Businesses feel the loss of illegal immigrants

By Mary Lou Pickel
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Published on: 11/09/07

Chris Campos sells machines that count dollar bills.

Hispanic businesses that deal with cash customers are good prospects for Campos, but he’s had to change his business model as a result of the state’s crackdown on illegal immigration.

“The market is in a state of flux,” Campos said. “We focus on grocery stores. They wonder, ‘Am I going to be in business next year, because all my customers are gone?’ They don’t want to invest in new technology.”

Such are the unintended consequences of Senate Bill 529, a new state law that requires —- among other things —- that jailers alert federal immigration agents to any suspected illegal immigrants booked on felony or DUI charges.

During a talk at the National Association of Convenience Stores convention Thursday at the Georgia World Congress Center, Atlanta attorney Kazuma Sonoda said restaurant business is down, too.

Restaurant owners along Buford Highway and in the Jimmy Carter Boulevard area say they’ve seen a 50 percent decline in weekend traffic, Sonoda said.

That’s because more illegal immigrants are afraid to leave their homes and drive if it’s not an essential trip. They fear being stopped by the police for traffic violations.

Many have been apprehended in Cobb County, where the sheriff has entered into an agreement with the federal government to enforce immigration laws. Cobb’s jail now has 500 people facing deportation

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