Owens signs two immigration measures - New State Patrol unit, employer checks mandated

By Myung Oak Kim, Rocky Mountain News

June 7, 2006

http://www.rockymountainnews.com/drmn/government/article/0%2C2777%2CDRMN_23906_4755879%2C00.html

Gov. Bill Owens on Tuesday signed into law bills that will create an immigration unit in the Colorado State Patrol and require state contractors to sign up for an online federal program that checks a worker's immigration status.

Senate Bill 225, sponsored by Sen. Peter Groff, D-Denver, pays for the state trooper unit of 12 officers this year and 24 next year. They will receive training on human trafficking, the crime of sneaking an illegal immigrant into the country for the purposes of forced labor or prostitution.

The new unit, which will be formed this summer, will help state troopers respond to immigration cases and work with authorities from U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), said Lance Clem, public information officer for the Department of Public Safety. ICE will train the officers....

Owens also signed House Bill 1343, sponsored by Rep. Bill Crane, R-Arvada.

That measure requires state contractors to verify the immigration status of workers and allows the state to cancel contracts with employers who are found to knowingly hire illegal immigrants. The law takes effect in August.

The two bills are the last of seven immigration measures passed by the state legislature.

Last week, Owens signed four immigration bills, including two related to SB 225 that make human smuggling, sneaking illegal immigrants across the border for money, and human trafficking state felonies.

On May 1, he signed into law a measure that requires police to report suspected illegal immigrants arrested for crimes other than domestic violence or minor traffic violations to immigration authorities. That law took effect that day....

Also Tuesday, former Denver Mayor Federico Peņa outlined his position about efforts in Washington to fix the immigration system.

In a speech to the City Club, Peņa said he supports increased security at the Mexican and Canadian borders, better enforcement of laws that punish employers who hire illegal immigrants, and a way for illegal immigrants who don't have criminal records to earn citizenship.

He said he also supports "biometric" identification cards on which immigrants would put their fingerprints or other genetic marker on the cards, making them less vulnerable to counterfeiting.

Peņa said fences along the border "are not the answer" because almost half of the illegal immigrants in the U.S. entered the country legally through ports and then overstayed their visas....

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