This Week in Immigration: Sheriff Joe, Window Penalty, and More

E-Verify All the Time
Have you ever seen the movie Goundhog Day where Bill Murray finds himself living the same day over and over and over again? Welcome to the world of E-Verify, the federal electronic employment verification system (EEVS) that purports to accurately confirm workers' authorization for employment. Again and again policymakers have attached mandatory E-Verify proposals to any moving piece of legislation-whether it is related to the issue or not. Just today two amendments were offered to the DHS appropriations bill to expand the E-Verify system, and both were rejected.

Congress Beware: Don't Touch the Fence
As Congressional appropriations committees meet over the coming months to craft legislation funding immigration-enforcement operations for next fiscal year, they would do well to continue to steer clear of one of the Bush administration's more costly border boondoggles: the border fence. The Associated Press reported this week that construction of the final 40 miles of the 670-mile "vehicle and pedestrian barrier" has been held up for months by costly legal battles between the federal government and owners of the private property through which the fence must pass in Texas.

Department of Homeland Security Suspends "Widow Penalty"
The Obama administration took another step toward restoring fairness and humaneness to the immigration system this week. On Tuesday, Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Secretary Janet Napolitano announced that she would grant a two-year reprieve to immigrants who were married to U.S. citizens but did not complete the permanent residency process because their American spouses died during the application process. This policy announcement is the latest in a series of changes the Obama administration has made that signal a change in the "enforcement only" stance of the previous administration.
 

Salt Lake City Police Chief Takes a Bite Out of Immigration Enforcement
This week, a small group of Utah Minutemen gathered to protest Salt Lake City Mayor Ralph Becker's and Police Chief Chris Burbank's decision not to enforce some provisions of SB81--Utah's immigration legislation that allows the cross-deputization of city officers to enforce federal immigration laws. Not surprisingly, the protest did nothing to change the minds of Mayor Becker or Chief Burbank, who stand firm in their resolve that enforcing federal immigration policy is not only an ineffectual, costly and difficult program to run, it also hinders police from interacting with the community they have sworn to protect.

Arizona Sheriff Joe Arpaio Adds More Flash to His Pan
Anti-immigrant media glutton, Arizona Sheriff Joe Arpaio, doesn't stay out of the headlines for very long. In March, the menacing Sheriff Arpaio made headlines when he became the focus of a Department of Justice (DOJ) investigation for "allegations of discriminatory practices based on a person's national origin and unconstitutional searches and seizures." The federal investigation, a result of racial profiling allegations, only makes this latest headline all the more ironic-Sheriff Arpaio now says the Department of Justice is not playing fair in its investigation. Really? Fair? Ethical?