Could lead to federal challenge over state’s immigration authority
Announcing the introduction of 16 bills in the state Senate and state House, state Rep. Daryl Metcalfe (R – Butler) argued his National Security Begins at Home package would safeguard the life, liberty and property of Pennsylvanians.
Others are not so sure about that.
Mr. Metcalfe has personally introduced three bills, H.B. 738, 857 and 858. Twelve other legislators, including one Democrat, have either introduced legislation with the representative or are publicly supporting the measures. They are calling for the overhaul of the illegal immigration laws, arguing the U.S. 14th Amendment has been “misapplied.”
“The bureaucrats, who have been actually granting citizenship, when someone’s born in the United States…fail to actually ensure that the individual who is being born meets both criteria for citizenship,” said Mr. Metcalfe. “The first being that they’re born on American soil; the second being that they’re subject to the jurisdiction thereof, as it states in the [U.S.] Constitution.”
The U.S. 14th Amendment states in part “all persons born or naturalized in the United States, and subject to the jurisdiction thereof, are citizens of the United States and of the state wherein they reside. No state shall make or enforce any law which shall abridge the privileges or immunities of citizens of the United States.”
Mr. Metcalfe argued the second requirement for citizenship was an allegiance issue, referencing “people marching in the streets and waving Mexican flags instead of an American flag.”
“When you’re granting citizenship to the children of foreign nationals who are here without our permission and are here temporarily, you’ve created a situation that’s undermining the United States of America, undermining our citizenship for those who truly want to immigrate in the right way and pursue the American dream with a proper work ethic rather than steal the American dream, as illegal aliens have been attempting to do,” said Mr. Metcalfe.
Wendy Sefsaf, communications director for the American Immigration Council, said it was understandable why Pennsylvanians are frustrated with the current immigration laws but warned pieces of legislation like those introduced today could lead to a federal fight that the commonwealth is not financially prepared for.
“I would caution against following Metcalfe…down this road,” said Ms. Sefsaf. “Without looking at these in a thoughtful way, where you’re not stepping on the toes on the federal government, you’re going to end up spending a lot of money.”
She said there are many groups ready to sue states, including the federal government.
Andy Hoover, legislative director for ACLU of Pennsylvania, said the issue has been settled by the federal courts many times, including a case in Hazleton, Pennsylvania, involving the city’s mandate employers use the federal E-Verify system.
Two bills in the National Security Begins At Home package include mandates for Pennsylvania governments to use E-Verify, including for contractors and subcontractors – H.B. 858 and S.B. 637, introduced by state Sen. Kim Ward (R – Westmoreland) – while others rely on its implementation.
E-Verify is a federal database, handled by the Department of Homeland Security, which allows employers to check the legal status of prospective employees, sometimes with mixed results.
“The Third Circuit ruled that because Congress has left E-Verify as a voluntary program, [Hazleton] could not mandate it,” said Mr. Hoover. “The federal government has chosen to leave it voluntary for employers because Congress has recognized there are problems with E-Verify. Congress in its immigration laws has tried to balance three tiers: enforcement, lessening burdens on employers and stopping discrimination based on race and ethnicity.”
A 2008 Government Accountability Office report found about 7 percent of queries through E-Verify could not be verified as “work authorized.” Mr. Metcalfe argued an approximate 4 percent error rate in E-Verify is made up of delayed name changes and actual illegal immigrants trying to work in the U.S.
Mr. Hoover said E-Verify has serious privacy concerns and should not be utilized by states, who cannot fix the problem.
“The databases include Social Security numbers, passport information, visa information,” he said. “It totals over 500 million records and they’re all sitting there online waiting for the hacker to get the information. The states should not be giving the stamp of approval to a system that compromises our identity and our security.”
H.B. 738 would provide state and local law enforcement with full authority to apprehend Pennsylvania’s “estimated 140,000 illegal alien invaders,” said Mr. Metcalfe. The legislation is modeled on the Arizona immigration law and would require citizenship verification for receipt of public benefits, except in the case of health care assistance or short-term distress assistance.
President Pro Tem Joe Scarnati (R – Jefferson), has introduced S.B. 9 which also goes after illegal immigrants’ access to public benefits, along with state Rep. Harry Readshaw’s (D – Allegheny) legislation, H.B. 355; state Rep. Scott Perry’s (R – Cumberland) H.B. 809; and state Rep. Ron Marsico’s (R – Dauphin) H.B. 41. The estimated illegal immigrant cost to public benefits is $500 million annually, said Mr. Metcalfe.
Mr. Metcalfe’s H.B. 738 also includes a clause for Pennsylvania law enforcement officers, who have lawfully stopped an individual for a crime, to verify their citizenship status. This clause would apply in cases where the accused does not have identification, such as a driver’s license or other state identification. The representative estimates Pennsylvania taxpayers spend $74 million annually due to increase state and local government costs associated with police and judicial costs for illegal immigrants.
Several other pieces of legislation in the National Security Begins at Home package include similar provisions, including a crack-down on human smuggling and trafficking in Pennsylvania, such as H.B. 856, sponsored by state Rep. Rob Kauffman (R – Cumberland).
“It’s very straightforward,” said Mr. Kauffman. “There’s no catches to this; people who are here should be legal and we should not have Pennsylvanians or anyone in the commonwealth involved in the trafficking of human beings that are illegally present in the United States.”
Adding another dimension to the illegal immigration laws, several pieces of legislation have been introduced that would go after cities and municipalities, holding them liable for crimes committed by illegal immigrants in their jurisdiction if they allegedly encourage their occupancy there. H.B. 798, introduced by state Rep. Tom Creighton (R – Lancaster), H.B. 865, introduced by state Rep. Jerry Knowles (R – Berks) both address this liability and H.B. 810, sponsored by Mr. Perry, all address this liability.
Mr. Creighton also introduced H.B. 799 and 801 to allow for more cooperation between U.S. Immigrations and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and Pennsylvania’s State Police.
State Rep. Jim Cox (R – Berks), took another angle by introducing legislation for an interstate compact to insist that states be allowed to handle illegal immigration instead of relying on the federal government to solve the problem.
“As a group of states we will define citizenship and we will acknowledge it the way that the United States Constitution already acknowledges it,” said Mr. Cox. “It’s one of the pieces that will allow us to fight this on the national level.”
But the bills being introduced in the package might create more problems than already exist, pointed out Ms. Sefsaf – problems for Pennsylvanians trying to get their papers, please.
“If anything it’s going to get the state of Pennsylvania in litigation, costly long drawn out litigation,” she said. “Most importantly, the citizens of Pennsylvania need to make sure a fiscal note is attached to these. In a time where Pennsylvania is facing a budget shortfall, they want to make sure everything they do is affordable.”
H.B. 439, introduced by state Rep. Mark Mustio (R – Allegheny), would punish Pennsylvania employers who “provide economic incentive” to illegal immigrants to come work in the commonwealth by revoking their license to operate in the state. Such a measure, along with the other bills, could damage the agriculture business in Pennsylvania, said Mark O’Neill, media relations director for the PA Farm Bureau.
Mr. O’Neill said while farmers in the state believe they are hiring legal residents, the state immigration overhaul bills could discourage seasonal workers afraid of being caught in the system. He said a group of Farm Bureau members were headed to Washington, D.C. this week to talk with Pennsylvania’s Congressmen about federal reforms.
“We want to make sure there are enough seasonal workers here that can handle the jobs,” said Mr. O’Neill. “We want to make sure changes that are made don’t dissuade them from coming here and doing the work during those several months because the economic impact could be devastating.”
A 2006 report from the American Farm Bureau estimating the economic impact of losing such migrant workers suggests the cost across the country would be $5 billion to $9 billion, annually. Mr. O’Neill estimated the annual cost to Pennsylvania farmers at $175 million.
“We feel the solution has to come at the federal level and we understand it is frustrating because this is something this has been worked on and talked about in Washington for quite a number of years now,” he said. “It’s something that is obviously a concern to all farmers and it is something we’ll be talking about with lawmakers this week, but a lot of times, when so much is going on with the economy and the wars, some of these other important issues don’t get addressed as quickly as we might like.”
