January 29, 2007


In this update:
President Bush's State of the Union Offers the Same Old Amnesty Plan
Senators Use Minimum Wage Bill to Promote True Immigration Reform
Farmers Branch Amends Ban on Renting to Illegal Aliens, Initiative to Up for Vote in May
Illegal Aliens Cost New Jersey More Than $2.1 Billion Annually!
Press Release
President Bush's State of the Union Offers the Same Old Amnesty Plan
In his State of the Union address Tuesday evening, President Bush once again proposed a pathway to citizenship for millions of illegal aliens, despite public opposition. President Bush called on Congress to pass "comprehensive immigration reform," which includes a new guest worker program with a path to citizenship for illegal aliens, driven by big business looking for cheap labor. While claiming that his proposal is not amnesty, illegal aliens working in the U.S. would be put on a path to citizenship if they meet certain basic requirements, such as passing a background check, paying certain taxes, learning English, and paying a fee.

Congressional Immigration Reform Caucus Chairman and presidential hopeful Tom Tancredo (R-CO) responded to the President's State of the Union remarks at press conference Wednesday morning. He and other Caucus members slammed the White House for ignoring overwhelming public opposition to his unpopular plan. "The President certainly got his wish when he campaigned this past cycle, and did everything he could to guarantee a Congress sympathetic to his 'amnesty for all' plan," said Tancredo. "I am disappointed but not surprised that the President has once again chosen to trot out this same old pig - albeit one with a slightly new shade of lipstick. If there is one thing this President seems intent on demonstrating to the American public again and again, it is that he is utterly tone deaf." Read Tancredo's press release for more on his reaction.

FAIR and many in Congress believe the President's proposal puts the cart before the horse. That is, the President proposed a long list of immigration enforcement measures that may never be implemented, but the amnesty and guest worker program would provide immediate and irrevocable rewards for illegal aliens and employers who want easy access to cheap foreign labor. Read our press release for more on FAIR's reaction.

Meanwhile, illegal alien advocacy groups like the National Council of La Raza believe any immigration plan falls short if it does not legalize all illegal aliens currently residing in the U.S. Some estimate that number to include 12 million, others say it could be as many as 20-30 million. Michele Waslin, director of immigration policy for the National Council of La Raza, told HispanicBusiness.com, "We will oppose any program that doesn't legalize these people since this is an important matter."

An outline on the President's immigration initiative is available on-line at http://www.whitehouse.gov/stateoftheunion/2007/initiatives/print/immigration.html

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Senators Use Minimum Wage Bill to Promote True Immigration Reform
During the debate over the minimum wage bill (H.R. 2) last week, at least two Senators offered amendments on the floor of the Senate to further true immigration reform. Senator Allard offered an amendment requiring the Social Security Administration to notify Homeland Security when it discovers a Social Security account number being used with multiple names, or when an individual has more than one person reporting earnings for him or her during a single tax year. Speaking in support of the amendment, Senator Allard stressed how illegal immigration has led to wide-spread identity theft as illegal aliens steal Social Security numbers to obtain work. Employers may check social security numbers through the Basic Pilot Program, but the Program does not alert the Department of Homeland Security when the Social Security Number is being submitted by more than one employer. By simply sharing this information, he argued, cases of identity theft could be discovered much sooner. The Senate has not yet voted on the Allard amendment.

Senator Jeff Sessions (R-AL) also offered an amendment to the Minimum Wage bill that would impose new sanctions for federal contractors who use illegal alien labor. Under the Sessions amendment, federal contractors employing illegal aliens could be barred from contracts for up to 10 years. Companies that use the Basic Pilot Program to verify legal work authorization would be exempt from the sanctions. The ban would not be subject to judicial appeal, but could be waived on national security grounds.

According to The Washington Post, a variety of business groups oppose Senator Sessions' amendment, including the American Meat Institute (whose meat packing members have been frequent targets of immigration raids), the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, the National Association of Homebuilders, and the Associated Builders and Contractors are opposed to the measure. The amendment was adopted, 94-0, but before becoming law would have to survive a House-Senate conference committee. Debate on the minimum wage bill is on-going this week.

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Farmers Branch Amends Ban on Renting to Illegal Aliens, Initiative to Up for Vote in May
Farmers Branch, a Dallas suburb, is on the frontline of the illegal immigration issue as it moves ahead with its proposed ban on renting property to illegal aliens. Last week, by a 5-0 vote, the city council revised the existing ban in a way that would allow landlords to rent to families with mixed citizenship and residency status. The revised ordinance, which requires the approval of voters in May before it can take effect, will allow landlords to rent to families with a head of household or spouse who has legal residency or citizenship, while exempting minors from mandatory document checks.

Councilman Tim O'Hare, who introduced the ban, told The New York Times that he proposed the idea because residents had told him that illegal immigration was causing "a huge problem" in the city. "People are upset that the law is not being upheld," said O'Hare.

The proposal is a target of the open borders lobby and is being challenged in both federal and state court. FAIR's legal affiliate, the Immigration Reform Law Institute, is intervening in those lawsuits on behalf of FAIR members in Farmers Branch.

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Illegal Aliens Cost New Jersey More Than $2.1 Billion Annually!
This month, FAIR released a new report called "The Costs of Illegal Immigration to New Jerseyites". This report analyzes the public expenditures made on behalf of the estimated 372,000 illegal aliens residing within the New Jersey. The report concludes that New Jersey's illegal alien population is costing the state's taxpayers nearly $2.1 billion per year for education, medical care and incarceration. This annual tax burden amounts to about $800 per New Jersey household headed by a native-born resident. This may explain why the state is suffering, as Governor Jon Corzine admitted, "one of the worst tax burdens in the United States." Read the full report here.

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