Chuck Grassley: “in 1986, Congress made it unlawful for employers to knowingly hire or employ individuals who are not eligible to work in…”

“in 1986, Congress made it unlawful for employers to knowingly hire or employ individuals who are not eligible to work in the United States. Identity theft and counterfeit documents have made a mockery of this law. Under current law, if the documents provided by an employee reasonably appear on their face to be genuine, the employer has met its obligation to review the worker's documents. This is why Congress created a pilot program, known as the Basic Pilot program, to help employers verify the work eligibility of its new hires. This program has allowed employers to check records maintained by the Department of Homeland Security and the Social Security Administration. It was successful, and in 2003, Congress made the program available in all 50 States. Now known as E-Verify, this nationwide program is free for employers and accessible via the internet. This program has been a valuable tool for those who want to hire a legal workforce. Employers like it. In fact, according to Westat, a private statistical survey research corporation that conducted a survey last year, 97 percent of employers found E-Verify user-friendly, and 92 percent said the program was effective.…”