Under immigration legislation being considered in the House, living illegally in the United States would no longer be a violation of civil immigration law. It would be a federal crime.
Do employers of such immigrants get charged with federal felonies too? I’m guessing not.
In a no doubt deliberate move by the racist right in Congress, these immigrants can not qualify for guest-worker status because that requires a clean record and just being here will now make them criminals.
It would seem as though hiring them would have to be aiding and abetting a felony, which is usually a felony itself, I think. Of course, that would be in a universe with some logic in it–not ours.
Increases monetary penalties on employers for hiring illegal immigrants (up to a maximum of $40,000 for each offense). Roll Call 657.
If they actually enforced the laws against employers hiring undocumented workers, then California agriculture would grind to a halt.