Ohio will do what it can until federal government tackles immigration reform
BY JOHN CAREY • August 6, 2010
Read Full article in the Chillicothe Gazette.
. . . On March 24, my colleagues and I approved Senate Bill 35, legislation that directs the Ohio Attorney General to pursue a memorandum of agreement with the U.S. Attorney General under the federal Illegal Immigration Reform and Immigrant Responsibility Act of 1996 that would allow state law enforcement officers, who receive special training, to help enforce federal immigration laws in Ohio. It is important to note that the law specifies that no law enforcement officer may enforce federal immigration rules unless they have completed the necessary training, and nothing in the bill requires police to participate in this training.
That same day, the Senate also passed Senate Bill 150, a proposal that would give local law enforcement greater flexibility to assist federal immigration officials in the deportation of illegal aliens in Ohio.
Under current law, a county sheriff has the authority to arrest and detain illegal immigrants who violate a criminal provision of federal immigration law. However, this authority does not extend to civil provisions of the law, which includes matters of deportation. This limitation has left many local law enforcement officers with their hands tied in trying to address the illegal immigration problem in their communities.
SB 150 would allow local sheriffs to seek an agreement with the federal office of Immigration and Customs Enforcement to help in the investigation, apprehension and detention of illegal aliens who violate civil and criminal provisions of federal immigration law. In addition, the bill would allow local sheriffs, at the direction of their county commissioners and upon the request of federal immigration officials, to receive into custody anyone who is being detained for deportation or charged with a civil violation of federal immigration law. Like SB 35, nothing in SB 150 requires local police to enforce federal immigration laws or take suspected illegal aliens into custody.
In addition, after officials from the Ohio Bureau of Workers' Compensation testified before the Senate Insurance, Commerce & Labor Committee last fall that the agency does not currently check to see if injured workers are authorized to work in the United States before paying out benefits, legislation was introduced in the Senate to address the issue. Senate Bill 238, which passed the Senate in May, would require every injured worker in Ohio to prove to the BWC that he or she is authorized to work in this country, ensuring that the money companies are paying into the system now is only being used to cover the injury claims of employees who are legally authorized to work in the U.S.
America is a nation of immigrants, and I think most Americans believe that people from other countries who want to live and work here legally, should have a path to do so. However, illegal immigration poses a threat to our national security and financial stability and should not be tolerated. Until the federal government tackles immigration reform, Ohio, and other states, will continue to do everything possible to protect taxpayer resources and keep their local communities safe.
SB 35, SB 150 and SB 238 are all pending in the Ohio House. For more information, please visit the Ohio General Assembly website at www.legislature. state.oh.us.
John Carey, a Wellston Republican is the state senator for the 17th District, which includes Pike and Ross counties. To view his website click here. He can be reached at (614) 466-8156 or Email: SD17@senate.state.oh.us.
Dear Senator Carey,
State and local immigration enforcement measures waste valuable state resources on a federal responsibility and create mistrust in immigrant communities, leading to rising crime, while they DO NOT solve the immigration problem.
Furthermore, the BWC bill ignores employer responsibility in favor of placing the blame on the easy target and while burdening the entire public.
If you, Senator Carey, really wanted to aide in the solution, you would should spend your time talking to your Congressional representatives about comprehensive immigration reform instead of this kind of obvious political pandering.
Sincerely,
Name
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