E-Verify: House Finance Committee (Unintentionally) Obviates One Major Obstacle

One of the objections to e-verify has been that to oblige a small business – all businesses – to go on line to verify an applicant’s employment eligibility would be too burdensome.
Rep Trillo and Rep Loughlin reported on Matt Allen’s Violent Round Table Friday night that the budget bill contains a provision that, henceforth, all Rhode Island businesses will file their state tax returns on line. While some might see this as yet another unnecessary regulatory intrusion on the conduct of business in this state, I prefer to see the glass half full. If the Finance Committee has judged that the somewhat complex task of preparing and submitting a business tax return on line is feasible for all businesses, surely e-verify passes the feasibility test with flying colors.
Status: E-Verify has passed the House and is currently waiting to be voted out of the Senate Judiciary Committee. (Even Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano supports it which, frankly, surprises the heck out of me.) For the sake of undocumented immigrants as well as everyone here legally, e-verify is the right thing to do and a reasonable, minimal measure to implement.

Senate Leadership

Senate President Sen. Teresa Paiva-Weed: sen-paivaweed@rilin.state.ri.us 401-222-6655
Senate Majority Leader Senator Daniel Connors: sen-connors@rilin.state.ri.us 401-222-3310

Judiciary Committee Members

Senator Leo R. Blais: sen-blais@rilin.state.ri.us (401) 823-4536
Senator Maryellen Goodwin: sen-goodwin@rilin.state.ri.us (401) 272-3102
Senator Paul V. Jabour: sen-jabour@rilin.state.ri.us (401) 222-6625 (at committee clerk’s office)
Senator Charles J. Levesque (Vice Chairman): sen-levesque@rilin.state.ri.us (401) 683-9194
Senator Erin P. Lynch (D): sen-lynch@rilin.state.ri.us (401) 739-8500
Senator Christopher B. Maselli (bill co-sponsor): sen-maselli@rilin.state.ri.us (401) 222-6625 (at committee clerk’s office)
Senator John F. McBurney III: sen-mcburney@rilin.state.ri.us (401) 725-2459
Senator Michael J. McCaffrey (D; Chairman): sen-mccaffrey@rilin.state.ri.us (401) 739-7576
Senator Harold M. Metts: sen-metts@rilin.state.ri.us (401) 272-0112
Senator Rhoda E. Perry: sen-perry@rilin.state.ri.us (401) 751-7165

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Roland
Roland
14 years ago

I am so sick and tired of hearing illegal alien advocates a.k.a. destroyers of America moan and groan about eVerify.
Isn’t is current that businesses are required to file an I-9? It costs NOTHING to run an employee through eVerify and you do NOT need a computer. There is a phone number that can be used if needed.
Now, here is where a resource that is currently available and in sufficient quantities to ‘fill the need’. Every single dang school in RI has a computer resource room and here’s the better part. There are thousands of multilingual nine year old kids in Providence alone that can help any business owner with data input for eVerify for anyone from Afghanistan to Zaire.
There’s only two things blocking eVerify (S-0210), Weed and Connors…
Here’s one for Weeds assistant.
Joyce A. Urban, Administrative Assistant
Office of the Senate President
State House – Room 318
Providence, RI 02903
Phone: 401-276-5580
Fax: 401-222-2967

joe bernstein
joe bernstein
14 years ago

I can only imagine the threats and coercion being used against those Senators on the committee who are on the edge.
It’s a given that Perry,Levesque,Metts,and most likely Goodwin are against the bill.
Blais and Maselli have supported it.
The others are the focus of the pressure.
If Connors and Paiva-Weed succeed in killing the bill by using extortionate tactics against the remaining Senators,then one must ask,why have any respect for this legislature?
I have no problem if the bill goes down on the floor,not that I would be happy about that,but it is part of the democratic process as exemplified by representative government.
I just want an honest vote by those representing the entire state.Not just those working for Steven Brown,Juan Garcia,Shana Kurland,and Pat Crowley.
Those people I just mentioned have every bit as much right to representation as I do,but not more.
As long as legislative chicanery and cowardice is on the table,why hasn’t same sex marriage ever come to a floor vote in either house?
The people of Rhode Island,lacking voter initiative,are ENTITLED to legislation that is put to an honest vote.

Peter
Peter
14 years ago

RI employers are already required to submit names, addresses, social security, of all new hires to the state. This allows RI to check all new hires against the deadbeat dad (parent) database and enforce child support orders. Why not run this info through the E-Verify database at the same time?
I’ve been to the E-verify site several times. The lengthy sign-up procedure is typical government buracratic crap. To even use E-verify you have to agree to allow your books to be audited at any time by the Dept of Homeland Security.

Mach
Mach
14 years ago

Not so much that E-Verify and online returns aren’t a burden. More like “if they file online it is less paper for the State to process and store so we’ll make them file online.” That provision is about convenience for the State, convenience/burden for the small business has absolutely nothing to do with it.

Brittancus
Brittancus
14 years ago

Americans better wake up, because we are definitely going to get financially overwhelmed with another BLANKET AMNESTY. E-Verify a unique weapon against illegal immigration in the workplace, but must be implemented permanently. It should be enforced for every worker, no matter how long they have worked for any business? There are hundreds of thousands of foreign nationals, working on all rungs of the business ladder, without their immigration status being scrutinized? Don’t let the special interest lobby of globalists and open border insane ideology steal American jobs. They want as much cheap labor as they can cram into our nation, to lower wages in their agenda. E-verify can and will identify foreign labor and errors can be resolved by approaching your Social Security Agency. Its certainly obvious Illegal aliens will stay well away from this government office.
DEMAND E-VERIFY FROM YOUR INDIFFERENT SENATORS. JUST AS WE VOTED THEM IN–THEY CAN BE THROWN OUT. STOP ANOTHER 20 million plus illegal family Blanket AMNESTY before it’s too late? REMEMBER MILLIONS MORE WILL RUSH OUR BORDER, ONCE THE WORD GOES OUT OF AMNESTY.
A resounding–NO–to any AMNESTY. Outside of this–NOTHING WILL HAPPEN–EXCEPT ANOTHER PRE-ARRANGED AMNESTY, THAT TAXPAYERS WILL GET THE BILL FOR IN INFINITY, IF WE DON’T SPEAK UP? READ ABOUT THE IRREVERSIBLE OVERPOPULATION NIGHTMARE. Digest more of the facts and unbiased truth at NUMBERSUSA, JUDICIALWATCH,CAPSWEB, ALIPAC, AMERICANPATROL. Find out undisclosed news and the numbers of illegal aliens in the penal system at THEDARKSIDEOFILLEGALIMMIGRATION & ILLEGALIMMIGRATIONDAILY. This is information you need to understand remains hidden by the liberal national press and the Congress.

kathy
kathy
14 years ago

I’ve written to all the senators. I have also written to congress on the matter. Per usual, I recieved a form letter that had little to do with the letters I sent.

Mach
Mach
14 years ago

You can’t expect a response on this issue from Congress. E-Verify was first created in 1986, 23 years ago! It has never been fully implemented because 1 – it doesn’t always work properly and 2 – it doesn’t work at all if employers just don’t log the employees into it! This won’t get unauthorized workers out of the workplace (they just won’t be reported or paid by check) and it won’t do anything to stop/curb illegal immigration. It is a waste of time and money for business, it is a huge waste of time and money for government, and it doesn’t change anything about the current situation other than to create yet another beaurecratic layer that will only be complied with by those who are already obeying the law. It is the definition of “pointless.”

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