Pennsylvania Immigration Bill Modeled after Arizona’s New Law
Rep. Daryl Metcalfe, who has sponsored a proposed Pennsylvania immigration bill similar to Arizona’s controversial law, has defended it saying that it will not result in racial profiling. The proposed immigration legislation – House Bill 2478 – will create new state offenses for being in the country illegally, for human trafficking and for applying for work while being an illegal immigrant.
According to a news report in The Express-Times, while Metcalfe defends his proposed bill, leaders in the local Latino community say that what is needed is comprehensive reform, not a law that will pose a potential threat to people’s civil rights.
The bill will also require all employers to register for and use a Web-based system operated by the Department of Homeland Security to verify a person’s immigration status and eligibility to work in the United States. In addition, the bill proposes mandating any agency that offers public assistance to verify a person’s immigration status.
There is no question that this is going to be a significant issue not only in Pennsylvania, but nationwide. Even as President Obama is inviting Republicans and Democrats to sit down and work on immigration reform, individual states such as Arizona seem to have taken matters into their own hands. As this issue progresses, it is the duty of immigration lawyers and other legal professionals to ensure that the rights afforded to everybody in this country by the U.S. Constitution are protected and upheld.
Michael Monheit is the managing lawyer at Monheit Law, outside Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. He has practiced law since 1989. Michael Monheit was the managing attorney of the law offices of Herbert Monheit — now Silverman and Fodera — a firm... Michael Monheit→