This is an archived article that was published on sltrib.com in 2008, and information in the article may be outdated. It is provided only for personal research purposes and may not be reprinted.
Posted: 10:51 AM- A special legislative committee will spend the next several months studying the ins and outs of Utah's immigration policy, focusing on the provisions in a comprehensive reform bill.
SB81, which passed the Legislature with a July 2009 implementation date for most of the provisions, penalizes government contractors that employ undocumented immigrants, requires a county sheriff to try to verify the legal status of someone arrested, and requires public benefits providers to try to verify a beneficiary's legal status.
The committee will look at issues such as the legal status of children of undocumented immigrants, crime statistics attributable to the undocumented population, and providing in-state tuition to immigrants.
It also will study provisions of SB81 which allows local law enforcement to help enforce immigration laws and makes it a Class A misdemeanor to harbor or transport undocumented immigrants.
The committee will meet up to eight times in the coming year and consist of seven House members - five Republicans and two Democrats - and four Senators, three Republicans and a Democrat. The membership will be announced in a few days.