Georgia Politico Wants To Revisit HB 87 Add More E-Verify

Georgia State Rep. Katie Dempsey (R-Rome) said at a recent question and answer session that the HB 87 law requiring that companies with 10 or more employees use e-verify should be changed to be all-encompassing. Dempsey’s comments came at a Society for Human Resource Management immigration panel in Rome, Georgia in response to a question from the audience.

The question asked why e-verify requirements — which will be fully phased in for companies with 10 employees or more by 2013 — are not extending to all employers, regardless of size. It’s important to note also that Georgia’s economy, especially agriculture, has suffered tremendously since this law went into effect.

Jerry Gonzalez, Executive Director of the Georgia Association of Latino Elected Officials (GALEO), was present at the panel — and unceremoniously dropped at the last minute — and told us that Dempsey’s allusion to further strengthening HB 87’s e-verify requirements doesn’t bode well for Georgia’s economic future.

“We’ve seen the negative impact HB 87 has already had, further tampering with it and requiring all businesses to comply with e-verify would hurt Georgia’s businesses and kill jobs,” Gonzalez told NewsTaco. “Certainly, we wouldn’t want to revisit that issue.”

Adding more barriers for businesses that are already suffering during a recession would simply create more problems for businesses that are trying to grow, he added. You can listen to Dempsey’s remarks in the video below, but note the volume is very low.

[Video By NewsTaco; Photo By Georgia House]

Subscribe today!

  • This field is for validation purposes and should be left unchanged.

Must Read