One of my dreams and goals for the last ten years!: “HB 87 imposes restrictions on High Security Consular Identification cards, which have no bearing on the holder’s immigration status…”

Global Atlanta

Gov. Nathan Deal Plans to Sign Immigration Bill
Ann Cantrell Atlanta – 04.15.11

Georgia Gov. Nathan Deal will sign an immigration reform bill adopted by Georgia’s General Assembly, according to a spokesperson for the governor.

Passed by the Georgia House of Representatives and Senate on April 14, House Bill 87 attempts to crack down on illegal immigration by mandating that certain businesses verify their employees’ legal status.

Brian Robinson, a spokesman for Mr. Deal, said the bill is consistent with governor’s campaign promise to deal with the “high expenses that state and local governments here incur because of illegal immigration.”

The governor argues that the bill’s provisions are within the state’s legal rights and that it protects the rule of law in the state, said Mr. Robinson in an email.

As Mr. Deal reviews the bill, opponents of HB 87 are already preparing to the take a case before the federal district court. Charles Kuck, managing partner for Kuck Immigration Partners LLC, told GlobalAtlanta that he is drafting a preliminary injunction to halt enforcement of the bill, arguing several provisions are unconstitutional.

HB 87 mandates that companies with more than 10 full-time employees register with the federal program E-Verify to check the legal status of new hires and creates the offense of “aggravated identity theft” for the use of false information.

It also authorizes law enforcement officers to check the legal status of suspected criminals if they are unable to provide identification and makes harboring an illegal immigrant an offense.

D.A. King, president of the Dustin Inman Society, which opposes illegal immigration, told GlobalAtlanta that HB 87 will create a respect for the rule of law, previously undermined by the flow of illegal immigrants into Georgia.

A hallmark of the legislation, said Mr. King, is that it includes clearly defined penalties for employers that ignore the provisions.

“This bill has set a new benchmark nationwide for enforcement laws,” he said, adding that it will kill the black market for labor in Georgia and open up jobs for legal residents.

In contrast to Mr. King, Mr. Kuck said that E-Verify provisions would not prevent businesses from hiring illegal immigrants.

He said that while companies must register their employees with E-Verify by Jan. 1 each year to obtain a business license, small businesses with just over 10 full-time employees could list a few workers as part-time employees to avoid registration.

The Consulate General of Mexico issued a statement saying that “if it takes effect, the final version of HB 87 retains elements that could have negative consequences on the human and civil rights of Mexican nationals living in that state, by further criminalizing immigrants.”

The statement also says that “HB 87 imposes restrictions on High Security Consular Identification cards, which have no bearing on the holder’s immigration status, and are issued under rigorous procedures and according to the Vienna Convention on Consular Relations to which Mexico and the United States are parties to. The bill also fails to recognize the significant contributions of migrants to this country’s society.”

Georgia governor to sign law targeting illegal immigration

By Gustavo Valdes, CNN

April 15, 2011

Atlanta (CNN) — Gov. Nathan Deal of Georgia plans to sign into law what may be one of the nation’s toughest anti-illegal immigration measures, his spokesman, Brian Robinson, said Friday.

Unmoved by threats of boycotts and lawsuits, the Republican-dominated Georgia Legislature passed the tough law Thursday night, during the final hours of this year’s legislative session. Robinson did not say when the governor would sign the measure.

“The bill reflects well the priorities and principles on which the governor campaigned … last year,” he said. “We believe that it reinforces the law in Georgia.”

Among other things, the bill allows law enforcement officers to ask about immigration status when questioning suspects in certain criminal investigations. It punishes people who transport illegal immigrants during the commission of a crime and imposes hefty prison sentences on those who use fake documents to get jobs.

After the vote, the bill’s author, Republican state Rep. Matt Ramsey, declared, “We have done the job that we were sent to do.”

Ramsey said the bill addresses issues forced on the states because of the federal government’s decades-long failure to secure the nation’s borders.

The bill passed both chambers after lengthy debate. Opponents argued that the bill could encourage racial profiling and discrimination. They also said the measure could hurt the image and the economy of the state.

Supporters blamed illegal immigrants for overcrowding Georgia’s schools and forcing taxpayers to shoulder the burden of paying for emergency room medical care for undocumented residents.

“People come here, legally or illegally, to fulfill the dreams that they have for themselves and their families,” said state Sen. Vincent Fort, an Atlanta Democrat and an opponent of the bill.

State Sen. Renee Unterman, a suburban Atlanta Republican who supported the legislation, countered, “They are illegals, they are going to use our services.”

In the end, neither chamber’s vote was close. The state Senate passed the measure by 37 to 19. The Georgia House, which provided final passage for the bill, approved it 112 to 59.

The Thursday vote marks the second time in five years that Georgia lawmakers passed an anti-illegal immigration bill heralded as one of the toughest in the nation. In 2006, the state Legislature passed a bill, later signed into law, requiring government contractors and public employers to run the names of people they hire through a federal database to determine if they are legal residents of the United States.

House Bill 87 requires private businesses with more than 10 employees to use the same database. The system is called E-Verify. The legislation enables state and local law enforcement officers to arrest illegal immigrants. It also imposes prison sentences of up to one year and fines of up to $1,000 for people who knowingly transport illegal immigrants during the commission of a crime.

Workers convicted of using fake identifications to get jobs could be sentenced to 15 years in prison and fined $250,000.

The business community, including the influential agricultural lobby, strongly opposed the E-Verify provision. In a last-day compromise, however, House and Senate lawmakers added language to the bill exempting businesses that employ fewer than 11 workers from having to use the federal database.

Republican state Sen. John Bulloch, who chairs the chamber’s Agriculture and Consumer Affairs Committee, said, “in the end, I still don’t like it but it’s a good bill.”

D.A. King, an anti-illegal immigration activist and longtime lobbyist for tougher laws, called the measure “one of the most well thought-out, potentially effective, immigration enforcement bills in the country.”

“On the state level, this will set a new bar,” King said.

Protesters held a candlelight vigil outside the Georgia Capitol Thursday evening. At the gathering, 7-year-old Jazlie Camacho, told the crowd, “I am here to make sure they take this law away.”

Jazlie is an American-born citizen, but her parents are from Mexico.

Paulina Hernandez, a member of a group called Southerners on New Ground, said her organization will call for a boycott against the state.

“We are not willing to tell the nation that Georgia is a state worth investing in because they don’t have the best interests of their people in mind.”

Several legal and activist groups, including the American Civil Liberties Union, are already planning lawsuits in an attempt to block implementation of the measure. They hope the courts will agree with them.

In Arizona last year, a federal judge halted implementation of that state’s anti-immigration law after the Obama administration filed suit. The president’s lawyers argued that the federal government, and not the state, has the sole authority to regulate immigration.

Last week, a federal appeals panel upheld the lower court’s order blocking the enactment of the most controversial provisions of the Arizona statute, which is known as Senate Bill 1070.

The court rulings have not deterred legislatures in other states from introducing copycat anti-illegal immigration bills. Among them are Utah and Indiana, as well as Georgia.

“The Georgia law is one of the best written and potentially most effective,” said Mark Krikorian, director of the Center for Immigration Studies, which favors stricter immigration control. The Indiana bill, meanwhile, has gathered attention because Gov. Mitch Daniels is considered a potential 2012 presidential candidate, Krikorian said.

In Indiana, Daniels would like to see a strong E-Verify provision, but is less adamant about granting law enforcement officers greater authority to question some suspects about their legal status, according to analysts.

Daniels’ preference for the E-Verify portion over the law enforcement portion could be because of the recent court of appeals ruling on the Arizona law, analysts said.

“The decision casts new doubt on the constitutionality of the Arizona law, and will likely further dampen efforts to enact S.B. 1070-like bills in other states, where economic concerns have already caused state legislators to reconsider or abandon them,” according to an analysis from the Migration Policy Institute.

HERE

CNNGeorgia Lawmakers Target Illegal Immigration

Governor Plans to Sign Bill Granting Police Authority to Check a Suspect’s Status

By ARIAN CAMPO-FLORES
Georgia Gov. Nathan Deal said on Friday he would sign into law an Arizona-style immigration bill, a move that would thrust his state into the center of the national debate over securing the country’s borders.

The measure “fulfills his campaign promise to crack down on the high expenses that state and local governments here incur because of illegal immigration,” spokesman Brian Robinson said in an emailed statement.

Voicing a frustration echoed by other governors, the statement added that it is the federal government’s responsibility to “protect our borders and enforce visa and citizenship issues. It’s past time that happen.”

The bill would, among other provisions, allow police to check the immigration status of certain suspects and require many businesses to verify that employees are eligible to work in the country.

Supporters say it would help Georgia root out the state’s undocumented population—estimated at 425,000 by the Pew Hispanic Center—that they believe competes unfairly with legal workers.

“Illegal immigration is destroying Georgia,” said D.A. King, president of the Dustin Inman Society, a group that opposes undocumented immigration and backs the bill. “It is lowering our wages, and it is a huge drain on our already inadequate budget dollars.”

Opposition to the measure has been intense. Business groups argue that it would sully the state’s image nationally and discourage employers. They also worry that the employment verification system—requiring employers to check prospective workers’ paperwork against a federal database known as E-Verify—would prove costly and burdensome.

Last-minute changes to the bill satisfied some concerns expressed by the Georgia Chamber of Commerce, said spokeswoman Joselyn Baker. Lawmakers agreed to exempt businesses with 10 or fewer employees from the requirement to check workers’ employment status.

Farmers say that the bill would drive out immigrant laborers—both legal and illegal—upon whom they depend to pick fruit and harvest cotton. And civil and immigrant rights groups say the measure would lead to racial profiling.

It will “create an extremely hostile environment in Georgia,” said Jerry Gonzalez, executive director of the Georgia Association of Latino Elected Officials. “Georgia is seen as the home of the civil rights movement.” … The irony is that the state will be working against civil rights.”

Georgia is one of 30 states considering immigration proposals, according to the National Conference of State Legislatures. Others include Oklahoma, Indiana and South Carolina.

As in many other states across the country, Georgia’s Hispanic population is experiencing dramatic growth, and that’s part of what’s driving lawmakers to act, said Debra Sabia, a political-science professor at Georgia Southern University. That population nearly doubled, to 853,000, in the past decade, according to the 2010 census.

“The fact is, Georgians have had little experience in assimilating immigrants,” she said, “and the rapid growth of the Hispanic community hasn’t helped that disquiet.”

Latino and immigrant rights groups are vowing to call for boycotts of the state, just as they did in response to the law passed in Arizona.

There, many business associations canceled their convention plans in the state. Mr. Gonzalez argues that the same could happen to Georgia. “It will be an economic disaster,” he said.

The measure also faces likely legal challenges. “We believe this is an unconstitutional measure,” said Azadeh Shahshahani of the American Civil Liberties Union’s Georgia chapter. If it passes, “we will examine all the options,” including litigation.

A federal appeals court Monday upheld a freeze on key provisions of an Arizona law designed to rein in illegal immigration, which is being challenged by the Obama administration.

The injunction came last year after the U.S. Justice Department sued the border state to halt the law, arguing that enforcing immigration is a federal responsibility. Monday’s decision by the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals stated that the Arizona law likely violates the Constitution’s supremacy clause, suggesting the federal government could win its case against the state.

In Georgia, Rep. Matt Ramsey, the author of the immigration bill, says he was careful to avoid some of the more controversial language in Arizona’s law.

The Arizona measure requires police to check the immigration status of an individual, detained in a lawful stop, who they have a “reasonable suspicion” may be undocumented.

In Mr. Ramsey’s legislation, police may only check the immigration status of suspects who are under investigation for criminal offenses. Moreover, his bill lacks a provision in the Arizona law—one that made it a state crime for non-citizens not to carry their papers—that the judge declared an encroachment on federal authority.

“We’re very confident from a constitutional standpoint,” said Mr. Ramsey

.

—Miriam Jordan contributed to this article.
Write to Arian Campo-Flores at arian.campo-flores@wsj.com HERE

HERE

Insider Advantage Georgia – a subscription Website. Reposted here with permission.

Key legislation that passed

Gary Reese
Editor

April 15 2011

Illegal immigration

The Senate finally checked off on House Bill 87, and Gov. Nathan Deal is expected to sign it into law. This illegal immigration reform legislation will force private employers in Georgia with 10 or more employees to participate in the federal E-Verity system. That’s a data base that allows prospective new hires to be checked for the legal status of their residency in America. Some provisions were added that give businesses a grace period in which to comply.

The bill also will allow police to check the residency status of certain persons who have violated other, often lesser laws. Expect court challenges to the legislation.

Few noticed the 100 or so protestors outside the Washington Street entrance to the Capitol on Thursday night. And that’s an important point. While Georgia’s apparent new law on illegal immigration has been labeled “Arizona-style,” for the internationally controversial immigration law in Arizona (which is now in the courts), the uproar in Georgia has been nothing like it has been out west.

That’s because Georgia, although it’s estimated to have more illegals than Arizona, is not a border state. Nor does it have a Latino political culture such as Arizona’s – at least not yet. (Another likely reason for the light turnout on Washington Street: Many illegal immigrants are understandably afraid to gather anywhere they can identified – although they doubtless would have been allowed to protest Thursday without being harassed in any way.)

As HB 87 made its way through the lawmaking process, InsiderAdvantage Georgia published a number of op-eds and “educational” pieces by nationally known pro-enforcement activist D.A. King. Although IAG took no editorial position on illegal immigration, we called upon King to do so because he writes a lively and fact-filled piece. We’ll soon have King write a detailed analysis of what to expect now that HB 87 will soon become law.

Said King on Thursday night, “Thanks to the tenacious work of [bill sponsor] Matt Ramsey this year and Chip Rogers five years ago, the state of Georgia is poised to prove the obvious. On illegal immigration, enforcement works. It was a huge victory today for common sense and the rule of law.”

Governor’s praise and diplomacy

In a late-afternoon address to the House, Gov. Nathan Deal said the special legislative session on redistricting will be called sometime in mid-August. He also congratulated the General Assembly for cobbling together the state’s $18.3 billion budget for 2012 without undue friction among lawmakers, and without excessive delay. The budget passed April 12 – instead of on sine die, with only hours or minutes to spare in the 40-day legislative session.

Deal later spoke to the Senate, where he made light of that chamber’s festering leadership fight by bringing to the rostrum a wrestler’s belt, to symbolize the rough-and-ready goings-on this year in the Senate.

Ethics bandages

The House overwhelmingly approved a bill that would prohibit lobbyists from spending money to schmooze state employees. The Senate had already voted to pass it. Gov. Deal is expected to sign the bill, which also allows employees of utility companies to make campaign contributions.

2012 session

Looking ahead to the 2012 session: The Legislature then is expected to tackle the issue of lighter or no prison sentences for non-violent drug offenders and others. Lawmakers this year established a special panel to look into the matter over the coming months.

Governor of Atlanta

After considerable haggling and lobbying – and considerable media and community attention – the General Assembly passed a bill that will allow Gov. Deal to remove members of the beleaguered Atlanta Public Schools board. The bill will undoubtedly be signed by Gov. Deal, and reviewed by the U.S. Justice Department.

Tax breaks
No tax reform overhaul passed this year, put tax breaks for a select few businesses and industries are headed to the governor’s office. After a dose of brinksmanship between the House and Senate over Senate changes to the bill, Atlanta-based Delta Air Lines got a $20 million exemption on the fiscal year that begins July 1 and $10 million the following fiscal year. The tax break would sunset in 2013.

Legislators also approved a bill that would continue a sales tax break for customers of companies like Gulfstream, which services private jets. And in late move than annoyed some, an amendment was added that would provide pricey tax breaks for businesses that design and construct certain tourist attractions, such as conference centers, golf courses and the like.

The estimated revenue loss to the state for these tax breaks could reach roughly $90 million.

Obama not

The Senate approved 35-18 a bill that would enter Georgia into an interstate healthcare compact with other states. The measure, now headed to the governor, is a nose-thumbing at the federal “ObamaCare” healthcare plan. The multi-state compact would set up so-called health insurance alliances independent of Washington. .

Contact

The following person contacted us at TheDustinInmanSociety.org on April 15, 2011:

Name:
Charles Siers

Address:

Atlanta, GA 30341

Phone number:

Email address:
tony_siers@yahoo.com
“Charles Siers”

Comments:

Mr. King,

If we follow your logic. Then the fact is you are a descendent of illegal immigrants and there for not an American citizen. So should you be deported.

You can spin this immigration bill anyway you want but it is racist. I think in your heart of hearts you know this. Thank you, I guess I now live in Nazi Georgia. Good thing we won World War II, Hugh?

Good day to you, sir.

___________________________________________

Technical information:
Remote addr:
Browser:

___________________________________________

The following comma-delimited string can be used to import data into a spreadsheet or database. This information is also archived on the website server:

first name, middle initial, last name, address, city, state, zip code, phone, email address, email alerts, registration date yyyymmdd, registration date mmddyyyy

Charles,,Siers,,Atlanta,GA,30341,,tony_siers@yahoo.com,,2011/04/15,04/15/2011

___________________________________________

The following email was sent to this person:

April 15, 2011

Dear Charles Siers:

Thank you for contacting The Dustin Inman Society through our website, www.TheDustinInmanSociety.org.

Please note that we may not always be able to respond in a timely manner to every email that we receive.

Thank you for your comments and thank you for your support.

Sincerely,

D.A. King
The Dustin Inman Society
www.TheDustinInmanSociety.org.

D.A. King: The Georgia Senate has voted on immigration enforcement and E-Verify

As I write on the eve of day forty and a 2011 Georgia Senate decision on who really runs the state, I can’t help but think back to the golden days of the first term of the Perdue administration.

What a difference five years seems to have made in the support for immigration and employment enforcement in the Republican controlled Georgia Senate.

Many of the same GOP state senators who voted “YEA” for the 2006 Georgia Security and Immigration Compliance Act authored by Senator Chip Rogers have now promised to defect to the “NAY” side and vote with the Democrats on illegal immigration. If they allow a vote. That is recorded.

A quick look into the fairly recent past at the record of the senate floor vote on Rogers’ landmark “06 legislation shows forty (40!) “YEA” votes for the bill that not only allowed for state law enforcement to be trained to expand their authority to enforce immigration law and verification of eligibility for public benefits. But it also had the biggy. The proven effective verification tool.

The 2006 legislation contained an E-Verify requirement.

Too many news reports and commentaries have left out the fact that Georgia has had an E-Verify requirement in place since April of 2006 when then Governor Sonny Perdue signed SB 529.

It is still there. Current anti-E-Verify senator John Bullock even voted for it. So did then Senator Casey Cagle. And Greg Goggins. And Ross Tolleson. Along with Jeff Mullis and Johnny Grant.

The 2006 law says that the no-cost federal E-Verify system must be used by all “public employers” and their contractors. Think… Atlanta, city of, or DeKalb County or GDOT. Or Turner Construction when they bid to build a school or courthouse.

E-Verify was much less accurate and less easy to use back in 2006. And we had fewer unemployed Americans.

But unless this long-time American is forgetting what he saw from the senate gallery then, the concept of voting against protecting jobs in Georgia with use of E-Verify was a very Republican concept.

How times change.

Take a look at the entire 2006 Senate vote record on SB 529 HERE . You may even see that five years ago, on illegal immigration, some Democrats also voted to protect jobs and the rule of law in Georgia.

Huh.

In any language, “change” has indeed come to Georgia. Today, we will all see just how much.

Si?

LAST DAY OF THE BATTLE FOR CONTROL OF GEORGIA!

PLEASE – ONE MORE ROUND OF CALLS/EMAILS TO YOUR GOP STATE SENATOR NO MATTER WHO THEY ARE:

” Please tell the Senator I called and asked him/her vote to “AGREE” on HB 87 – any other vote, to insist or to disagree is an unacceptable scorecard primary issue next year. I am a real, citizen voter – not an illegal alien or a caller taking orders from the business lobby or the ACLU. Illegal immigration is killing Georgia. Please don’t let it destroy my trust.”

The Senate holds the future of Georgia in it’s hands. Will it collectively tell us our votes are less important than the campaign donations from the businesses that hire illegal aliens while American stand in the unemployment line?

Thank you all for your help. Please pass this on and stay tuned tomorrow. Best to call now – and all day today (Thursday). Please pass this on to all who care about their children’s future!

GEORGIA

Republican state Senators

( X means they are firmly in pocket of Farm Bureau and Chamber of Commerce and will vote to kill

enforcement)

John Albers
info@senatoralbers.com

Phone: (404) 463-8055
Fax: (404) 656-6484
–
Don Balfour
don.balfour@senate.ga.gov

Phone: (404) 656-0095
Fax: (404) 656-6581
–
Charlie Bethel
charlie.bethel@senate.ga.gov

Phone: (404) 656-6436
Fax: (404) 656-6484
–
X John Bullock
jbulloch@windstream.net

Phone: (404) 656-0040
Fax: (404) 463-2279
–
Jim Butterworth
jim.butterworth@senate.ga.gov

Phone: (404) 651-7738
Fax: (404) 651-5795
–
Buddy Carter

bcarter331@aol.com
Phone: (404) 656-5109
Fax: (404) 463-4161
–
Ronnie Chance
ronnie.chance@senate.ga.gov
Phone: (404) 651-7738
Fax: (404) 651-5795
–
Bill Cowsert
bill.cowsert@senate.ga.gov
Phone: (404) 463-1383
Fax: (404) 651-6768
–
X John Crosby
John.Crosby@senate.ga.gov
Phone: (404) 463-5258
Fax: (404) 657-0459
–
Frank Ginn
frank@frankginn.com
Phone: (404) 656-4700
Fax: (404) 657-3248
–
X Greg Goggans
goggans@vzw.blackberry.net

Phone: (404) 463-5263
Fax: (404) 651-6768
–
Tim Golden
tim.golden@senate.ga.gov

Phone: (404) 656-7580
Fax: (404) 651-6767
–
Steve Gooch
steve.gooch@senate.ga.gov

Phone: (404) 656-9221
Fax: (404) 657-3248
–
X Johnny Grant
johnny.grant@senate.ga.gov

Phone: (404) 656-0082
Fax: (404) 463-2279
–
Bill Hamrick
bill.hamrick@senate.ga.gov

Phone: (404) 656-0036
Fax: (404) 651-6767
–
Bill Heath
billheath@billheath.net

Phone: (404) 656-3943
Fax: (404) 463-4161
–
X Jack Hill
jack.hill@senate.ga.gov

Phone: (404) 656-5038
Fax: (404) 657-7094
–
Judson Hill
judson@judsonhill.com

Phone: (404) 656-0150
Fax: (404) 651-6767
–
Bill Jackson
bill.jackson@senate.ga.gov

Phone: (404) 651-7738
Fax: (404) 651-5795
–
Rick Jeffares
rick.jeffares@senate.ga.gov

Phone: (404) 656-0503
Fax: (404) 463-1388
–
William Ligon
william.ligon@senate.ga.gov

Phone: (404) 656-0045
Fax: (404) 463-2535
–
Barry Loudermilk
barry@barryloudermilk.com

Phone: (404) 656-0034

Fax: (404) 463-2535
–
Joshua McKoon
jrm2016@yahoo.com

Phone: (404) 463-3931
Fax: (404) 657-3217
–
Fran Millar
fran.millar@senate.ga.gov

Phone: (404) 463-2260
Fax: (404) 657-3217
–
Butch Miller
butch.miller@senate.ga.gov

Phone: (404) 656-6578
Fax: (404) 463-1381
–
X Jeff Mullis
jeff.mullis@senate.ga.gov

Phone: (404) 656-0057
Fax: (404) 651-6767
–
Jack Murphy
jack.murphy@senate.ga.gov

Phone: (404) 656-7127
Fax: (404) 463-1381
–
Chip Rogers
chiprogers21@comcast.net

Phone: (404) 463-1378

Fax: (404) 657-9887
–
Mitch Seabaugh
mail@mitchseabaugh.com

Phone: (404) 656-6446
Fax: (404) 651-6768
–
David Shafer
david.shafer@senate.ga.gov

Phone: (404) 656-0048
Fax: (404) 651-6768
–
Cecil Staton
cecil.staton@senate.ga.gov

Phone: (404) 656-5039
Fax: (404) 651-6768
–
Jesse Stone
jesse.stone@senate.ga.gov

Phone: (404) 463-1314
Fax: (404) 463-1388
–
Lindsey Tippens
lindsey.tippins@senate.ga.gov

Phone: (404) 657-0406
Fax: (404) 657-0459
–
X Ross Tolleson
ross.tolleson@senate.ga.gov

Phone: (404) 656-0081

Fax: (404) 651-6767
–
Renee Unterman
untermanr@bellsouth.net

Phone: (404) 463-1368
Fax: (404) 651-6767
–
Tommie Williams
tommie.williams@senate.ga.gov

Phone: (404) 656-0089
Fax: (404) 463-5220

Our long, hard work toward enforcement is having making a great difference in the Georgia Capitol.

The last day to get HB 87 WITH E-Verify from the legislature to the governor’s desk is tomorrow.

Today, we focus on only one office: Lt. Governor Casey Cagle. The Lt. Governor’s office must be treated with respect. When you call, fax and email, please deliver a short, polite respectful and uniform message:

” We are watching. D.A. King is our eyes and ears in the Capitol. We are part of the majority who demands our immigration laws are enforced. We must see the HOUSE version of HB 87 with E-Verify go the Governor Deal’s desk for his signature….thank you.”

Office of the Lieutenant Governor
240 State Capitol
Atlanta, GA 30334
TEL: (404) 656-5030
FAX: (404) 656-6739
EMAIL HERE

This is what the agribusiness lobbyist is sending out. Please make the calls to the Senate to agree to the House version of HB 87. We do not want the bill to go to conference committe. The Lt. Governor will take even more out of the bill. DAK.

————

From: Georgia Agribusiness Council [mailto:dcartee@ga-agribusiness.org]
Sent: Tuesday, April 12, 2011 12:13 PM
To: Georgia Agribusiness Council
Subject: Immigration legislation update – action needed asap

Dear GAC Members,

We are reporting to you this morning with some good news on HB 87, the immigration reform legislation. Under the leadership of Senator John Bulloch, the Senate voted to remove the E-Verify mandate for private employers, which has been our desired outcome since the legislation was introduced in early February. There are still some issues in the legislation that passed the Senate relating to 1099 forms and the use of E-Verify, but this is a huge step in the right direction. Senator Bulloch shared the industry letter with 270 business signatures with each senator and referenced it during his comments. With your help, we made a difference in the future of this bill. BUT, it isn’t over.

The bill now goes back to the House where indications are that it will go to a Conference Committee. This process could provide the needed opportunity to take out other issues that are harmful to Georgia agribusiness.

Please contact your State Representative and State Senator as soon as possible and request that HB 87 go to a Conference Committee and that the E-Verify mandate remain excluded from the bill. They are hearing from a number of people who may not understand the impact this legislation will have on the business community and they need to hear from you! CLICK HERE to access State Representatives and CLICK HERE to access State Senators.

Also, please send a note of thanks to Senator Bulloch at your convenience. His email is: john.bulloch@senate.ga.gov. His efforts in standing up for businesses in Georgia made a great difference last night and we need to finish the drill and make sure that, if this legislation passes, it will not be detrimental to agribusiness and our state economy.

Thank you,

Bryan Tolar & Daniel Groce
Georgia Agribusiness Council
www.ga-agribusiness.org

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