Report Finds E-Verify Fails to Detect 54% of Unauthorized Workers

Posted on March 5, 2010 by Immigration/Global Migration Group

According to the Wall Street Journal, an independent report commissioned by the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) found that E-Verify, the federal electronic employment verification system, may be failing to detect 54% of unauthorized workers processed. According to the 338-page report (pdf), E-Verify experienced difficulty confirming that workers’ identities were their own. The purported reason: identity theft.

The stated failure rate is misleading, according to a U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Service (USCIS) synopsis (pdf) of the results. USCIS, a unit of DHS, contends that, overall, E-Verify’s accuracy rate was 96% and that only 6.2% of verifications processed concerned unauthorized workers. Accordingly, only 3.3% of total queries concerned unauthorized workers who were misidentified as authorized.

USCIS says it is actively working to lower the possibility of false positives by:

  • partnering with states on data-sharing initiatives;
  • developing methods for uncovering stolen identities and preventing them from being used for E-Verify purposes; and
  • adding more photographs to the system. Currently, E-Verify’s Photo Tool checks applicants against green card and employment authorization document photographs. In fiscal year 2010, U.S. passport photos will be added, and USCIS is working to also add visa photographs.
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Audit Reveals E-Verify Errors by the SSA Regarding Its Own New Hires

Posted on January 21, 2010 by Immigration/Global Migration Group

As reported by The Washington Times, the Social Security Administration (SSA) failed to run electronic employment verification (E-Verify) checks on 19% of the employees it hired in 2008 and 2009. The SSA, along with U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services, administers the E-Verify program.

The errors came to light during an audit by SSA’s investigator general which revealed that, of the new hires for whom E-Verify was not run, 44 individuals should have been flagged as tentative non-confirmations. The audit also found that 50% of the checks being audited were untimely. E-Verify’s terms of use require that a check be run within three days of an employee’s hiring. 1,874 of the checks were run too early, and 1,784 of the checks were run too late.
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The City of Lancaster, California Will Require Businesses to Use E-Verify

Posted on January 4, 2010 by Immigration/Global Migration Group

Businesses in the southern California city of Lancaster will be required to use E-Verify to confirm new hires’ eligibility to legally work in the United States, according to the Los Angeles Times. Companies that fail to comply with the requirement could face revocation of their business license. At least 11,000 California business are already enrolled in the E-Verify program, which processed over 8.5 million queries in fiscal year 2009.

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USCIS's New Verification Operations Center Aims to Improve Integrity of E-Verify and SAVE Programs

Posted on December 1, 2009 by Immigration/Global Migration Group

As reported previously on this blog, U.S. Citizenship & Immigration Services (USCIS) officially announced the opening of a new Verification Operations Center in Buffalo, NY. This center will employ approximately 135 people with the sole objective of performing immigration status verification for the Systematic Alien Verification for Entitlements (SAVE) and E-Verify systems. Specifically, the new center will run verification checks of employee work authorization status for companies enrolled in E-Verify, and it will confirm immigration status inquiries for government entities using SAVE. This is the first USCIS field office dedicated to monitoring compliance and ensuring the correct use of the SAVE and E-Verify programs. The Buffalo Verification Operations Center will spearhead USCIS's initiative to stop employers and third-party "investigation" companies from using E-Verify improperly. This development is the government's attempt to improve the integrity of both SAVE and E-Verify. These efforts may also facilitate the reduction of potential discriminatory effect in the application of E-Verify procedures and safeguard privacy interests.

USCIS Acting Deputy Director Michael Aytes, who was present at the opening ceremony of the Buffalo center, remarked on the growth of E-Verify and SAVE, stating "participation in the E-Verify and SAVE programs has increased dramatically, particularly in E-Verify with a five-fold increase." On behalf of the administration, he sent a clear message to employers and others that E-Verify and SAVE are here to stay, and that the usage of both programs will be monitored closely to ensure they are being used properly. It is recommended that employers participating in E-Verify check that they are in compliance. Examples of noncompliance with employers' E-Verify obligations include:

  • Enrolling in E-Verify and signing a Memorandum of Understanding, and then failing to run all new employees through the system.
  • Erroneously using the system for pre-screening purposes.
  • Failing to process new employees through E-Verify within the three-day period from start of employment.

Interestingly, the USCIS announcement stated that 170,000 employers in approximately 650,000 worksites are participating in E-Verify, with a 97% automatic confirmation of employment eligibility. USCIS also reported that 300 agencies (including 175 state entities, 30 state DMVs, 64 local agencies, and 28 federal agencies) are now participating in SAVE, with about 11.6 million inquiries run through the system in FY2009.

Enforcement actions are on the rise -- significantly. Employers should seriously assess overall corporate immigration compliance; conduct internal audits of I-9 records; determine the effect immigration compliance will have upon other employment-related considerations (such as wage and hour and labor relations concerns); and, finally, review E-Verify obligations immediately.

This entry was written by Ian Macdonald.
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USCIS Announces Increased Enforcement and Compliance Initiatives, Including Issuance of 1,000 Additional Notices of Inspection

Posted on November 19, 2009 by Immigration/Global Migration Group

At a symposium in Washington, D.C., US Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) announced that today (November 19, 2009), an additional 1,000 Notices of Inspection (NOI) will be issued. This is a significant move and reveals the administration's intent to increase enforcement actions against employers that engage in the unlawful hiring of undocumented workers. This year alone, Immigration Customs and Enforcement has issued 1,044 NOIs, which is three times as many NOIs than were issued in 2008. Adding another 1,000 NOIs drastically increases this statistic. To further illustrate the administration's aggressive pursuit of employers, Notices of Fines totaling $24 million have been issued in 2009, compared with $2.4 million in 2008. Also, during 2009, 100 companies and individuals have been barred from doing business with the federal government, whereas only one company was barred last year.

Other highlights of today’s symposium, titled “Government and Employers: Working Together to Ensure a Legal Workforce,” include:

  • USCIS Director Alejandro Mayorkas announced the opening of a new facility in Buffalo, NY, where 135 employees will monitor E-Verify activity. As part of this culture of responsible corporate citizenship, a "self check" system by which individuals may check their own status is in the early stages of development.
  • The administration's move to go after violators and increase its civil and criminal penalty activity will be augmented with a public affairs strategy aimed at working closely with employers. In this regard, the administration will implement an "I E-Verify" campaign, which will communicate to consumers that a company is enrolled in E-Verify and is complying with immigration laws.
  • Secretary of Homeland Security Janet Napolitano asserted that employers will be given the tools to maintain legal workforces and that "E-Verify and IMAGE will be a big part of that landscape." Secretary Napolitano pointed to E-Verify “as a tool for the future,” noting that: 169,000 employers are now enrolled; 2,000 per week enrolled last month alone; and 1.6 million queries already have been run through the system in FY2010 which commenced on October 1, 2009 (whereas 8.5 million queries were run in FY2009).
  • With respect to the E-Verify program, USCIS confirmed that it currently has 18,000 federal contractor companies, 9,000 of which have enrolled in E-Verify because of a Federal Acquisition Regulation contract clause. Also, USCIS has improved the E-Verify system's error rate and reported that 96.9% of inquires confirm work authorization immediately or within 24 hours; 2.8% of inquiries are not confirmed as work authorized; and 0.3% of inquires involve an initial mismatch that is later resolved as work authorized. The mismatch rate on naturalized citizens has decreased by 40%. Further improvements to the E-Verify system will be rolled out in December 2009, including: the ability to check real-time arrival dates if transposed on I-94 cards; a European date format identifier; and a photo comparison feature that will draw on information held separately by USCIS and the Department of State. In spring 2010, USCIS expects to introduce a function to E-Verify that will check company information against third party data to identify fraudulent activity.

This entry was written by Ian Macdonald.
 
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GAO Says Social Security Administration IT System Needs Upgrading

Posted on October 23, 2009 by Immigration/Global Migration Group

As reported by Nextgov.com, a Government Accountability Office (GAO) report suggests that the Social Security Administration (SSA) will need to upgrade its information technology systems to handle future electronic information exchanges. Currently the system operates more than 800 data exchanges that allow SSA to send and receive electronic information to and from state and local partners. The data exchanges are used for processing and distributing Social Security payments and validating identities of driver’s license applicants.

SSA officials anticipate increased demands on the data exchanges, particularly from E-Verify, the federal electronic employee verification system that uses Social Security numbers to verify the employment eligibility of newly hired workers. To handle the increase, SSA will modernize its IT infrastructure and develop a more cost-effective and efficient computing environment. It will convert outdated software applications and expand the agency's physical processing capacity.

Although GAO found that the system, to date, had performed adequately, it warned that SSA had not implemented the necessary IT management practices to effectively oversee the changes in the data exchanges. The GAO also found that SSA had not sufficiently projected future demands nor had it developed a tactical plan for delivering electronic services.

 
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Senate-Approved DHS Appropriations Bill Extends E-Verify, Other Immigration-Related Visa Programs

Posted on October 22, 2009 by Governmental Affairs Team

On Tuesday the Senate approved by a vote of 79-19 the conference report for the Department of Homeland Security Appropriations bill (H.R. 2892) that includes provisions extending the E-Verify employment verification system and other visa programs. The House approved the conference report on October 15.  Continue reading about this development on Littler's Washington D.C. Employment Law Update blog.
 

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California Legislature Passes Resolution Condemning Federal Immigration Policy

Posted on October 1, 2009 by Immigration/Global Migration Group

Examiner.com reports that California’s legislature has passed a non-binding resolution condemning federal immigration policies, practices and enforcement. The resolution, drafted by California State Senator Gilbert Cedillo, urges Congress and President Obama to declare a moratorium on immigration policies and practices until comprehensive immigration reform is enacted.

Although the resolution has no legal effect, opponents contend that a moratorium would negatively impact public safety. Anti-immigration advocates assert that the resolution’s sentiment does not represent that of the majority of Californians and that illegal immigrants would benefit from the proposal.

The resolution notes the financial contributions of immigrants (documented as well as undocumented), while criticizing various actions such as employer audits and, particularly, the E-Verify system. 

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Obama Administration's Immigration Policy Resembles Bush's

Posted on August 7, 2009 by Immigration/Global Migration Group

The New York Times reports that President Obama’s approach to immigration enforcement has remained similar to that of his predecessor. Employee paperwork audits have been conducted at hundreds of businesses and prosecutions for immigration violations have increased. E-Verify, the federal program that allows employers to check applicants’ work authorization status, has been expanded, as has a cooperative program between federal, state, and local officials that runs immigration checks on individuals booked at certain local jails.

The reliance on holdover policies has upset immigrant and Latino advocates, key supporters of Obama’s election, who believed the new administration would take a different, less harsh approach. Although administration officials state that they have backed away from unpopular mass factory roundups of illegal immigrants, advocates contend that the administration’s continuation of existing programs will result in further ethnic profiling and civil rights violations.

As previously discussed, Democrats are planning to introduce an immigration reform bill sometime this year or in early 2010. Anticipating a legislative battle, influential party members have suggested members alter their language when discussing the issue—e.g., abandoning the term “undocumented” in reference to illegal immigrants—to demonstrate their commitment to preventing illegal immigration and strengthening immigration enforcement.

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New Employee Verification Act Introduced; Proposes Alternative to E-Verify

Posted on April 24, 2009 by Immigration/Global Migration Group

Representatives Gabrielle Giffords (D-AZ) and Sam Johnson (R-TX) have introduced a bill that would establish a mandatory electronic verification system to take the place of E-Verify. As reported at Workforce.com, Giffords and Johnson hope their bill, the New Employee Verification Act, will either be the foundation for employment verification in a broader immigration bill or move through Congress on its own.

The proposed legislation would:

  • Require all employers to use either the Electronic Employment Verification System (based on the new-hire system used to enforce child support payments) or the Secure Electronic Employment Verification System (which would authenticate an employee’s identity using biometric information). Data for recently hired employees would be checked against Social Security and Department of Homeland Security databases to determine work eligibility.
  • Eliminate the I-9 immigration form.
  • Establish civil and criminal penalties for employers that knowingly hire illegal immigrants.
  • Establish federal preemption of state laws on employment verification.
  • Require that the Social Security database, which has a 4.1% error rate, be cleaned up before the new system takes effect.

Giffords and Johnson have collaborated on the legislation with The HR Initiative for a Legal Workforce, which is led by the Society for Human Resource Management.

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