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Arizona Governor Signs Immigration Bill
by Michael Martinez
Spurred to action by the apparent collapse of federal immigration legislation last week, Arizona Gov. Janet Napolitano on Monday signed into law a rigid proposal targeting businesses that hire undocumented workers.
Napolitano, a Democrat, authorized legislation that will require businesses in her state to verify the eligibility of new workers against a federal database. The new law has been advertised as the most aggressive state immigration act in the country.
In a signing statement, Napolitano said she was left with little choice after the U.S. Senate failed to limit debate on federal immigration legislation last week. It was the second time this year that an immigration bill stalled in the chamber on procedural grounds.
"Immigration is a federal responsibility, but I signed [the bill] because it is now abundantly clear that Congress finds itself incapable of coping with the comprehensive immigration reforms our country needs," she said. "I signed it, too, out of the realization that the flow of illegal immigration into our state is due to the constant demand of some employers for cheap, undocumented labor."
Arizona businesses will have to begin using the employment-verification database, which is administered by the Homeland Security Department and the Social Security Administration, in January. Napolitano said she would be willing to hold a special legislative session in the fall to clarify and correct some of the law's provisions, but she did not want to weaken it.
Her signing statement outlined several areas where she believed the law could be improved. They include funding for enforcement and protection for "critical infrastructure" such as hospitals and nursing homes. She also said the provision to revoke the licenses of businesses that commit repeat offenses may be overly broad because it would force firms with multiple locations to close their entire operations if incidents occur at a single location.
"We must not harm legitimate Arizona employers and employees as we seek to curb illegal employment practices," she said.
Other states, including Colorado and Oklahoma, enacted employment-verification measures earlier this year.
E-Mail Hoax Warns Of Texas Traffic Laws
Texas officials this week scrambled to dispel online rumors circulated about the implementation of new traffic laws in the Lone Star State.
The Public Safety Department issued an alert Tuesday warning residents about an e-mail hoax falsely reporting that the state is preparing this month to enforce restrictions on the use of cellular telephones while driving, as well as new rules for seatbelts and carpooling.
"There are no new traffic laws going into effect in July," the department said. It is currently compiling a list of regulations set to take effect in September.
AP reported earlier this week that the department was flooded with calls after the bogus e-mails began circulating. Spokeswoman Tela Mange said investigators believe the hoax originated from computers in California.
Missouri Attorney General Jay Nixon, meanwhile, alerted farmers in his state of an elaborate scam involving a state-operated Web site.
Nixon warned farmers that criminals have been preying on hay businesses that have been using a state online directory to advertise and sell their goods. According to law enforcers, several hay farmers have received fraudulent e-mails from con artists posing as potential buyers.
In a release, Nixon said the criminals have been asking farmers to wire them money and have been using phony checks to bait them into doing so. He recommended that farmers take extra precautions when they do business with people they have not met in person until investigators have determined who is behind the scams.
"Farmers need to be able to take advantage of the excellent marketing and networking offered by the state hay directory without worrying about falling victim to an outright scam," he said.
District Gets Aid For Education Data System
The District of Columbia this week received a multimillion-dollar grant from the federal government to build and implement a student longitudinal data system.
The city's Office of the State Superintendent of Education announced Tuesday that it has been selected to receive a $5.7 million award from the U.S. Education Department for the system, which will store data on the city's school system.
In a statement, District Education Superintendent Deborah Gist said the new data system will allow the city to better track student achievement and meet federal reporting requirements. She also said it will streamline the collection of information from the city's public and charter schools, as well as data from the University of the District of Columbia.
"The statewide system will bring these siloed systems together into a single data warehouse which will house public education data down to the student level and over time," she said.
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