Governor Flip Flops on Verification Standards

Governor Flip Flops on Verification Standards
Senate delivers bill the Governor has repeatedly endorsed

Columbia, SC – Today the Senate gave final approval to the strongest
illegal immigration bill (H.3032) in the nation. The plan approved by
the Senate creates SC Verify, a strong, state employment eligibility
verification method that will be enforced by the South Carolina
Department of Labor, Licensing and Regulation.

After the Senate gave initial approval to the plan, the Governor
immediately criticized it. The Governor also held a press conference
today saying the bill was unenforceable. These comments came after weeks
of support for a plan very similar to the one passed by the Senate. Now,
after the Senate has again completed the heavy lifting “the Governor
wants to hide in the bushes and take potshots at the Senate instead of
stepping onto the battlefield,” says Senate President Pro Tempore
Senator Glenn McConnell (R-Charleston).

The Governor claims, “by stripping out the E-Verify…the Senate has
taken out the single most effective part of this immigration reform
bill.” In fact, the Senate strengthened the illegal immigration reform
bill by including E-Verify, and creating SC Verify, a state enforceable
employment verification method that carries substantial civil penalties
for both failing to verify the immigration status of all new employees
and for knowingly and intentionally hiring illegal aliens.

The Governor goes on to say, “The Senate bill now includes a
provision…essentially the same as the failed federal I-9 Form
verification process.” In fact, the Senate’s SC Verify program
overcomes the very problems critics have identified with the federal I-9
Form by giving the State the authority to check and enforce employment
eligibility requirements.

The Governor states, “The Senate bill…contains fines that are
pre-empted by federal law, and therefore unenforceable.” In fact, SC
Verify will be a state document, which makes it enforceable by state
officials. The penalty structure of SC Verify mirrors the federal
penalty structure for similar violations. Therefore, the penalties in no
way conflict with current federal immigration law. SC Verify, for the
first time, brings local enforceability to the issue of illegal
immigration.

“We did exactly what he asked in multiple media statements, and it is
a pattern with this Governor,” says Senator McConnell. “He prefers
a political fight in the press rather than substantial progress.
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