federal immigration laws.

The Republican-led Appropriations Committee earlier Tuesday approved a bill designed to set up a U.S. Supreme Court case on automatic citizenship for children of illegal immigrants.

The topics brought out supporters on both sides and security at the Senate was heightened, with about a dozen uniformed police officers deployed in and around the building. Some of the officers outside the building stood between small groups of people as they exchanged catcalls and jeers.

Police said four people were arrested and cited for disorderly conduct after disrupting a Democratic senator's news conference about her bill stiffening penalties for a human smuggling crime.

Pearce's bill toughens requirements that employers check work eligibility of new hires, allowing for their business licenses to be suspended if they don't use the federal E-Verify system. Workers caught using a false identity to get a job would face mandatory six-month jail sentences.

It also requires schools to collect information on the legal status of students and report them to law enforcement if their parents don't provide the necessary documents or the documents appear false.

The bill also makes it illegal for an illegal immigrant to drive in the state, providing for a 30-day minimum jail sentence and the seizure of their vehicles if they are convicted.


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[link to www.abc15.com]

Last Edited by Epic Beard Man on 02/23/2011 12:58 PM