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Former ICE Chief Calls for E-Verify Reauthorization |
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by Mickey McCarter
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Wednesday, 25 February 2009 |
The system effectively protects employers, Julie Myers Wood says
The E-Verify employment eligibility program, due to expire March 6, should receive permanent authorization from Congress as soon as possible, Julie Myers Wood, former director of US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), told HSToday.us.
"E-Verify encourages companies to comply with the law. It's not perfect; it's not a comprehensive solution; but it does provide a critical piece toward employment verification. It helps reduce the number of individuals using phony documents to get a job," said Myers Wood, now president of Immigration and Customs Solutions LLC.
Myers Wood testified before the Indiana state legislature earlier this month in support of a state law that would mandate the use of E-Verify. There, she cited statistics that show 96 percent of employees checked through E-Verify receive instant clearance that they are legally eligible to work in the United States. Of the 4 percent who do not, 90 percent do not challenge the results of the E-Verify check against the Social Security Administration database.
The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) has been taking steps to prevent fraud through E-Verify as well, Myers Wood said.
"There are challenges with respect to identity theft," Myers Wood commented. "E-Verify is taking some steps to solve that problem. A number of private individuals, including my company, are looking at helping employers solve that problem.
"But it's a marked improvement over doing nothing. It protects the employer. Very few if any employers have been subject to criminal sanctions when they are using E-Verify. ICE has to show, in a criminal case, that the employer knowingly hired illegal aliens. Using E-Verify provides some insulation against that," she added.
Congress is currently debating an omnibus spending measure that would temporarily extend E-Verify through the end of the fiscal year. Myers Wood expressed dissatisfaction with such "piecemeal reauthorization" and called for full implementation of a federal rule that would require federal contractors to use E-Verify on their new hires.
Currently, the federal contractor rule is set to go into effect May 21. DHS delayed the effective date of the rule from Jan. 15 to give Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano time to study the objections of opponents such as the US Chamber of Commerce.
Once effective, the rule would require employers to enroll in E-Verify when they receive a federal contract or a subcontract that requires enrollment.
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Mickey McCarter |
| About the author: |
| eNewsletter Editor/Senior Washington Correspondent,
is a journalist with more than a decade of experience in reporting
on
military affairs and information technology.
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