New Round of ICE Audits will Encompass 1,000 Companies
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As reported by Politico.com, Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) recently notified 1,000 companies in 50 states that they will be subject to an immigration audit wherein ICE inspects employers’ hiring records, e.g., Form I-9s and supporting documents. This latest round of notices brings the tally to more than 2,300 audits to date in Fiscal Year (FY) 2011 (October 1, 2010 to September 30, 2011), compared to a total of 2,196 during FY 2010.
Audits have been a central theme of the Obama administration’s immigration enforcement strategy. Immigration officials’ focus has shifted to employer, versus employee, noncompliance, the rationale being that the volume of illegal immigration will decrease if employers stop hiring undocumented workers. To prevent such hiring, enforcement agencies use their ability to impose civil and criminal penalties on employers.
In a recent article appearing in Corporate Counsel, Littler Shareholder Ian Macdonald observes that ICE is targeting specific industries: those that traditionally hire a large volume of undocumented workers, e.g., agriculture, construction; and others whose employees are privy to sensitive government information. He recommends that employers vulnerable to ICE inspections avoid fines by taking proactive steps such as:
- performing a self-audit;
- streamlining the Form I-9 process;
- implementing a record system allowing quick document production;
- correcting any deficiencies; and
- terminating undocumented workers.
Macdonald also notes that audits are less likely–and, in the event an audit occurs, punishment potentially less harsh–for companies with a record of government cooperation. For example, an employer’s enrollment in and use of the E-Verify program to authenticate individuals’ legal work status may be factored in by immigration enforcement officials during audits.
In the event of an audit, Macdonald recommends swift action using a three-phase approach:
- Phase 1: Review I-9 and payroll records, Social Security “No Match” letters, and cure deficiencies within three days.
- Phase 2: Build a rapport with ICE and cooperate with the agency.
- Phase 3: If a penalty is imposed, have counsel evaluate fines and attempt to negotiate down excessive penalties.
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Alabama is now the most recent state to require all employers to enroll in and verify employment eligibility through E-Verify. This requirement goes into effect on April 1, 2012. The new law prohibits all Alabama employers, public and private, from knowingly employing unauthorized aliens. Additionally, the law prohibits state government entities from awarding contracts or providing grants or other incentives to employers that fail to enroll in and verify employment eligibility through E-Verify. This provision goes into effect on January 1, 2012. Violations of the law can result in significant penalties for employers. The new law also creates a state law cause of action for U.S. citizens and authorized aliens against employers that refuse to hire or that discharge them while knowingly or negligently employing unauthorized aliens. To learn more about the new law and its implications for employers, please .jpg)
Rep. Sue Wilkins Myrick (R-NC) has reintroduced legislation that would amend the Immigration and Nationality Act to substantially increase employer penalties for violations. The 10k Run for the Border Act (
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The Fresno Bee 
Senator Saxby Chambliss (R–GA) has introduced S. 3912, “The Helping Agriculture Receive Verifiable Employees Securely & Temporarily Act of 2010” (“HARVEST Act”). The HARVEST Act aims to provide a non-amnesty option for temporary agricultural workers, streamline the H-2A temporary worker program, and discourage the hiring of undocumented workers. Additionally, according to .jpg)
The Houston Chronicle is 
Since October 2009, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) has levied over $600,000 in fines against Texas businesses for immigration-related violations ranging from incomplete I-9 records to employment of illegal immigrants, 
Audits, not raids, are the centerpiece of the Obama administration’s immigration enforcement strategy, .jpg)
With many in the nation watching, Arizona Governor Jan Brewer signed the "Support Our Law Enforcement and Safe Neighborhoods Act" ("SB 1070") into law. The legislation represents Arizona's latest effort to combat illegal immigration and is now the centerpiece of a national political firestorm, including criticism from President Obama and numerous public interest groups. In addition, SB 1070 already is the subject of two federal lawsuits challenging its constitutionality. Lost among this debate, however, are those provisions of the law directed toward Arizona employers. To learn more about the law and its implications for employers, please continue reading Littler's ASAP .jpg)
A 26-page outline of a new proposed immigration overhaul bill would require all employers to use a newly-created Biometric Enrollment, Locally-stored Information, and Electronic Verification of Employment (BELIEVE) System as a means of verifying employee work authorization. Within 18 months of the proposed bill’s enactment, the Social Security Administration would be required to issue biometric social security cards, which within five years would serve as the only acceptable document employers could use for employment verification purposes. The proposal also calls for a 300 percent increase in monetary fines against employers that knowingly hire illegal workers, and enhanced civil and criminal penalties against employers that engage in egregious labor violations involving unauthorized workers. To learn more about the proposal and the potential implications for employers, please continue reading at Littler's .jpg){kind=small}
Coastal Steel and Acoustics became the first company in South Carolina to sign an IMAGE agreement (Immigration and Customs Enforcement Mutual Agreement between Government and Employers), the agency .jpg)
The Fiscal Policy Institute 
The U.S. Supreme Court has asked the Solicitor General to submit a brief outlining the Obama administration’s stance on an Arizona law that punishes companies for hiring illegal immigrants, the 