E-Verify Not the Right Solution for American Economy

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:
Wednesday, February 9, 2011
CONTACT:
George Tzamaras or Jenny Werwa
202-507-7649 / 202-507-7628
gtzamaras@aila.org / jwerwa@aila.org

Expanding E-Verify Will Not Preserve Jobs for American Workers

WASHINGTON, DC - As the House Immigration Subcommittee prepares for its hearing, "E-Verify- Preserving Jobs for American Workers," the American Immigration Lawyers Association (AILA) calls upon Congress to tell Americans the full story of the flawed electronic employment verification system. Any expansion of this system will burden U.S. employers, waste time and taxpayer resources, and slow the nation's economic recovery. The Congressional Budget Office reported that implementing mandatory E-Verify would cost American taxpayers as much as $3 billion over five years.

AILA President David Leopold said, "The new Congress should be focused on America's economic recovery. Expanding mandatory E-Verify would threaten the jobs of thousands of U.S. citizens and saddle U.S. businesses with additional costs-all at a time when we need to stimulate our economy. Expanding E-Verify now would be in direct contradiction to the goal of creating jobs."

AILA supports American workers and the integrity of our workforce. Executive Director Crystal Williams asserted, "But E-Verify alone does not make workers legal. Only a viable immigration system does that."

"Once again, Congress is missing the point. We can't enforce our way out of a broken immigration system. What we need are solutions. Congress should consider a broad approach to immigration. Smart immigration policies that include a pathway to compliance for the millions of undocumented immigrants currently living and working in the U.S. would add billions of dollars to the economy and raise the wages of all American workers," said Leopold.

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The American Immigration Lawyers Association is the national association of immigration lawyers established to promote justice, advocate for fair and reasonable immigration law and policy, advance the quality of immigration and nationality law and practice, and enhance the professional development of its members.

Cite as AILA Doc. No. 11020864.