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A bill requiring Utah businesses with 15 or more employees to verify the legal immigration status of job applicants passed the Senate Friday, but only after lawmakers stripped out proposed criminal penalties for companies in violation.
Sponsored by Sen. Chris Buttars, R-West Jordan, the E-Verify bill, SB251, prompted heated debate on the floor before it was approved and sent to the House on a 24-4 vote.
"The federal government has said that E-Verify will become the backbone against illegal immigration," Buttars said in defense of his bill.
Sen. Ross Romero, D-Salt Lake City, opposed the measure even after the penalties were amended out.
"There is no penalty for noncompliance, but that begs the question, why adopt a law without penalties?" he asked in an interview after the vote. "The benefits of SB251 will be small compared to the burden on businesses."
Sen. Luz Robles, D-Salt Lake City, unsuccessfully tried to bump the threshold of employees in a business from 15 to 500.
"The problem with E-Verify is that it's just a match between a name and a number," Robles said, cautioning that broad use of E-Verify will be discriminatory against women who change their names when they marry.
"You will be creating a mess and a more complicated system for small businesses," said Robles, adding that she was a victim of identity theft herself. "This will not solve the problem of illegal immigration."
If SB251 becomes law, businesses that use it would benefit by being exempt from prosecution if they mistakenly hire people who are in the country illegally, said Buttars.
"It's like an insurance policy," Buttars said. "You're protected -- why wouldn't you want that?"
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Sen. Chris Buttars introduced 9-year-old Grace Weed, who had her identity stolen as a toddler, to senators on Friday. Records for her Social Security number now show her working 10 jobs, one in Park City, another in Wendover.
"My daughter's future terrifies me," her mother, Lynnette Weed, told the Senate, noting that she'd have to come armed with a file folder of information for Grace's major life events -- such as applying for a student loan or purchasing her first home.