Latest news with #HB955
Yahoo
14-04-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
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@ This article originally appeared on Tallahassee Democrat: Can an E-Verify requirement for all Florida businesses pass this year?
Yahoo
01-04-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
E-Verify requirement advances in first House panel, but Senate hasn't acted
Florida Capitol (Photo by Michael Moline/Florida Phoenix) A House committee advanced along party lines Tuesday a bill requiring all employers to use an online system to verify that their new hires can legally work in the country. The proposal, HB 955, from Seminole Republican Rep. Berny Jacques, would expand the use of E-Verify, the system that public agencies, their contractors, and companies with more than 25 employees must use to confirm their new hires are authorized to work. Unlike the other two bills expanding E-Verify requirements, Jacques' proposal doesn't bring additional fines and penalties against employers hiring immigrants without work permits. However, HB 955 is the only E-Verify bill that has moved in the Florida Legislature this year. 'It's not a gotcha mission. It's to make sure we're compliant, and we wanna make sure that those who are in this country working are authorized to do so,' Jacques said during the House Industries and Professional Activities Subcommittee meeting. The sponsor, a Haitian immigrant, insisted his bill is not about immigrant workers. 'One of the things I want to highlight before I end my close is to not conflate immigrant workers with what we're talking about here,' Jacques said. 'Just because you're an immigrant doesn't mean you're not authorized to work.' Some Democrats warn stricter E-Verify requirements could drive workforce away Gov. Ron DeSantis gave an early nod of approval to HB 955 before the legislative session started. Still, the proposal drew criticism over its lack of additional penalties from Senate Democratic Leader Jason Pizzo, who is sponsoring a dueling bill imposing tens of thousands of dollars in fines and loss of business licenses for companies hiring immigrants unauthorized to work in the country. Spring Hill Republican Sen. Blaise Ingoglia also proposed a bill, SB 1498, that would add penalties for those employers and require all companies to use E-Verify. More than 441,000 Florida companies have fewer than 20 employees, according to a 2023 report from the Office of Advocacy at the U.S. Small Business Administration, meaning that they don't have to use E-Verify. The Florida Department of Commerce can already fine employers $1,000 per day if they get caught not using E-Verify three times within two years. Companies hiring people unauthorized to work get placed on probation for a year. Orlando Democratic Rep. Anna Eskamani said she was concerned about the national trend of branding immigrants without legal status as dangerous and criminals. 'Of course, we want every business to go through these proceedings and to ensure these are workers with visas and so forth, but we also know that the immigration system is dramatically broken,' Eskamani said. 'There are folks who have a visa, and then it expires, and the process to renew is very limited. And these are folks who are also paying taxes, they're contributing to our economy and, beyond an unregulated status, they're not dangerous.' The bill has one more committee stop before reaching the House floor. 'We're going to fight and see it through to the very end, and the ball will be in the Senate's court as to what they want to do,' Jacques told Florida Phoenix. SUPPORT: YOU MAKE OUR WORK POSSIBLE
Yahoo
25-02-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Dueling efforts to expand E-Verify to all employers emerge ahead of legislative session
Florida Capitol in Tallahassee. (Photo by Jay Waagmeester/Florida Phoenix) Two bills filed for the impending legislative session would require all employers to verify that their new hires can legally work in the country. Employers hiring immigrants unauthorized to work could face tens of thousands in fines and lose their business licenses under Senate Democratic Leader Jason Pizzo's bill, SB 782, filed last week. Another bill, filed Monday by Pinellas County Rep. Berny Jacques, HB 955, also would require all companies to use the E-Verify system to confirm new employees' eligibility to work in the country but doesn't carry penalties like Pizzo's proposal does. 'We want to close all sorts of loopholes in our employment system to make sure that jobs are going to those who are legally authorized to work in our state and not those who are here illegally,' Jacques said in a phone interview with Florida Phoenix. The bills haven't been assigned to any committees yet and they don't have companions ahead of the March 4 start of the legislative session. However, influential Republican Sens. Jennifer Bradley and Joe Gruters signed on as co-sponsors of Pizzo's proposal. Jacques said he didn't want to replicate anyone else's bill and that's why he didn't file a companion to Pizzo's Senate proposal. Florida requires public agencies, their contractors, and their subcontractors to use E-Verify, but only private companies with more than 25 employees have to use the system. More than 441,000 Florida companies have fewer than 20 employees, according to a 2023 report from the Office of Advocacy at the U.S. Small Business Administration. DeSantis signs immigration bills less than an hour after lawmakers passed them Pizzo, a possible gubernatorial candidate, has been one of the loudest critics of the Republicans touting the state as a leader in immigration enforcement. One of the contradictions Pizzo repeatedly has pointed out is that large companies employing immigrants lacking work permits remain largely unscathed. Jacques' bill drew a stamp of approval from Gov. Ron DeSantis on X. However, Pizzo slammed it, pointing out its lack of penalties for employers. 'You're kidding yourself (and public) saying you'll 'hold businesses accountable,' but leave out actual accountability,' Pizzo wrote. Jacques said he hopes Pizzo didn't file the bill to troll DeSantis as a political stunt. 'What I will say is, if this bill looks different, it will not go in the weak direction. It will only go in the strong direction, but we will take all ideas that can make the bill even stronger,' Jacques said. 'But rest assured, we're very serious, at least I am, on making sure that we crack down on illegal hiring.' SUBSCRIBE: GET THE MORNING HEADLINES DELIVERED TO YOUR INBOX Under Pizzo's bill, companies would lose their licenses for a year and face a fine of up to $10,000 for the first violation. State law ostensibly already punishes E-Verify violations; the Florida Department of Commerce can fine employers $1,000 per day if they get caught not using E-Verify three times within two years. Companies hiring people unauthorized to work get placed on probation for a year and they have to report to the department quarterly. But the DeSantis administration threatened the first such sanctions only during his recent fight with legislative Republicans over how best to help the Trump administration carry out mass deportations of undocumented immigrants, sending warning letters to 40 employers, the Tampa Bay Times reported. The Florida Immigrant Coalition opposes expanding E-Verify, said Thomas Kennedy, a policy analyst for the group, in a phone interview with Phoenix last week. Pizzo's bill shows how the Legislature thus far has prioritized targeting workers rather than employers and repealing in-state tuition waivers for students lacking legal status, Kennedy said. 'There's a lot of compassion for these multimillion-dollar companies, but there's not a lot of compassion for students that benefit from in-state tuition, for example, that have grown up in Florida and want to finish their university degrees,' he said. 'And there's not a lot of compassion for workers that are putting food on our table or building our homes.' SUPPORT: YOU MAKE OUR WORK POSSIBLE
