Florida Senate may take up sweeping E-Verify bill before May 2
Florida's elected officials have tried in the past to make E-Verify mandatory for every business in the state, but have failed at every attempt.
But maybe not this year.
This year, a bill in the House that makes all private businesses submit employee records through the immigration status verification process has gotten through several committees.
Senate leadership said it hasn't ruled out considering any House bills in their committees, even as the legislative session enters its sixth week.
Will it actually make it to the governor's desk or will it die as in year's past?
'We still have a couple of weeks left. You never know what's going to happen,' said Sen. Joe Gruters, R-Sarasota. 'I think the goal is the stopping of illegal immigration, and I think one of the best tools we have is E-Verify.'
At a press availability on Wednesday, Senate President Ben Albritton, R-Wauchula, said the same: 'I would say there's a lot of time left in session.'
'Employment Eligibility' (HB 955) would require all private employers in the state of Florida to use the E-Verify system. E-Verify is a federal database that checks the identities of newly hired employees.
If a business runs afoul of the law, it's a $1,000 fine for every day the business is noncompliant. Also, all the businesses' licenses are at risk of being suspended.
"I filed HB 955 to ensure that Florida jobs go to American workers and not to those who violate our immigration and labor laws," said Rep. Berny Jacques, R-Seminole, the sponsor, on the bill's website.
"For too long, loopholes have allowed businesses to exploit illegal labor at the expense of law-abiding Floridians. This bill strengthens our commitment to fair hiring practices and protects jobs for citizens and legal workers."
Jacques' bill builds off of Florida's SB 1718, passed in 2023, which was dubbed one of the toughest immigration laws at the time. That bill originally required E-Verify for all businesses, but the final iteration of the bill set the limit to those with more than 25 employees.
At the time, some of Florida's business owners criticized the bill, saying it would raise prices and cause labor shortages, especially in agriculture and construction.
During the 2023-24 fiscal year, Florida was the state with the most H-2A visas for agricultural jobs, according to the U.S. Department of Labor.
"Florida is a living, breathing state – a home for its people, not merely an economic zone to be exploited," Jacques said. "We are more than just GDP figures or labor statistics. Our communities, families, and future generations deserve policies that protect their livelihoods and uphold the rule of law."
Another E-Verify bill was filed this year with stiffer penalties for businesses that don't comply, but it's expected to die.
It's a bill by rumored 2026 contender for governor Jason Pizzo, the Florida Senate's Democratic leader, who has been outwardly critical of the state's Republicans and their take on immigration enforcement.
During one of the Florida Legislature's special sessions on immigration earlier this year, the lack of a total E-Verify requirement came up after Pizzo argued the stack of immigration reforms wasn't "serious" if they didn't tackle employment.
His amendment that would have added E-Verify requirements to SB 2C was ruled "out of order" and didn't get a vote on the Senate floor.
Pizzo ended up filing SB 782 for this year's regular session, which includes harsher penalties for businesses who do not use E-verify for all of their employees.
lt would revoke the businesses' licenses, instead of just suspend, of those who don't comply. And any employer who runs afoul of Pizzo's version of the law would be out of the running for any public contract in the future with any public agency in the state.
But this bill, which even has bipartisan co-sponsorship with Gruters and Sen. Jennifer Bradley, R-Fleming Island, wasn't heard in committee this year.
"It isn't moving because state Republicans are not serious about combatting illegal immigration," Pizzo told USA TODAY Network-Florida in a text message.
Gruters, who was the main sponsor of all three immigration bills passed during Special Session C, said he believes the state will eventually pass mandatory E-Verify requirements for all employers, but it could be incremental change. He said even going from the current employee limit of 25 to 10, for example, "would be a positive thing."
"Only time will tell, but there's plenty of time left to make something like this happen," he said. This year's session is scheduled to end on May 2.
Ana Goñi-Lessan, state watchdog reporter for the USA TODAY Network – Florida, can be reached at agonilessan@gannett.com.
This article originally appeared on Tallahassee Democrat: Can an E-Verify requirement for all Florida businesses pass this year?
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