E-Verify in Effect Until January, City Leaders Say

The Murrieta city attorney made it clear that a new state law nullifying E-Verify enforcement in California cities is not effective until Jan. 1.

E-Verify is a way to check the citizenship status of employees through a U.S. Department of Homeland Security Internet program. Murrieta passed an ordinance earlier this year mandating that businesses use it

"The legislation actually mentions Murrieta's ordinance as being in conflict, so the state law was designed to prevent Murrieta's law," said City Attorney Leslie Devaney, during Tuesday's City Council meeting.

At the prompting and with the consensus of the Council, Devaney said her office will look into whether the state law is consistent with federal law, which allows a state to require E-Verify.

Devaney said they will also research what legal proceedings are available to a city that would want to challege the state law.

"Additionally, our office will work with staff to identify other ways to achieve the city's goal as articulated in its E-Verify ordinance," Devaney said.

Councilman Rick Gibbs suggested reaching out to Congressman Ken Calvert's office to see what Murrieta's options are.

Calvert, R-Corona, created E-Verify in 1996 through legislation as the lone tool available to employers to check the legal status of newly hired employees.

In a news release put out Oct. 14 by his office, Calvert called AB 1236 "an outrage."

“Right now, across America, various states and local governments are enacting mandatory E-Verify. Meanwhile, California is going the other way by enacting a ban on voluntary E-Verify, and in fact the Governor is signing laws to preempt the use of E-verify. This is an outrage,” Calvert said.

“The illegal population looking for work will now head to states that are ignoring the problem and away from states like Arizona and Alabama which have taken a proactive role to fill the vacuum the federal government has left with regard to immigration policy.
 
“People will understandably go where they can find work. However, in a state with 12.1 percent unemployment, we cannot afford the burden on our schools and social services the influx brings."

Assemblyman Paul Fong, D-Cupertino, who was successful in repealing E-Verify with AB 1236, said instead that the bill protects California's workers and businesses, citing problems with the Internet program.

"...The U.S. Government Accountability Office reports that the E-Verify system flags eligible U.S. workers as ineligible to work," Fong said, in a news release. "In these tough economic times, the mandated use of this system would impose a major financial burden on businesses. We need to help businesses grow and protect American jobs, not impose job-killing mandates."