Immigration Bill Heads To House
Air Date:02/23/2011
By Kealey Bultena
Senators approved a measure that punishes employers who knowingly and intentionally hire illegal aliens.
Proponents of the bill say South Dakota’s problem is small but the state’s illegal immigrant issues could escalate. Republican Senator Jean Hunhoff says she wants to see the numbers.
"We’re continually having a debate about allocation of resources. We spent two hours on what we believe is lack of funding or enough funding for education, and now we want to allocate our resources to law officers in South Dakota to investigate our employers where we don’t have data to say we have a problem in place," Hunhoff says.
Hunhoff says South Dakotans are frustrated with little federal action against illegal aliens, but that is not a reason to pass Senate Bill 156. The majority disagreed. Senators voted 23 to 12 to support the bill.
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