1005_Group_P2

Position Paper – Part Two

Name: Dane Sauer HB 1005 P2

In order to stop illegal immigrants from coming in to the country we have to cut back on what is making them come into the United States. The reasons that these illegal aliens come into our country is for the jobs that we provide, and what they are trying to escape from--their own country. One thing we can start with for controlling illegal immigrants would be to beef up boarder control and do a clean sweep of the country in order to weed out the illegal immigrants already here (Black). More restrictions could be put in place into who is allowed into the U.S.   Similar to other solutions, one possibility would be to create a new system to identify legal immigrants and citizens from illegal immigrants. One such system would be a National ID system. This system would contain every American worker that has registered. All workers must register, and all employers must receive permission from this system to hire an employee. This system would be a huge undertaking. It would require a creation of an advanced computer based registration system and the creation of a new department to oversee its operations. It would be effective, but also a hassle. Not only would employers have to go through their normal hiring routines, they would have to receive permission from the government to hire any workers (Miller). But, this would cause a delay in hiring processes and unneeded waiting time for possible employees. The benefit is it would eliminate illegal immigrants instantly. They would not be able to get jobs and not be able to make an income. Another idea would be to update the current system. This could be anything like upgrading the border or allowing states to manage deportation. Upgrading border security is expensive and takes a lot of time (Service). It also can be bypassed as immigrants find new measures to sneak by, making an upgrade necessary once again. Another idea would be to use the manpower we already have, such as the IRS. There are many other work forces in the US currently available that could be adapted to help the immigration problem. Some people believe that no immigrants should be let into the U.S. Then we can focus only on catching the illegal aliens that are already in the country. We could give state law enforcement officials the right to question suspected illegal immigrants and if found to be illegal they are turned over to the federal government. We would form a new government agency that would be able crack down on illegal immigrants. The solution we propose is to allow state law enforcement officials to question suspected illegal immigrants for proof of citizenship. Even though states are still not able to deport individuals, enacting this measure would bring them one step closer to controlling the illegal immigration problem. Once an individual is questioned, they can be handed over to federal officials if they cannot prove their citizenship. Proving one's citizenship would not be difficult or time consuming, simple documents such as social security numbers or valid birth certificates would be valid proof. The main positive of this solution is that it is relatively inexpensive. It allows the current system to become more efficient by giving already hired law enforcement officials the ability to question suspected illegal immigrants. It does not require a new agency or a new workforce, only small amounts of training for those already hired. It basically expands the current system enacted now. This solution would take effect on January 1, 2012. All officials permitted to perform this questioning would be expected to have completed training by this date. Each individual state's law enforcement agency will be responsible for training and implementation of the bill.