Law-abiding businesses with Anne Arundel County contracts have nothing to fear from a new local government rule. County Executive John R. Leopold, a Republican, recently signed an executive order requiring all firms with county contracts to certify no illegal immigrants work for them. Why should taxpayers be forced to pay contractors who break the law?
Bob Burdon, the president of the Anne Arundel Chamber of Commerce, said the order “puts businesses in an improper and inappropriate light, when all of them work to comply with the federal mandate.”
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But that?s really hard to believe. As Northern Trust?s chief economist Paul Kasriel noted in late May, the minor downturn in national construction employment, despite major slowdowns in building, can be explained by the large number of illegal immigrants employed in that business sector. They are never counted when hired or fired. This hypothesis corresponded with the amount of money held by the public, which had sharply declined at the time of his analysis. Since many illegal workers are paid in cash, a decline in the amount of money held by the public signifies fewer of them working.
Federal law already requires businesses to hire those qualified to work in the U.S., but many businesses pay people under the table or do not verify Social Security numbers, particularly those in the construction, meat processing, manufacturing, and restaurant sectors.
The problem with the mandate is that it does not mean increased enforcement. Leopold said the county will only respond to federal Immigration and Customs Enforcement information about law breakers. The number of illegal immigrants living in Maryland varies wildly depending on whom you ask, with a range of from about 60,000 to nearly 300,000.
But the order does reaffirm the county?s commitment to following the law and particularly to equal treatment under the law. Employers too often escape punishment while employees face the brunt of the law. This order says businesses will be held to the same standard as those who work for them.
Unlike Howard County Executive Ken Ulman, who earlier this month “forgot” to file tax forms for his housekeeper until days after firing her for being an illegal immigrant, Leopold showed symbolic courage in signing the executive order. Just because everybody else may be ignoring the law does not make it right nor good policy. County executives across the state should reaffirm their local government?s commitment to its own laws by issuing similar orders. If it?s OK to flout one law, it?s a slippery slope to governments choosing to enforce only those laws they find palatable.
